Women Through the Decades: 2000s
Jul 8, 2019
Thousands of women have attended Xavier since the doors opened to them in 1969. They had different experiences depending on the decade they attended. The women highlighted here represent those alumnae who leveraged the benefits of their Xavier education to reach their goals and lead fulfilling, productive lives that inspire others to follow their dreams.
DEBRA ESCHMEYER | 2002 BA INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, BSBA MARKETING
VP of Communications & Community Affairs, Danone North America, Boulder, Colo. | Organic Farmer, Co-Founder of FoodCorps | Former Obama White House Senior Policy Director for Nutrition | Former Executive Director, Michelle’s Obama’s Let’s Move!
Debra Eschmeyer (above left with Michelle Obama) turned her Xavier education into a career focused on equal access to healthy food for everyone, which the food policy maven views as a social justice issue. It was at Xavier where she learned “how we are all part of a larger social contract.”
That mission led her to co-found FoodCorps and later, directly into the White House, where she led the First Lady’s Let’s Move! campaign focused on raising a healthier generation. Now she’s hoping to inspire others the way Xavier’s liberal arts education cultivated in her the curiosity and hunger to be involved in the betterment of humanity.
“I hope that my career encourages young women to create their own path and dream without boundaries. One of the most fulfilling aspects of my career is mentoring young women to be bold and to lead with their hearts and grace.”
REETTA PIIPARI | 2003 BLA
Head Coach, Tapiolan Honka ry, Junior Basketball Club, Finland | Xavier Athletics Hall of Fame, Class of 2018-2019
For Reetta Piipari, Xavier and basketball were one and the same—welcoming and supportive. As a star recruit from Finland, Piipari found the University and the athletic program to be as excited to have her on campus as she was to be here.
By then, the University had raised the women’s basketball team’s status as a contender in the Atlantic 10 Conference. While Piipari posted impressive individual stats, her crowning achievement was contributing to the team becoming the first in Xavier history to reach the NCAA Elite Eight in 2001. She says it happened because the women believed in themselves.
“I hope that at least we set an example that when you believe in the process and work hard toward that goal together, great things will happen and you succeed.”