STAR Emcee

Monica Kaufman Pearson

In 2023, Monica Kaufman Pearson returned as our riveting Star Party emcee. Monica is a trailblazer for women in journalism. She was the first woman and the first minority to anchor the daily evening news for WSB-TV, Atlanta’s ABC affiliate. Monica has made a major impact on the Atlanta community through her unique gifts and talents, and she was our 2020 Star Party honoree.

STAR Party Shining Star Award Winner

Dr. Sandra Boham

Dr. Sandra Boham, President of Salish Kootenai College, has spent her career as an educator, a social justice advocate and a stellar leader in American Indian higher education.

The Rankin Foundation is over the moon excited to honor Dr. Boham, who, through her lived experience, has a unique understanding of the challenges Rankin Foundation Tribal Scholars face, as they attend college, parent, and work to support their families.  Dr. Boham is a passionate advocate for them, an inspiring role model, and an accomplished leader.

Sandra graduated from St. Ignatius High School and became the first in her family to complete a bachelor’s degree, graduating from the University of Montana with a B.A. in Sociology.  Sandra earned a master’s degree in Adult and Higher Education from Montana State University and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Montana.  Her many accolades include being named as the Tribal College and University Honoree of the Year by the American Indian College Fund in 2020, receiving the 2019 Educational Leadership Excellence Award from the University of Montana, and serving as a Woodrow Wilson Higher Education Policy Fellow in 2019.

Sandra views access to education as a social justice issue. She became interested in higher education because her parents both wanted to attend college but didn’t have the opportunity.  In 1977, Sandra and her mother started taking night classes together at SKC, which sparked a lifelong passion in her for higher education. She has spent her career in a variety of learning communities in California and Montana.  In 2013-2014, Dr. Boham was named Academic Vice President of SKC and later Acting President in 2015, until becoming president in 2016.

Sandra was instrumental in establishing a four-year nursing curriculum at SKC beginning in the fall of 2020 (along with nursing dept. director Dr. Lisa Harmon).  SKC is the first Tribal College in the U.S. to offer a four-year Bachelor of Science degree in nursing. This is particularly important because students receive culturally appropriate training that helps them provide better health outcomes in tribal communities with higher rates of health disparities.  Under Dr. Boham’s leadership, SKC notably has the highest graduation rate of any tribal college or university in the country at 62%.  The U.S. Tribal College average graduation rate is 21%.

The Rankin Foundation is delighted to honor Dr. Boham, who, through her lived experience, has a unique understanding of the challenges Rankin Tribal Scholars face, as they attend college, parent, and work to support their families.  Dr. Boham is a passionate advocate for them, an inspiring role model, and an accomplished leader.

STAR Party Shining Star Alum Award Winner

Bridget Reed

Bridget Reed was a 2020 Jeanette Rankin Scholar and is a Rankin Scholar Alum.  She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing and a Master’s Degree of Science in Nursing and Public Health. Bridget currently works as a nursing administrator at MercyOne Medical Center in Waterloo IA.

Bridget is a passionate advocate for improvements to community health and patient education. When she saw diabetic patients struggling to pay for their medications, she founded a non-profit organization called Focus on Diabetes that provides community-based education services and screening symposiums. While serving on a cancer screening committee, she organized Project Health, a prostate cancer program designed to empower men and their families with education to be their best advocates.  Through community engagement and her experience as a registered nurse, Bridget is helping to fill essential gaps between patient care and disease management.

Bridget’s outstanding work as a healthcare advocate has earned her many accolades, including the prestigious Iowa Volunteer Hall of Fame Award in 2021, the Iowa Hospital Association Health Hero Award, the Iowa Nurses Association Excellence in Leadership Award, and the Cedar Valley United Way Community Hero Award, among many others. Bridget was inducted into the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame this year.

The Rankin Foundation is incredibly impressed with Bridget’s passion, compassion, and dedication to making health care be the best it can be.  We are thrilled to recognize Bridget for her outstanding accomplishments with the Shining STAR Rankin Alum Award.  We are proud to have played a role in helping her achieve her educational goals.  Bridget has transformed her life through education and is transforming many others through her dedication to her career and public service.

