When a crisis strips away your identity, how do you find the courage to rebuild? For Sonya Keshwani, founder of the globally recognized label Style Esteem Wardrobe, fashion became her medicine. At 29, amidst chemotherapy and facing the profound challenges of hair loss, she turned a personal need for beautiful, intentional headpieces into a worldwide movement.
In this powerful Boss Leap conversation, Sonya shares the origin story of Style Esteem, detailing how she built a couture brand dedicated to universal empowerment. She rooted her designs in the 4,000-year history of the turban, transforming it from a clinical necessity into a symbol of strength and self-expression—a one-of-a-kind crown for every modern man and woman.
Discover how:
- Resilience is creative
- Fashion is self-love
- Community is key
Dive into the vital work of Style Esteem’s Grace With Style initiative, which provides beauty and mental health programming, alongside its one-for-one headpiece donation program for patients in need. Tune in to be reminded that you already have a “bit of royalty” in you—and it’s time to crown it.
Music courtesy of Dealer’s Choice Sound Recordings, Inc.
Music artist: djezi
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Watch the episode here
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From Chemo To Crown: Finding Royalty In Your Hardest Season With Sonya Keshwani
Empower Every Person Through Fashion
Welcome to the show. I am Dr. Sylvia Morris, and every week, Dr. Angela Walker and I sit down with women who are rewriting the rules. Women who do not wait for permission or the perfect moment and do not let fear have the final word. They leaped. Our guest is the definition of a boss leap.
I am Dr. Angela Walker, physician, entrepreneur, and the other half of this dynamic duo. We are Boss Leap because we believe that the leap is never really about leaving something behind. It is about stepping fully into who you were always meant to be. Friends, this conversation is going to remind every single one of you just how much power you are carrying, even in your hardest season.
Our guest is Sonya Keshwani, founder of Style Esteem Wardrobe.
Style Esteem is so much more than fashion. Sonya’s Grace with Style initiative supports a vast patient community through beauty and mental health programming and turban donations because Sonya has never forgotten where she started or who she is building for.
In addition to leading Style Esteem, Sonya serves on the board of Twist Out Cancer, is a Susan G. Komen NYC Power Ambassador, serves as Rear Commodore at the Old Greenwich Yacht Club, and is a faculty member at Columbia University. Sonya envisions every Style Esteem headpiece as a one-of-a-kind crown for the modern man and woman, a symbol of empowerment and self-expression for everyone, regardless of their gender, cultural background, or hair journey.
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Sonya Keshwani, welcome to the show.
Thank you for having me. I am so excited to be back in the presence of you, inspiring ladies.
Sonya Keshwani’s Upbringing And Path To Georgetown
We are so honored to have you here. Before we get into Style Esteem and learning about headpieces versus turbans and all of the things, we want to know who Sonya is, where you grew up, and how your upbringing shaped you into the woman that you have become.
I would love to share about that. I grew up at the intersection of several different worlds that shaped how I move through life and business. First and foremost, I was raised as a Muslim woman, and within our faith, there is a strong sense of service, community, and responsibility towards something greater than yourself and helping those in need. That was instilled in me from a very young age. I also grew up in New York City. That proximity to fashion from a young age was something that touched every part of what excited and inspired me.
Not just luxury fashion, but things beyond that. I grew up in Queens. We saw fashion as this visual language of style, identity, and culture. It was always around me, everywhere I went. Of course, being Indian, fashion takes on this other meaning of heritage through the creativity and color and textiles that are so part of who we are as an expression of our roots. That is the background of how I grew up. Eventually, when life led me to Georgetown, that added another layer.
I grew up in Queens. We saw fashion as a visual language of style, identity, and culture. It was always around me, everywhere I went. Share on XHow did a good South Asian Muslim woman get to a Jesuit institution?
At the time, I was living in what I call my past chapter. I was in DC, I was working for the federal government, and I decided that I wanted to be someone who could communicate policy and work with the media, and be that person who was missing from the rooms that I wanted to see more leadership in. I decided that for me, the best route would have been to go to Georgetown University and pursue a Master’s in Public Relations and Corporate Communications.
I felt like that was the perfect missing piece to the next chapter of my life, of who I wanted to be, not just in my profession, but in my goals as a person. That is how I ended up at Georgetown. It was the perfect place for me, being already in public service, and it being the foremost university, especially within this field in DC.
The Moment Fashion Revealed Itself As Medicine During Chemotherapy
We would like to take a step back, and we know you have a journey that sparked a lot of what you do now. I want to ask you more about that. Share with our audience some of what brought you into creating the headpieces and wraps that you currently create. Sonya, you were 29 years old in the middle of chemotherapy, and instead of stepping back from life, you stepped into a fabric shop. Walk us through that moment. What was going through your mind when you first sat down at your mom’s sewing machine and started experimenting with fabric after each infusion?
