Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, founders of the Half the Sky Movement,
Will Speak at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalists Are Austin College Posey Leadership Award Winners
Austin College will host Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn as the 2016 co-recipients of the Austin College Posey Leadership Award on Tuesday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m.at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. The award recognizes the couple’s service in addressing the global issues of human trafficking, poverty, and gender-based violence These Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists have reached millions of people through multimedia initiatives and partnership with notable nonprofit organizations. The work of Kristof and WuDunn continues to empower women everywhere to overcome challenges and create change.
Following their lecture at the Perot, they will receive their award from Austin College President Marjorie Hass and David Corrigan, Austin College Board of Trustees chair and a 1981 graduate of the college.
“Austin College has cultivated new leaders in education, art, research, and global service for more than a century in North Texas, so we have a special appreciation for Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s efforts to end global mistreatment of women,” said President Hass. “They have shed new light on worldwide problems and created a new path for everyone to help transform today’s world.”
Kristof and WuDunn have written several bestselling books. Their most recent book, A Path Appears: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunity (2014), provides research-based solutions to issues facing women and girls worldwide. Kristof and WuDunn are also the founders of the Half the Sky Movement, an organization dedicated to raising awareness about the challenges facing women and girls. The Half the Sky Movement uses interactive elements of social media and partners with nonprofits such as TOSTAN, Women for Women International, Grameen Foundation, and others.
Sharing Their Message with Young People
As a part of the celebration of the Pulitzer Prize Centennial, Kristof and WuDunn will visit the Irma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School on Monday, March 21. Students from the Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy will join the Irma Rangel students in a seminar with the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, who will meet with the schools’ students of journalism and AP Human Geography.
The event is scheduled as a Pulitzer Prize Centennial Campfire, where Pulitzer Prize winners share “the values represented by Pulitzer Prize-winning work.”
About the Austin College Posey Leadership Award
The Austin College Leadership Award was created in March 2005 through the generosity of Sally and Lee Posey, founder of Palm Harbor Homes; the Posey name was added to the award upon Lee Posey’s death in 2008. The award honors outstanding individuals who, through their work, have demonstrated the principles of servant leadership. Previous recipients include well-known servant leaders Wendy Kopp, founder of Teach For America; Geoffrey Canada, president and CEO of the Harlem Children’s Zone; Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and founder of Grameen Bank; Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children’s Defense Fund; Salman Khan, founder of the Khan Academy; Dr. Nathan Wolfe, epidemiologist and author of The Viral Storm; and Shigeru Ban, Pritzker Prize laureate and founder of the Voluntary Architects’ Network.
About Austin College
Austin College, a private national liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas, has earned a reputation for excellence in academic preparation, international study, pre-professional foundations, leadership development, committed faculty, and hands-on, adventurous learning opportunities. One of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives, Austin College boasts a welcoming community that embraces diversity and individuality, with more than 36 percent of students representing ethnic minorities. A residential student body of 1,250 students and a faculty of more than 100 allow a 12:1 student-faculty ratio and personalized attention. The College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and cultivates an inclusive atmosphere that supports students’ faith journeys regardless of religious tradition. Founded in 1849, the College is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter.