This weekend, Sigma Delta Tau Society proudly honored the 2024 Alumna of the Year, Carol Ann Schwartz (Epsilon–University of Cincinnati) at a regional alumnae brunch in Cincinnati.
Sixty percent of the registrants for the brunch were Epsilon members, excited to celebrate their sister’s recognition. “It really is an honor that they [wanted] to be there with me,” said Carol Ann. “I think it’s so wonderful. [They didn’t] need to come and see me, but for us all to be together is so special; to celebrate each other and our time together in college.”
In honoring Carol Ann’s life of service, there is so much to celebrate. She has a long and diverse history of giving back to her communities, which started well before her initiation into SDT. Her parents raised her to, “Join, take a leadership position, and make a difference.”
Even as Carol Ann participated in sorority recruitment, her parents’ influence remained strong. “I was thinking, ‘Where do I feel most comfortable?’” she said, “And where do I want to bring my parents? I remember knowing [SDT] is where I would be really happy to bring them.”
Carol Ann became the difference-maker her parents always encouraged her to be for her chapter. She served as social chair, treasurer, and president of Epsilon. The leadership experience she gained, she said, continues to inform her style today.
“I was brought up with the philosophy that you can always learn something from every educational experience.” She said each training was valuable, and she also gained a lot from being at National Convention and coming to understand the bigger picture of Sigma Delta Tau.
Today, as the National President of Hadassah, Carol Ann regularly runs executive board meetings, finds herself in high-profile networking environments, and engages with global leaders. In every moment, she said she calls on lessons learned through sorority membership and leadership.
Whether introducing herself widely in a crowded room, making changes to public remarks on a moment’s notice, or maintaining a strong relationship with her advising team, she relies on the leadership skills SDT gave her. “I was lucky to learn them young,” she said.
Always with her parents’ words in mind, Carol Ann is forging her own leadership path, seeking opportunities to develop upcoming leaders.
She served as a SDT Foundation Trustee, and subsequently the SDT Foundation President, over the course of eight years. For Carol Ann, being on the SDT Foundation Board meant empowering the next generation, especially through scholarships. She said reading the scholarship applications was a “blessing,” but her favorite part of the role was announcing the recipients at Convention. “To see their faces and their joy,” she said, “We knew we were able to make a difference.”
Carol Ann said there are limits to the number of members who can serve on the Board from one chapter. When she felt her service was complete, she moved on to make space for an upcoming leader from Epsilon. “I could have served longer,” she said, “But it’s about empowering another woman to say, ‘Let me step aside.’ Otherwise, we’re not empowering anyone but ourselves.’”
That empowerment of others is a catalyst in all of Carol Ann’s service. As the first president of a day school, an officer and Board member for her synagogue, on the Jewish Federation Board of Cincinnati, and throughout her work with Hadassah, she always kept the future in mind. “I have to make sure it continues to the next generation,” she said. “[If I] establish something new and do something great, but there’s no continuation, then I haven’t done my job completely.”
She said she always asks herself about the next generation.
“How are we training them? How are we engaging them? How are we bringing them into the system? And I [ask] are we being strategic? Are we being welcoming? Are we educating? Are we inspiring them? It’s all so important.”
When asked about her legacy within SDT, Carol Ann relies on the intergenerational advice she was raised on. “My legacy within the sorority is that I made a difference,” she said. “I always wanted to be more than just a member. I wanted to make that difference.”