Alum Spotlight: Karen Owczarski '85
Karen Owczarski ‘85, originally from Queens, initially didn’t want to stay in New York City or go to Barnard, but ended up falling in love with the women’s college atmosphere. “I feel like being at a women’s college just teaches you to be assertive, to learn about yourself, to speak up. It just makes you stronger,” she says, adding that while Barnard is a women’s college, it doesn’t have to feel like it. “Columbia is right there. They’re in your dorms, they’re in your cafeteria, they’re in your classrooms.” Double majoring in American Studies and Psychology, Karen also realized how much she valued the small community: “I think my American Studies class had ten people in it. I saw my advisor all the time; I would just walk down the hall and drop in.” Through just the four years of undergrad, Barnard provided an incredibly unique experience for her: “Being a small college and a women’s college in a huge university in New York City, you have all these opportunities.”
During her time at Barnard, Karen contributed significantly to the beginning of Greek life. “When I was a junior, Columbia went co-ed. At the time, there was such a separation between the schools. They didn’t have any sororities back then, so we started Greek life for women! We wanted something where SEAS, CC, and Barnard women could be together and that was what we did.” Besides Greek life, she also participated in student government and Columbia cheerleading. Additionally, she was a Resident Assistant, babysat through the Barnard Babysitting network, and worked in the Toddler Center within the Psychology Department, which ultimately inspired her to pursue a career in either education or law. When deciding whether to go to law school, Karen interned for the Children’s Law Project, an experience she claims was possible because of Barnard’s internship opportunities. “There were more internships than there were students at Barnard — there was so much offered.”
Ultimately, Karen chose to study law at New York University, and after graduating, she became an intellectual property attorney. She stayed in New York City initially and worked as a litigation associate at Dewey Ballantine LLP, where she met her husband John (Columbia Law School ‘88), and later worked as an in-house litigator at NBC. While raising four children with John, Karen decided to move to Washington, DC and work for the federal government, which she found more flexible than working in-house or at a law firm as a litigator. After raising four children and completing 35 years as an attorney (with 28 of those years in federal service), she recently retired from working for the federal government.
Almost four decades after graduating, Karen continues to stay very involved with the Barnard community. Immediately after her move to Virginia, she became a member of Barnard in Washington, the local alumnae group. Today, she serves as the membership chair and a liaison to the Columbia DC alumni group, and is also on the DEI committee. Through this organization, Karen has hosted multiple alumnae gatherings at her house, such as summer send-offs for incoming Barnard students and events with Barnard alumnae guest speakers. She also connects with current students through Beyond Barnard, as she is “always willing to talk to people who think they might want to go to law school.” In the future, she’s looking towards other ways of deepening her connections with alumnae, such as joining the Barnard alumnae book club.
To Karen, a huge advantage of Barnard’s network of 36,000+ alumnae is how connected and widespread it is. “The network is so big; people will say, ‘Do you know anyone who did XYZ?’ and I’ll say, ‘Yes!’ You just meet so many people in different fields. That’s been fun too!” Getting involved in the alumnae community is also flexible for each Barnard graduate: “It’s not hard and can be as much [or as little] as you want it to be. In every city there’s a big alumni group, and they are so involved.”
To prospective students, Karen recommends just visiting campus or connecting with individuals on campus. “I think that people have this concept of what Barnard is, either as a women’s college or a college in a big city,” she says. “Go and see it.”
Today, in addition to being part of Barnard and Columbia alumni groups, she also volunteers for various women’s organizations, teaches history as a substitute teacher for middle and high school students, and works in clothing retail. She’s always looking forward to new adventures, and we’re sure the Barnard community will continue to be part of her journey!
Source: Interview conducted by Gaby Viner ‘24