创造性地给予:Katie Riker Sternberg ' 90
How do you think creatively to support the 社区 and causes you care most about?
For Katie Riker Sternberg ’90, an executive leadership coach and loyal 火博体育基金 donor for many years, creative thought has meant thinking about how she can continue to make a lasting impact on student learning experiences at Skidmore while also supporting individuals with autism — a cause that transformed her family’s life.
Sternberg and husband Erich, an insurance executive, grew up actively participating in the religious and educational 社区 their families were part of. 贡献 time, talent, and treasure is a commitment that remains important to their family; today, much of their focus is on making a meaningful difference in the autistic community.
In 2001, their then 3-year-old son, Jake, was diagnosed with autism; their daughter, 哈莉是一个新生儿. At the time of Jake’s diagnosis, the family was living in Louisiana, 支助服务很少的地方. 斯滕伯格采取了真正的火博体育风格 action, learning about different treatment options and therapy services so she and 埃里希可以开始建立他们自己的支持网络. 随着杰克渐渐长大 the Sternbergs discovered what it took to help him succeed, one thing became clear: Talented, passionate, and qualified support and medical professionals are essential. Today, the Sternbergs’ relationship with Skidmore draws on the family’s deep commitment 支持自闭症群体.
In 2021, the Sternbergs created the Katherine Riker Sternberg ’90 and Erich Sternberg Fund for Clinical Field Experience and Community Engagement at Skidmore. 该基金 支持体验式学习的机会 心理学 students who want to work directly within the autistic and developmentally disabled 社区. Students can apply for funds to assist them in a range of areas, including clinical field placement and community engagement opportunities, transportation, academic 支持材料，暑期住房和实习津贴.
The work of 心理学高级教学教授 Rachel Mann-Rosan '94 with the autistic and developmentally disabled 社区 inspired the family’s gift.
The generosity of the Sternbergs has been a game-changer for providing greater opportunities for students interested in gaining practical clinical experience who might not have 能够参与到过去.”Rachel Mann-Rosan, 94年心理学高级教学教授
In its first two years, the Sternberg Fund has helped 14 students gain clinical field 通过心理学系的经验. 这些机会包括支持 individuals and their families in their home to working with a group of individuals at a summer camp specifically dedicated to assisting children on the autism spectrum.
“Having a chance to work with the kids at Camp Reece was more than rewarding; it really made me feel like I was making an impact on the lives of the children who were there,” 23岁的Justin Zitelli谈到了他的临床经验. “我的经验允许我这么做 to further my knowledge within the domain of clinical 心理学 and confirmed my desire to work with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), ADHD (attention 缺陷/多动障碍)和焦虑.”
Experiences like that of Zitelli are what Sternberg was hoping for.
在火博体育，我认识到了自己的智力. 给予对我来说很重要 back — to provide current and future Skidmore students with the intellectual and creative 学院提供给我的基石.”Katie Sternberg, 90年
“The Sternberg Fund represents the strategic intent that my husband, Erich, and I established, to focus our philanthropy on building capacity for autism services," said Sternberg, who graduated as an 英语 major and history minor. “通过创造性的 thought and partnership, we were able to tie our support with Skidmore with the idea of wanting to build capacity at a liberal arts institution — not with graduate students, not with data or research — but rather by building career-defining experiences for students who want to make a difference in a community that’s so important to our family.
With the support and dedication of individuals built around Jake, he now lives in a private home with two housemates near Katie and Erich in Chicago. 他找到了满足 in his work at a local animal shelter, volunteers to read to children and adults with 残疾，并正在努力获得副学士学位.
The Sternbergs’ hope is that the fund they created will allow Skidmore students to engage in transformative experiences that will leave a lasting impact on individuals 像杰克一样.
