Marianne W. Young

The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs. The University of Rochester is noted for its Eastman School of Music. The university is also home to the Institute of Optics, founded in 1929, the first educational program in the US devoted exclusively to optics. Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics is home to the second most energetic fusion laser in the world.

Cornell is a privately endowed research university and a partner of the State University of New York. As the federal land-grant institution in New York State, they have a responsibility—unique within the Ivy League—to make contributions in all fields of knowledge in a manner that prioritizes public engagement to help improve the quality of life in our state, the nation, the world.

In 1837, Mary Lyon did the unthinkable. She founded the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, which later became Mount Holyoke College — the first of the Seven Sisters. Radical moves for a woman wearing a bonnet. In doing so, she forever changed the landscape of higher education — not just for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts, but for women around the world. She built a place where women could develop their intellects, hone the power of their voices and cultivate courage. These days, change is all around us, happening at a pace too fast to measure. And while Mary Lyon couldn’t have foreseen a digitally connected world, she did understand that a woman would need to be agile, creative and brave to live the life she wanted. Her vision still drives Mount Holyoke.