Friends of WGSS
The Friends of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies is a group of community members whose goal is to enhance the academic and co-curricular programs through various fund-raising activities and to stimulate community participation in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies through outreach programs.
Efforts of this group have resulted in three student scholarship programs, a faculty grant program, and a professorship in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Most recently, the Friends donated books and materials to the WGSS Library, lobbied for adequate space in the new home of WGSS in the Curry Building, and worked with students to produce the WGSS video. The new focus is to increase the membership in the Friends and to provide new pathways for mentorship of the WGSS students.
Why is it important for WGSS to seek funds from the private sector?
The university is state-assisted, not state supported. About 50% of its annual operating budget is provided by legislative appropriations. Private support enables the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program to go beyond its minimal allocated operating budget to begin to address the centuries old resistance to valuing knowledge of women’s lives and their contributions to society. Private support allows Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies to share an understanding of gender with women, men and young people in our region. The extent to which WGSS can create meaningful incentive for research and curriculum development, bring important speakers to campus, and sponsor educational outreach programs depends heavily on the level of support received from donors in the private sector.
Help UNCG forge new possibilities for students, faculty, programming and research.
More About Friends of WGSS
Judith Abraham
Judith Caroline Abraham has been a Friend of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at UNCG since 2011. She attended UNCG when it was Woman’s College!
After a career in office work management, she started her own successful small business, Tower Associates, until her retirement. During her lifetime, she was always involved in some manner with equality issues, hoping and working for peace and love. In 1995, she founded an organization named WOMAN (Women Over Forty Meeting And Networking) as she saw a strong need for cohesiveness for professional women over 40. WOMAN helped many move forward for 17 years.
Linda Arnold Carlisle
Founding Member, Friends of WGSS
Linda A. Carlisle was a founding member of the Friends of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at UNCG, where an endowed professorship and faculty research grant are named in her honor. She remains involved in supporting the program in numerous ways.
After a full professional career including a broad range of executive positions in business and banking and running her own successful business with her husband, Carlisle retired in 1997 to build on her strong commitment to serving the community. Her work has included service on a number of community and art organization boards, statewide Commissions, University Boards of Trustees, a wide range of fundraising leadership roles, a founding board member of a new community bank, and service in a number of key advisory roles for businesses and political leaders. From January 2009 to January 2013, she served as Secretary of the N. C. Department of Cultural Resources under Governor Beverly Perdue and in January 2012, Sec. Carlisle was named to the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, which advises the U.S. Secretary of Commerce on matters pertaining to the vital U.S. tourism industry.
Carlisle has received numerous local and national awards in recognition of her leadership and support of women and families. Most recently, she was honored as a founding Board member on the 30th anniversary of Planned Parenthood of Greensboro.
Carlisle received a Bachelor Degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Master of Business Administration degree from Wake Forest University.
Sarah Colonna
Sarah E. Colonna is pursuing her PhD in the Department of Educational Studies at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She holds a Master’s degree in Women’s and Gender Studies from UNCG where she has taught in the undergraduate program. With a background in nursing and a current concentration on youth leadership, Sarah has worked in the community as a non-profit board member, youth facilitator, and community college instructor.
Sally Cone
Founding Member, Friends of WGSS
Carolyn Flowers
Carolyn is a World YWCA Board member from the USA that represents North America. She was elected Treasurer at the YWCA World Conference held in Zurich, Switzerland in July 2011. She co-chairs the Peace and Justice Taskforce and serves on several administrative committees. Her duties have taken her to Australia, Africa, Asia, Canada, China, Europe, the Caribbean and the Middle East.
She has been a member of the Friends of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at UNCG for many years, and also serves on numerous other community boards. She is a Fellow of the National African American Women’s Leadership Institute and served on their board from 2006-2008 and has participated in many local initiatives including Leadership Greensboro, Challenge Greensboro, Other Voices Greensboro, The Mosaic Project Greensboro, Leadership Discovery Gallup University and is a founding member of the Guilford Non-Profit Consortium.
