Lenora Foote-Beavers has just retired after nearly three decades in public service, including five years as a city court judge and more than three in Erie County Family Court.
Now, she’s excited to pass on her knowledge and networking savvy to other graduates and students, as part of the inaugural Canisius University Women's Leadership Summit.
“I don't believe I would be a judge today if I didn't know how to network well and to really understand the principles of networking," she said. "It's not just about, 'Oh, I want to meet this person and collect a bunch of business cards.' It's about developing relationships. It's about, you know, what can I do for someone in exchange for things as well, not just what they can do for me.”
The summit is an important opportunity for attendees to see other women who have been successful in their fields, Harvard University Professor Amerita Teresa Amabile said.
"My heart is swelling that I've got this opportunity to be at the inaugural Women's Leadership Summit for a number of reasons. One is, I'm a Canisius alum, and I've loved the school from Day One," she said. "And the big thing that I've seen missing in in the leadership world is the voices of women.”
Foote-Beavers has seen similar events at other universities and cities, but says Friday's is the first she knows of at a college or university in the Buffalo area.
"I'm so happy that Canisius was able to bring this to Buffalo, because people cannot always travel to some of the bigger cities to enjoy these type of opportunities," she said. They could be costly, and taking time off from work, there's lots of challenges why people can't do that. So, it's wonderful to have this right here at home."
Thinking about the summit, and speakers like CEO Keia Clarke of the WNBA’s New York Liberty, has Amabile imagining the next group of notable alumnae to come out of Canisius.
"I'm envisioning that there is a future Keia Clark out there in that student group, or in the alumni group; that there's a future Justice Lenora Foote-Beavers out there," she said. "There are amazing contributors who are in formation right now ... The fact that I can be part of that formation process — inspiring and encouraging, giving them ideas on how to do it — that's magnificent."
Clarke, the event's keynote speaker, takes the stage Friday at 1 p.m. in Canisius' Science Hall.
