Illinois Medicine

MEET THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS COLLEGE OF MEDICINE ELAM FELLOWS: Sara Rusch, MD regional dean of the College of Medicine at Peoria and professor of clinical medicine ELAM class of 1996–1997 "The experience was a tremendous learning opportunity with an exceptional group of women leaders." Sarah Kilpatrick, MD, PhD recently departed vice dean of the College of Medicine, professor and head of obstetrics and gynecology ELAM class of 1998–1999 "ELAM provided a time for reflection about your career direction, in a framework of thought-provoking questions and stimulating discussions." Karen Colley, PhD associate dean for graduate research and education in the College of Medicine and professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics ELAM class of 2006–2007 "ELAM helps you crystallize your career plans and provides a better perspective on administrative issues." Stacie Geller, PhD director of the UIC Center for Research on Women and Gender and the National Center of Excellence in Women's Health; G. William Arends professor of obstetrics and gynecology ELAM class of 2007–2008 "I became part of a learning community of women that I'm still in touch with years later." Pauline Maki, PhD associate professor of psychiatry and psychology and director of the Women's Mental Health Research Program at UIC ELAM class of 2008–2009 "The program changed my perspective. I now look at how policies and processes might improve the university as a whole." Meenakshy Aiyer, MD interim associate dean for academic affairs and associate professor of internal medicine, College of Medicine at Peoria ELAM class of 2009–2010 "Participating in ELAM gives women the energy, empowerment and confidence to take their leadership to the next step." Geri Donenberg, PhD professor of psychiatry and director of the Healthy Youths Program at the Institute for Juvenile Research ELAM class of 2010–2011 "ELAM helps women rewrite the rules for leadership, rather than just joining the ranks of what has been done in the past." P A 28 | WINT ER 2 011 ARTICIPANTS SAY the program has allowed them to not only fine-tune their leadership skills, but also to connect and form relationships with talented women leaders from around the country, a combination that has empowered them to take on new career challenges. Rusch participated in ELAM's second class. "A leader's job is to develop a picture of the future that is shared by as many mem- bers of the organization as possible, and then to start assembling the puzzle pieces to make that picture a reality," she says. "Participating in ELAM gave me better tools to collaborate effectively. My fellow participants provided examples of how to successfully manage both home and career demands"—an issue that she and her husband, who is also a physician, manage daily as they balance their careers and their family of seven children. ELAM broadened the network of high-level professional academic women around the country for Geller, who also directs the National Center of Excellence in Women's Health. "We cannot get women into high-level positions unless they are trained both formally and informally about how to be lead- ers," she says. "Programs such as ELAM allow us to recognize the problem and change the disparity." For her research, mentorship and leadership, Geller was recently chosen as the 2010 Woman of the Year by the chancellor's Committee on the Status of Women. This annual award honors a UIC woman who has consistently worked on women's issues beyond the call of duty and who is an exemplary role model. Colley cherishes the diversity—and commonalities—of her ELAM class. "I met women physicians, scientists and dentists from all over the coun- try," she says. "We were able to hear many different perspectives, but we found that we were all dealing with the same issues and challenges. The program also incorporates interviews with administrators at the university, which was broad- ening and helped me understand the institution as a whole." IYER PUTS THE SKILLS she learned at ELAM into practice as she focuses on mentoring junior faculty members in the Caterpillar Faculty Scholars Fellowship program, which she directs. "In planning my career path, I knew I wanted to grow into a position of administrative leadership," she says. "ELAM was an empowering program that helped me identify my strengths and areas of improvement and improve my skill set, and gave me confidence to take on new challenges." A current ELAM Fellow, Donenberg will use what she learns at ELAM as chair of the college's Faculty Academic Advancement Committee. "I am developing an action plan to facilitate better retention and promo- tion of female and underrepresented minority faculty through more effective mentoring, particularly for women of color," she says. "Women are still woefully underrepresented in top leadership roles, so there aren't many role models to teach women how to be leaders. In the past, there were societal and cultural pressures to exhibit one type of leadership style, which tended to reflect the 'male' approach. ELAM helps us rewrite the rules of leadership to include how women lead—providing the tools and the connections we need and want to reach our full potential and the level of leadership we hope to achieve." Maki attended ELAM just after having her first child. "The training was unlike anything I could have gotten elsewhere," she says. "In one hands-on exercise, we learned some hard lessons as we balanced the entire budget of a fictitious academic medical center. There's a great untapped capital of women's leadership. ELAM helps unlock the power of having more than one style of leadership at an institution." "The ELAM program has been remarkably successful and provides a huge leap forward for women," Allen-Meares says. "When women are in senior lead- ership positions, they are role models that younger women can look to and say, 'I can do this, too.' "

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