Sandy Rosenthal
| Sandy Rosenthal | |
|---|---|
| Born | North Attleboro, Massachusetts |
| Residence | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Education |
Mount Holyoke College (B.A., Psychology, 1979) Tulane University (M.B.A., 1981) |
| Known for | Founding and leading the nonprofit grassroots group Levees.Org in aftermath of Hurricane Katrina |
| Spouse(s) | Stephen Rosenthal |
| Children | 3 |
Sandy Rosenthal is an American civic activist and founder of Levees.Org, an organization created in October 2005 to educate the American public about the cause of the levee failures and catastrophic flooding in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.[1]
Before August 2005
Rosenthal was born in Massachusetts and graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1979. She settled in New Orleans, Louisiana where she continued working as an active volunteer for her alma mater.[2] In 2005, flooding associated with Hurricane Katrina forced Rosenthal to abandon her home and she began to offer assistance to similarly displaced fellow alumnae.[3]
Levees.Org
Rosenthal began organizing in response to the official narrative and response to the flooding and evacuation of New Orleans.[4] With the help of her son Stanford Rosenthal, levees.org launched on December 5, 2005 and has since been viewed more than 900,000 times. Rosenthal recruited actors Harry Shearer and John Goodman (both longtime residents of New Orleans), to assist with outreach for the group’s message. Using video, social media, letter-writing teams and numerous other means, Levees.Org has educated people worldwide on the facts surrounding the 2005 flooding.[5]
Rosenthal has been a blogger with the Huffington Post since 2009[6] and with the New Orleans Times-Picayune since 2007.
Accolades
In 2016, Rosenthal was awarded the Pioneer of Purpose Award from Dillard University.[7] In 2015, she received the Diana Lewis Citizen Participation Award from the Committee for a Better New Orleans, the Heroes of the Recovery Award by New Orleans Magazine and also the Partner in Justice Award by AVODAH. In 2012, she was recognized as a “Most Influential Woman” by Mount Holyoke College, and was named “Outstanding Citizen Diplomat” by the New Orleans Citizen Diplomacy Council. That same year she was also named as a “Role Model” by the Young Leadership Council and was honored as a “First Responder, Post Katrina” by the Southern Dominican Province. She has received the "Award of Merit" from the Citizens and Victims against Crime, Inc. (2009), the "Service Above Self" by The Rotary Club of New Orleans (2009), and the "Alumnae Loyalty Award" from Mount Holyoke College (2009).[8] In 2008, she was inducted, along with real estate broker Kitty DeGree of West Monroe, into the Hall of Fame of the Louisiana Center for Women and Government at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux.[9] In 2006 she was one of the "Women of the Year" honored by City Business.[10]
References
- ↑ Levees.org Mission and Goals
- ↑ http://aamhc.net/pdf/awards2009/LoyaltyR2.pdf
- ↑ "Sandy Fulton Rosenthal". Mount Holyoke College. 2012-06-08. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ "Mission and Goals of Levees.org | Levees.Org". levees.org. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ "Don’t Call It Katrina". The New Yorker. 2015-05-29. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ Huffington Post authors, Sandy Rosenthal
- ↑ http://www.dillard.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1962:-dillard-university-to-honor-community-leaders-at-2016-champions-of-the-american-dream-best-in-business-awards-luncheon&catid=42:news-and-events&Itemid=890
- ↑ "Sandy Fulton Rosenthal". Mount Holyoke College. 2012-06-08. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ report, Advocate staff. "Center for Women to add 12 to its Hall of Fame". The Advocate. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ http://neworleanscitybusiness.com/wp-files/events/women-of-the-year-2008.pdf