As part of the College of Charleston’s 250th anniversary celebration and in recognition of the work of women at the College, the College of Charleston introduced a new program, Phenomenal Women, honoring the CofC faculty, staff, students and alumni who are phenomenal women, as nominated by members of the campus community.
The Phenomenal Women Award was presented to the following at a reception on Wednesday, March 4, 2020, at the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture: Michelle Mapp ’06 (alumna), Sandra Slater (faculty), Marla Robertson ’06 (’19 M.P.A) (staff) and Cookie Desai (student). The keynote address was given by Jasmine Twitty ’10, the youngest municipal judge in South Carolina.
RELATED: Find out more about the Phenomenal Women program at the College of Charleston.
The Phenomenal Women program honors and celebrates women from all walks of life who have made contributions to diversity in the College of Charleston and larger Charleston communities. Through the recognition of these contributions, the Phenomenal Women program hopes to inspire others to embrace and promote diversity within their own lives.
The program was named after the poem “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou, which celebrates the idea of feminism and empowerment for women to be comfortable with who they are and within their skin. Angelou was an American poet, singer and civil rights activist who received a Pulitzer prize, the National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
