Tri Delta Today

Celebrating Tri Deltas Who Lead, Inspire and Empower

This year, Tri Delta honored and celebrated true trailblazers who embody Tri Delta’s values as they lead on their campus, in their communities and in their careers, inspiring and empowering others worldwide. These brave, bold and kind sisters were honored with our 2021 Sarah Ida Shaw and Women of Achievement awards.

2021 Sarah Ida Shaw Award Winner Caroline Doyle, Oregon

During our virtual Collegiate Leadership Conference, Tri Delta introduced our 2021 Sarah Ida Shaw Award Winner, Caroline Doyle.

“Caroline has never settled for the mediocre, both for herself and her fellow members,” shared her alumna advisor. “As an officer, she has continued to excel in her academics (in a very difficult major nonetheless) and has not only shown members that it is possible to succeed but helped them make it a reality. As VPCD and chapter president, she was diligent about her weekly ‘watch list,’ making sure she was not letting any members slip through the cracks. She went above and beyond her expected duties and would reach out, call, meet up and tutor members who were struggling personally or academically.”

As president of Theta Delta Chapter, Caroline met the challenges of leading during the pandemic, while also ensuring her sisters felt cared for. At a time when many questioned the value of sorority life, Caroline helped them see the benefits of this community and all the ways they could still engage and stay connected from a distance. In her acceptance speech, Caroline reflected that “Tri Delta gives us the ability to understand the incredible dichotomy that is life. This is the idea that the good and the bad times are equally important and equally beautiful, and that by remaining steadfast within our values of truth, selfsacrifice and friendship, we can flourish through it all.” Caroline is now serving Tri Delta as a 2021-22 chapter development consultant.

Congratulations to Caroline for her truly unselfish leadership and to Sarah Ida Shaw Award runners-up, McKenna LeVitt, Nevada, and Madison Brandt, Wyoming. Read more about McKenna and Madison, and see a full list of nominees, at tridelta.org/trident.

Our 2021 Women of Achievement

There was no better way to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 than by honoring Tri Delta’s three Women of Achievement: Kara Barnett, Duke, Carol Hallett, Oregon, and Gayle JenningsO’Byrne, Pennsylvania.

All three have led the way through male-dominated fields. They have inspired others throughout their careers, and have set the standard in their diverse fields of the arts, government and business. Tri Delta is proud to share their stories and trailblazing accomplishments, as they continue to focus on how their work, lives and legacies empower generations to come.

Kara Barnett, Duke Arts Leader – Innovator – Producer

Kara Medoff Barnett was appointed Executive Director of American Ballet Theatre, America’s National Ballet Company, in February 2016 following nearly nine years as a senior executive at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. At ABT, Kara has advanced innovation and inclusion, supporting a robust slate of new productions and increasing diversity in the training pipeline.

During her tenure at Lincoln Center, Kara served as Director of Strategy and Business Development and Senior Director of the Capital Campaign for the transformative redevelopment of Lincoln Center’s iconic 16-acre campus. In 2012, she became the founding Managing Director of Lincoln Center International (LCI), established to extend Lincoln Center’s brand, facilitate artistic exchange, and advise government leaders, philanthropists, and developers on the planning and management of cultural infrastructure projects around the globe. Under Kara’s leadership, LCI launched the Lincoln Center Global

Exchange, an annual conference for international leaders and change agents to advance the role of art and culture in addressing critical challenges facing our collective future.

“One thing I loved about my Tri Delta experience was the camaraderie across ages and stages,” says Kara. “It’s easy to find friendship in the university setting in your class, but to get to know women who are 1, 2 or 3 years ahead of you on that journey who are willing to share perspective, knowledge, wisdom, advice … that I found so helpful. That idea of mentorship is one that continues to be very much a part of my career and my life.”

Carol Hallett, Oregon Aviation Industry Leader – Trusted Advisor – Elected Official

Carol serves as counselor to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. She served for eight years as president and CEO of the Air Transport Association of America (now Airlines for America or “A4A”), which represents the chief executive officers of U.S. and foreign flag airline and cargo carriers.

Following 9/11, Carol helped craft and pass legislation to save the domestic aviation industry from bankruptcy and took the lead in the redesign of airline security policies and practices. She was twice named to “The Business Travel Industry’s 25 Most Influential Executives.” Her areas of expertise include international trade and commercial aviation issues.

She also has years of government experience. President George H.W. Bush appointed her commissioner of the United States Customs Service which oversaw the processing of more than 1.3 million passengers daily and $1 trillion worth of merchandise annually. Carol was U.S. Ambassador to the Commonwealth of the Bahamas under President Ronald Reagan.

In addition, she was an assemblywoman representing San Luis Obispo, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties and served as minority leader of the California State Assembly. From 2001 to 2006, Carol served on the CIA director’s National Security Advisory Panel.

“Because I’ve been so fortunate to have done so many different things, it’s a responsibility to help, encourage and support young women to do something special,” says Carol. “No matter what you do in life, do it knowing that it can make a difference.”

Gayle Jennings-O’Byrne, Pennsylvania Changemaker – Investor – Champion

Gayle Jennings-O’Byrne is an African American venture capitalist who co-founded the WOCstar Fund, an early-stage investment fund that invests in tech companies led by women of color entrepreneurs (“WOCstars”) and diverse, inclusive teams. Gayle (pronounced: Gay-lä) takes a unique builder capital approach to helping entrepreneurs scale and grow to success, while working with investors and allies to participate in the innovation, wealth and success being built. She hosts VCs off the Record, a podcast for both entrepreneurs and investors that provides real talk by real investors.

With more than 30 years of Wall Street, technology, philanthropy, training and professional speaking experience, she is unique in her global experience and knowledge and one among few African American women to start a venture capital firm. Gayle is a highly sought-out content expert in matters of innovation, tech trends, finance, investing and entrepreneurship.

Reflecting on her Tri Delta experience, Gayle shares, “Dr. Maya Angelou said, ‘People will forget what you said; people will forget what you did; but people will never forget how you made them feel.’ For me that is really the essence of what Tri Delta means to me because I was this young girl in California coming to the East Coast to this big campus in Philadelphia, and Tri Delta made me feel like I had a community and family. And that feeling stays with me.”

See More Award Winners Online

We love recognizing and celebrating our outstanDDDing members, volunteers and chapters! As part of Tri Delta’s virtual Volunteer Leadership Conference in July, we honored and celebrated several dedicated members and chapters for serving with excellence. Read about the 2021 Volunteer and Alumnae Award winners online at tridelta.org/trident.

You can also find a complete collection of our Distinguished Deltas and Women of Achievement at tridelta.org/distinguished-deltas.