Out for Undergrad Expands National Board and Commitment to Diverse Leadership

NEW YORK, July 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of Out for Undergrad (O4U) today announced that Audrey Stewart and Cj Giovingo have joined the national O4U Board effective July 1, 2019. Their appointments mark the first time in O4U's 14-year history the Board is majority non-male identifying.

Stewart graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, where she then went on to serve 7 years in the US Army. Following her military career she graduated from Columbia Business School as a Point Foundation scholar and worked at Deloitte prior to her current role as a Strategy Manager at Google.

"I've been a volunteer and a mentor at the O4U Business conference for several years now and am very excited to work at this level with the organization. I think there are several areas where the organization can become more diverse and inclusive and am looking forward to lending my voice and experience to those efforts," Stewart said.

Giovingo is a Systems Engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, currently working on the Entry, Descent and Landing team of the Mars 2020 mission, NASA's next robotic rover to travel to the Red Planet.  Cj and their wife live as Faculty in Residence on the University of Southern California campus, providing Cj unique exposure to the needs of today's college students.

Giovingo said, "As a queer, non-binary person with a non-traditional path to professional success, I am thrilled to join the O4U organization to contribute to its excellent track record of uplifting LGBTQ+ students. As a Board Member, I look forward to engaging with students during this pivotal moment of self-actualization and to strengthening the diversity and inclusion measures with our corporate partners."

"We are so lucky to have Audrey and Cj commit to O4U's future," said Michael Ruderman, Chair of the Board of Directors. "They have each achieved professional success after overcoming unique identity challenges in their undergraduate careers.  I have no doubt they'll be strong role models for the next generation of LGBTQ+ college students and leaders."

Cindi Love, Executive Director of O4U, said, "I am so excited to welcome these new leaders to our Board. We are committed to having the unique combination of lived and professional experience of people beyond the founding narrative of white, gay and cisgender led not-for-profits and to really centering people of color, trans and non-binary perspectives and voices in our critical leadership roles. These individuals bring credibility, talent, experience, character, and the determination necessary to move the needle to truly inclusive workspaces in our nation and beyond."

About Out for Undergrad
Out for Undergrad (O4U) is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation chartered in New York. Founded in 2004, O4U's mission is to help high-achieving LGBTQ+ undergraduates reach their full potential.

Each year, O4U selects a diverse class of 800+ top-performing LGBTQ+ students from leading Business, Tech, Marketing and Engineering university programs and then underwrites their attendance at four industry-focused weekend-long conferences hosted by the leading corporations in each industry area. Students are matched with LGBTQ+ mentors from these organizations, immersed in sessions with thought leaders and meet the HR recruiters from employers. Students and sponsors alike rate O4U as "life changing" and many go to work at sponsoring firms.

Contact:
Cindi Love, O4U Executive Director
[email protected]
956-589-0623
http://www.outforundergrad.org

SOURCE Out for Undergrad (O4U)

Related Links

http://www.outforundergrad.org