She was the Regional Manager of YWCA’s Southeast Region from 2007 until April 2011, where she managed the activities of the 25 YWCA’s in the seven southern states. Prior to accepting the regional position, Carolyn was CEO of the YWCA Greensboro from 2001-2007. She came to the this position after volunteering there and serving on the board and various communities for over 20 years. Volunteering at the YWCA Carolyn was instrumental in the development and growth of the Parent Teen Mentoring Program, which works to keep pregnant teens in school and to further their education. Prior to this Carolyn had a long career in finance and banking with Bank of America and Great Western Finance. She retired as Vice President of Credit Risk Operations, NA for Bank of America.
Carolyn has a BS from Greensboro College in Business Management and Economics. She is currently working on a certificate in Non-Profit Management from Duke University.
She is the recipient of the Greensboro College 2010 Alumni Excellence Award and was featured in the July issue of The Business Journal and is the recipient of the 2011 YWCA’s Lifetime Achievement Award..
She enjoys traveling, reading, golf and fishing. She is married to Raymond Sr., has one son Raymond Jr. who lives in High Point NC with children Gianna and Devin.
Sarah Hamrick
Sarah graduated from UNCG in December of 2009 as a Women and Gender Studies major. While a WGS student at UNCG, she was the recipient of both the Sally and Alan Cone Course Scholarship and the WGS Major Scholarship. She worked in the WGS office as an undergraduate. She has always been passionate about the WGSS program at UNCG and loves finding ways to apply the knowledge she gained as WGS major to all aspects of her life. Sarah currently works at UNCG as the Program Manager for the College of Arts and Sciences Advising Office and loves being a part of the UNCG community. She has also served as the Head Events Coordinator for Greensboro Roller Derby. Sarah and her husband Josh live in Greensboro with a house full of cats and had a daughter in February 2014.
Carole Lindsey-Potter
Friends of WGSS, Secretary
WGS Program Administrator, Retired
MFA University of North Carolina Greensboro
[email protected]
A native of Pennsylvania, Carole graduated from Adelphi University with a BA in Dance and UNCG with an MFA. After starting the dance program at Delta State University, she returned to Greensboro and founded the Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department’s City Arts Program including the Greensboro Children’s Theatre, Livestock Players and Razz-Ma-Tazz Musical Revue Company, and supervising the Music Center and classes in dance and visual arts. She also taught dance at A&T State University. Retiring from the city in 2002, Carole Joined the WGS Program as Program Administrator. Carole retired in July of 2012, but returns periodically when WGSS is in need of her services. She serves as secretary of the Friends. Carole is married to Chip Potter and has two children, Dianna Potter Walla – owner and knitwear designer of Paper-Tiger, and Greg Potter – a student at GTCC studying Simulation and Game Design and Sound Production.
Rebecca Mann
Friends of WGSS, President
Rebecca Mann was part of UNCG’s first graduating class of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Master’s students in 2008. She is the owner of Engage North Carolina, a small nonprofit consulting business, and serves as president of the Friends of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. She is also chair of the board of NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina, a member of the board of NARAL Pro-Choice America, and a volunteer advocate for children in foster care with the Guilford County Guardian ad Litem program. Rebecca’s favorite part of being a Friend of WGSS is helping current students connect with local people and organizations that are doing social justice work. She lives in Jamestown with her husband and a house full of cats.
Liz Seymour
Liz Seymour is the Executive Director of the Interactive Resource Center, a day resource center for people who are homeless or facing homelessness. Liz spent most of her career as a freelance writer, writing–ironically–for high end decorating magazines such as Southern Accents and Traditional Home, but her experience volunteering with a free food program called Food Not Bombs led her to join in the effort to establish a day center in Greensboro.
The Interactive Resource Center opened in January 2009 and Liz became Executive Director in June of that year. In May 2011 the IRC moved from its temporary quarters in Bessemer United Methodist Church to its permanent home at 407 E. Washington Street where it serves over 200 people a day. Liz is a graduate of Smith College and has lived in Greensboro since 1979.
Emily Smith
Emily has been a Friend of WGSS since 2005. She offers experience in both the non-profit and corporate worlds. Emily enjoys guiding WGSS students and advancing the WGSS commitment to inclusiveness. Emily earned a graduate degree in counseling from George Washington University and completed a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Duke University. She is an experienced executive recruiter and career coach and is affiliated with the Center for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, NC. Emily has lived abroad and studied French, Spanish, Finnish, Swedish, and Japanese (and is fluent in none!).
Deana Coble
Ernestine Taylor