I love this because this is the origin story. Fashion really revealed itself to me as a medicine that I did not know I had access to. I was in chemotherapy for a whole year. That means every three weeks, going in for an infusion to the hospital. It just so happened that nearby my hospital was a fabric store, a little mom and pop hole in the wall fabric store in Astoria, Queens.
I have gone through this whole process of trying to approach hair loss in a way that seemed logical. I spoke to my doctors about what might happen. When is the hair going to fall out? Is it going to be after the first round? No, it is going to be after the second round. You should have a wig and just be prepared. Really, when it started to fall out, I realized that it is so much more than your strands coming out of your follicles. It is a whole process, a whole turnover of your identity, and you do not really know what is hidden underneath that rock until you lift it up.
For me, I tried so many different things. I even went blonde for a bit with a wig, and I tried to find these other headpieces that could complement that because wigs became uncomfortable for me, being in chemo in the summertime. Traveling between DC and New York, and DC gets really hot. I just got to a point where I wanted to pay more attention to my quality of life.
I wanted the solution to the hair loss to be a little bit more intentional and more in line with what I needed at that time. When I was looking for headpieces in stores, I really only found clinical caps like chemo beanies and then really high-end designer pieces. I really wanted something in between that focused on who I was, and that inspired me to move forward on my path.
I figured I cannot possibly do any worse than what I am seeing outside because I am Indian, and I felt like there is this fashion in me, this creativity in me. I felt like if I just tried, maybe there is something there. I ended up going to this fabric store, and it started out as this routine right after treatment. I would walk over a few blocks, and it became my reprieve to be in those stacks of textiles before I went home and waited for the side effects of chemo to set in.
I started experimenting with those silhouettes that cracked the code of what works for me as someone who had never worn headwear before. What surprised me was when I came up with the turban style, it just became about much more than my appearance. It changed my relationship with myself and my physical appearance, but then my identity underneath as well.
Sonya, I want to stop you for a moment. Earlier, I was struggling with nomenclature. Words are very important. You used the word turban and I was not quite comfortable if I was supposed to use the word turban or headpiece. Can you give us a little mini-lesson about which words we should be using?
When we are talking about the start of the journey, turbans are really the first type of design that I created because they are full coverage caps that are similar to what I am wearing now. That was the original design that was part of the need that I had at that time. Through the evolution of the brand, we have added other items and other styles to the product variety. If we are talking about the overall collection as it stands today, or if we are just trying to use a catchall word for all designs, then headpieces are fine. Headwear is fine as well.
That is much better than a chemo beanie.
Chemo caps and all this stuff, no healthy woman is going to wear it. What made someone think that a sick person would want to put this on every day? Talking about headwear and headpieces as an all-encompassing catchall phrase is good. A turban is just really specific to what I am wearing right now. Unless you are talking to me about that specific thing, the first pieces I created, the full coverage style, and really the style that I think cancer patients come to us for, because they are the full coverage pieces, those are the turbans. Outside of that, we can just say headpieces or headwear.
Thank you so much.
Can you guide us from the journey, which sounds so authentic and creative, into how you realized that this was bigger than just your own personal collection, and how it jumped to Style Esteem?
There was a part of me that realized that fashion was simply not speaking to the woman who was facing challenges in her hair, especially those who are facing cancer and even alopecia. I personally was shocked that the category did not already exist. I wanted to go from being someone who thought, “Why me? Why is this happening to me?” to understand that perhaps I am going through this experience because I am meant to build something from it.
I wanted to move from asking, “Why me? Why is this happening to me?” to understanding that perhaps I am going through this experience because I am meant to build something from it. Share on XThat confidence to move forward and to create this bridge between two industries, fashion and health, came from realizing that my situation and my experiences had a bigger purpose than just my life. That is what gave me the confidence to go forward and to create something that hopefully inspires women to look for that piece of their identity during that hard time where it feels like that has been lost.
Did you sew before you started making turbans?
No, actually, I am completely self-taught. I had this childhood dream of being a fashion designer. Growing up in New York during 9/11, it got me thinking about the world outside of New York itself. When I talked to my parents about fashion, they happened to just say, “We came to this country for you to get a solid education. If you want to do fashion after you go to college, that is fine. We need you to secure yourself with a degree.”
I thought I loved fashion, but I am also really interested in being part of those rooms where decisions are made. That is what inspired me to go into international affairs and government. Eventually, my life path swung back around and led me to become a self-taught designer and entrepreneur. That is how it happened.
