While at Cornell studying Communications and Business, Alyssa played NCAA D1 hockey for The Big Red, served as a two-year captain, and was awarded the 2014 ECAC Co-Defensive Defensemen of the Year and Second Team All-American. She competed with the USA Women’s National Team from 2013 to 2016, including at two 4 Nations Cups while playing professionally for the Boston Blade, Boston Pride, and the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association from 2014 to 2020. Since completing her playing career, Alyssa has worked as a hockey coach for several men’s professional and collegiate teams. After a recent move to Rochester, NY, she is now in Player Development for the Rochester Jr. Americans, a not-for-profit youth hockey organization. She aspires to coach for an NHL team in the future. Follow Alyssa on Instagram @alyssag92.
REALTALK
Event Overview
Our panelists’ own Cornell experiences include struggles, strategies, and successes: Alyssa was managing academics with D1 athletics and a part-time job. Irene was taking a multi-year break from Cornell when family responsibilities intervened. They both had to consider some important questions and choices: You can’t have values you can’t afford – if you don’t have the resources or the network, doing the right thing can put you out of business. How do you decide what to compromise on? The speakers will discuss topics such as starting your own business to create the company you want to work for; building a vast network of peers, mentors, and supporters to thrive and lift up others; and staying open to unexpected opportunities and connections.
What You'll Learn
- How our panelists’ current endeavors deliver on their mutual desire to help others, especially college women, overcome similar struggles
- The need to normalize women in leadership roles and bring credibility and unique perspectives to historically male-dominated fields
- Universally useful strategies to succeed, such as receiving and giving coaching, building rapport, and fostering accountability and trust with your team
Speakers
Irene Li began her Cornell experience in the College Scholar program in the College of Arts and Sciences. She took a three-year break from her education when family responsibilities intervened and returned home to open a food truck with her siblings. Upon returning to Cornell, Irene’s experiences at the Ithaca Farmers Market and with a friend’s farm-to-table restaurant shifted her College Scholar coursework and galvanized a career in the food industry. She opened Mei Mei Dumplings restaurant in Boston in 2013 and has spent the years since driving the industry forward in ethical sourcing and fair and transparent employment practices. Now, Irene and her team are evolving Mei Mei into a packaged dumpling company. During the pandemic, she co-founded Project Restore Us, whose mission is to serve working immigrant families by raising funds and paying restaurants to package and deliver culturally relevant grocery staples to their doorsteps.
Today, Irene’s focus is on transforming the restaurant world into an industry in which workers’ needs and potential are taken seriously. She believes that professionalizing and dignifying restaurant employment has the potential to uplift millions of workers and small business owners. Inspired by her peers, team and experiences in the industry, Irene is building Prepshift, a tech tool that supports businesses of all sizes to thrive sustainably and equitably.
Shura Gat (she/her) is an Associate Dean of Students and Director of the Gender Equity Resource Center (GenEq) at Cornell. She earned her B.A. in Women’s Studies from Wellesley College and her M.A. in Critical Cultural Studies with a concentration in Women in Sport from the University of Iowa. She has prior student affairs experience in Student Disability Services and Campus Activities at Cornell. Shura’s passion for keeping people company on their transformational life journeys can be seen in her work at GenEq as well as in her vocation as a energy healing practitioner. She loves living in “gorges” Ithaca with her wife Becky and their furry companions.
While at Cornell studying Communications and Business, Alyssa played NCAA D1 hockey for The Big Red, served as a two-year captain, and was awarded the 2014 ECAC Co-Defensive Defensemen of the Year and Second Team All-American. She competed with the USA Women’s National Team from 2013 to 2016, including at two 4 Nations Cups while playing professionally for the Boston Blade, Boston Pride, and the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association from 2014 to 2020. Since completing her playing career, Alyssa has worked as a hockey coach for several men’s professional and collegiate teams. After a recent move to Rochester, NY, she is now in Player Development for the Rochester Jr. Americans, a not-for-profit youth hockey organization. She aspires to coach for an NHL team in the future. Follow Alyssa on Instagram @alyssag92.
Irene Li began her Cornell experience in the College Scholar program in the College of Arts and Sciences. She took a three-year break from her education when family responsibilities intervened and returned home to open a food truck with her siblings. Upon returning to Cornell, Irene’s experiences at the Ithaca Farmers Market and with a friend’s farm-to-table restaurant shifted her College Scholar coursework and galvanized a career in the food industry. She opened Mei Mei Dumplings restaurant in Boston in 2013 and has spent the years since driving the industry forward in ethical sourcing and fair and transparent employment practices. Now, Irene and her team are evolving Mei Mei into a packaged dumpling company. During the pandemic, she co-founded Project Restore Us, whose mission is to serve working immigrant families by raising funds and paying restaurants to package and deliver culturally relevant grocery staples to their doorsteps.
Today, Irene’s focus is on transforming the restaurant world into an industry in which workers’ needs and potential are taken seriously. She believes that professionalizing and dignifying restaurant employment has the potential to uplift millions of workers and small business owners. Inspired by her peers, team and experiences in the industry, Irene is building Prepshift, a tech tool that supports businesses of all sizes to thrive sustainably and equitably.
Shura Gat (she/her) is an Associate Dean of Students and Director of the Gender Equity Resource Center (GenEq) at Cornell. She earned her B.A. in Women’s Studies from Wellesley College and her M.A. in Critical Cultural Studies with a concentration in Women in Sport from the University of Iowa. She has prior student affairs experience in Student Disability Services and Campus Activities at Cornell. Shura’s passion for keeping people company on their transformational life journeys can be seen in her work at GenEq as well as in her vocation as a energy healing practitioner. She loves living in “gorges” Ithaca with her wife Becky and their furry companions.
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