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STAR Emcee

Monica Kaufman Pearson

In 2022, Monica Kaufman Pearson returned as our riveting Star Party emcee. Monica is a trailblazer for women in journalism. She was the first woman and the first minority to anchor the daily evening news for WSB-TV, Atlanta’s ABC affiliate. Monica has made a major impact on the Atlanta community through her unique gifts and talents, and she was our 2020 Star Party honoree.

STAR Party Shining Star Award Winner

Dr. Johnnetta Betsch Cole

Johnnetta Betsch Cole is a noted anthropologist, educator, author, speaker and
consultant on inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility in educational
institutions, museums, corporations and other workplaces. After receiving a
Ph.D. in anthropology, Dr. Cole held teaching positions in anthropology, women’s
studies, and African American studies at several colleges and universities.
Dr. Cole served as President of both historically Black colleges for women in the
United States, Spelman College and Bennett College, a distinction she alone
holds. She also served as the Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of
African Art, as a Principal Consultant at Cook Ross, and as a Senior Consulting
Fellow at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Continuing her long involvement in community service, in 2004 Cole was the first
African American to serve as the Chair of the Board of United Way of America.
She recently served in the voluntary position of Chair of the Board and Seventh
President of the National Council of Negro Women. She is an emerita member
of the board of the Dr. Maya Angelou Foundation. Currently she serves on the
board of the A. L. Lewis Museum on Historic American Beach in Fernandina
Beach, Florida.

Dr. Cole has served on the corporate boards of Coca-Cola Enterprises, Home
Depot, Merck, and Nation’s Bank South. She was the first woman appointed to
the board of Coca-Cola Enterprises and the first Black woman appointed to
Merck’s board of directors.

Johnnetta Betsch Cole has authored, co-authored and edited several books and
numerous articles for scholarly and general audiences. Her latest publications
are Racism in American Public Life: A Call To Action (2021) and African
Proverbs for All Ages (2021). Dr. Cole has received numerous awards, and is
the recipient of 70 honorary degrees. Throughout her career and in her
published work, speeches, and community service, Johnnetta Betsch Cole
consistently addresses issues of racism, sexism, and all other systems of
inequality. She is a mentor to people of different identities and cultures.

STAR Party Shining Star Alum Award Winner

Margaret Hall

Margaret Hall graduated from Arizona State University with her Master’s Degree on May 12th this year. She was honored to be asked to speak at the graduation ceremony.  Margaret is an inspiration, receiving three degrees (AA, BA, MA) in five years.  It was a bittersweet moment for her as she lost her 18-year-old son in a rollover car crash on Feb 15th.  She was devastated but persevered. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a 3.9 GPA. Thank You to the foundation for believing in me…. your investment in me change my life and the lives of my family. Six years ago I was sitting in federal prison and on May 12th I will be standing in the palace. 

STAR Emcee

Monica Kaufman Pearson

In 2021, Monica Kaufman Pearson returned as our riveting Star Party emcee. Monica is a trailblazer for women in journalism. She was the first woman and the first minority to anchor the daily evening news for WSB-TV, Atlanta’s ABC affiliate. Monica has made a major impact on the Atlanta community through her unique gifts and talents, and she was our 2020 Star Party honoree.

STAR Party Shining Star Award Winner

Lucille O’Neal

Lucille O’Neal is an American doctor, author, spokesperson, socialite and the president of the Mothers of Professional Basketball Players Association. O’Neal was born in Dublin, Georgia, and spent her childhood and early adulthood in the Central Ward of Newark, New Jersey. She has fourteen grandchildren and four children, former NBA center Shaquille (a.k.a. Shaq), Lateefah, Jamal and Ayesha.

Shining Star Alum Award Winner

Khadijah Abdur-Rahman

“Commissioner Khadijah” is a business owner and community advocate, who was elected overwhelmingly by the people of Southwest Atlanta and the communities in South Fulton County in November 2020. She secured the seat after a record-setting victory in the June 2020 Democratic Primary, winning by 16 points. Khadijha also made history by becoming the first Muslim woman elected in Georgia. Khadijah is a Rankin Foundation Scholar and a shining example of how education empowers women to do great things.