Building The Globally Recognized Label While Healing Privately
I love that. Along those lines, you have grown Style Esteem from a personal passion project to a globally recognized label with runway presence, celebrity clients, and a couture collection that debuted at Fashion Week. Part of what makes Style Esteem so distinctive is how deeply you have rooted the brand in the history and cultural significance of the turban, which is a tradition spanning 4,000 years, while reframing it as a universal symbol of empowerment for every gender, cultural background, and hair journey. What was the hardest chapter of building Style Esteem, and how has honoring your heritage shaped the way that Style Esteem shows up in the world today?
It often stays with me when I am reflecting on this journey that I was trying to build a company while I was trying to rebuild myself. Cancer leaves you as a blank canvas physically, mentally, and emotionally. Building Style Esteem really required me to show up creatively and publicly in those same spaces with a mental, emotional, and physical bandwidth that I had to sort of reserve for the mission and for the brand and for the community while I was still healing privately.
By the time I realized that evolution itself is the beauty of it, it is something that I am now thinking about seven years out. It is that philosophy that is reflected in the pieces and the way they have evolved from being turbans to now couture collections. Heritage does show up in those moments because there is this strength and resilience that I feel comes from being an Indian woman that I have seen in generations that precede me.
A lot of the heritage garments that we traditionally see our mothers wearing are associated with female strength. Being able to embody some of those qualities into our pieces and into our designs, like the fabrics and the trims that I hand-sourced from the bazaars of Mumbai or the garment district in New York, is important. There is so much of that woven into all of what we create. It is always in the mindset and in the ethos of any given collection.
I would love to come and carry your shopping bags either in Mumbai or the Lower East Side. I would be very happy to do that.
We would have so much fun. We would never leave. My husband would be like, “My job here is done.”
I just need lunch.
Sonya, you do not know what you’re getting yourself into. Moving forward, Style Esteem’s mission goes far beyond aesthetics. You have said that dressing like your authentic self is a radical act of self-love. Can you talk about the moment you witnessed that transformation in someone else? Whether it was a customer, a patient, a woman putting on a turban or a headpiece for the first time, and what that did to you.
The earliest designs that I created were for my own wardrobe while I was going through treatment. It really put me in this mindset of getting dressed up for every appointment. When I was showing up for an infusion, I was dressed in comfortable clothes, but definitely something that made me feel excited to get out the door, such as a pair of metallic pants, a red lip, or a turban.
For me, the fashion statement of it all was what I wanted to say to myself about myself before I said anything to the world outside my door. That statement carried into the doors of the Infusion Center. When I would walk through those halls, that statement became a conversation starter. I started engaging with other patients who were complimenting me on my outfit and asking me how I put that together.
I could see that they were interested in thinking about ways that maybe they could honor their own journey by embracing where they are at that moment. I started to think about this idea of donating headpieces. This is where it started, being from that public service background in my career and in my upbringing, and wanting to have some goodness behind a fashion business.
We donate headpieces for each sold. It all started in that infusion center when I realized that other women were interested in this. I decided to donate a few pieces, and I really saw not just a physical change, putting on something beautiful, but a change in energy and a change in attitude. I thought that was something so powerful. You have the power to create confidence in a situation where it seems like everything might be against you.
Fast forward to today, with our couture collections, it is that 5,000-year history of headwear in general that has touched all different types of people throughout history. I just remind people that you are part of that lineage of royalty of people who have adorned a crown in the past.
That has also put me in touch with some of our clients and followers who feel very seen by those one-of-a-kind pieces that exemplify culture, heritage, and religion. You have a family with multiple generations of women who are cancer survivors who now get to see their journey through a lens of beauty and as something more than just what they have been through, but the beauty that has come out of it as well.
Grace With Style Initiative And The Jewel Identity Of Fashion Entrepreneur And Community Leader
I love that you talk about beauty because we are still women and we are human beings. We are having this experience of cancer or chemotherapy, but you still want to be beautiful. Thank you for sharing that. You mentioned service, and you talked about donating a few turbans and headpieces. Can you tell us a little bit more about the Grace With Style initiative? How do you hold the dual identity of fashion entrepreneur and community leader? What is your philosophy on how all of these roles feed each other?
Grace With Style is a program that is named after my mannequin head that I had at that time called Grace. I bedazzled her with teal glitter, and she went everywhere with me that I needed to take off my wig, whether it was for an infusion or surgery. She really became a symbol for me of this option to show up beautiful and sparkly in the world.
To me, from the start of the journey, which was the diagnosis to the end of chemo, I realized that not only is hair loss so much more than the hair falling out and it being about identity and personal history, but it is also a lot about how we show up for ourselves and how we care for ourselves. When we have different aspects of our beauty available to us, we have a routine as women. We know we need to have our nighttime skincare routine, a hair wash day, and our special hair towels.
To me, hair loss is about far more than hair falling out—it’s about identity and personal history, but also about how we show up for ourselves and how we care for ourselves. Share on XEach of us has a unique set of tools at our disposal. When certain aspects of that go away, how do we continue to keep on showing up for ourselves? I realized that when hair is out of sight, it is not necessarily out of mind. I did not have one source that taught me how to navigate that. As I went through my journey, I collected different bits of wellness, whether it is mental or physical, when it comes to the hair journey.
I decided to put that together into a content platform that goes along with Style Esteem to help women better navigate before, during, and after their hair loss. One part of the Grace With Style program is an educational platform where we have content on our website, and we also show up in spaces like hospitals or nonprofit organizations to put on fashion shows and talk about hair and scalp wellness.
On the other side of that program is also this donation initiative, where we donate headpieces, one headpiece donated for each headpiece sold. We work with different nonprofits and hospitals to make that happen. Patients who are really in need can have access to head coverings that are beautiful and comfortable right when they need them.
That is so beautiful. I thought about you. I’m excited about the interview. My mom has her own health journey right now after her most recent stroke. There was a beautiful nurse at the hospital, she is actually from South Africa, who wore the most beautiful headpieces. My mom, who is definitely a stylist in her day, would always comment, “How beautiful you are.”
She did not comment on the piece, but I knew that that was part of what she was taking in. The next day, she brought her one. She brought her the identical hat. I was taken aback. I said, “Let me pay you for this.” She said, “No, this is my gift.” It is kindness like that and what you are doing, I know what it did for my mom, is a beautiful addition to what you are offering through your brand, offering that to unexpected people. Thank you for what you are doing.
That is like one queen crowning another. I love that.
Absolutely. You get silks from Italy, artisan trims from Dubai, heritage fabrics from India, and this small batch production in New York City. You have made a very deliberate choice about how Style Esteem is created. Why does craftsmanship matter so much to you? What do you want women to understand about what they are actually wearing when they put on one of your pieces?
Deliberate Choice Of Craftsmanship And Global Sourcing
I want women to feel like they are walking with a piece of their story in their book when they wear one of our pieces. That is really why there is so much detail and uniqueness placed into any given headpiece that we create. Many of our designs are limited edition because they use these rare items that are selected from a place in the world at a particular time, not to be found again.
In that way, whether you are shopping for a fashion purpose or for a health purpose, you are bringing parts of fashion history with you along the way on your journey, too, as you write your own story. I want people to know that they are not wearing something common or disposable in the world of fast fashion today. They are really wearing a piece of their own fashion history.
That is a very personal aspect of what we do. It is made as a flash in time, any given design. That is the intention behind it. It is something that is meant to stay as part of your wardrobe beyond any particular phase in your hair journey. That is why the pieces, even though they do have these very heritage-inspired elements, are very fashion-forward as well. They are items that, once you invest in, will be with you forever.
Do we dry clean them? Do we hand-wash them?
We get asked this a lot. Unlike some companies where the focus is just on a sensitive scalp or long wear, we have such an array of designs that focus on all kinds of different needs that a woman might have. You might have something great for loungewear, a gala, activewear, and so forth. Each piece has a unique fabrication. I would say you really have to just check the product listing before you care for your piece. Depending on the material, there might be different instructions. You might hand-wash with gentle soap and water, or you might just have a spot-clean situation if there are beading and sequins, or feathers.
I am going to have multiple headpieces in my wardrobe. I need to make sure they are looking good. Do you recommend that we put them on a mannequin?
When we send out headpieces, we send them in a very satin bag with a little sheer panel in the front so you can see what is inside. If you are traveling or if you just want to place these items in a drawer and take them out as needed, that is perfectly fine. As you can see behind me, I love displaying my favorite pieces because they are artworks.
They bring a reminder of everything that is beautiful about my journey to me every day when I walk into the studio. It is that reminder of why I am here. If it brings you happiness to see these pieces displayed, I 100% recommend it. It is worth it to find a mannequin that suits you and to display your pieces.
Especially if it is something that you need a reminder of. Fashion is a great reminder of that way. I wear a ring that I bought after chemo, and it reminds me that I am a survivor. It is engraved, and it says survivor inside of it. These little things in fashion can be our superhero cape if we want them to be.
I think of you as a communicator, a PR professional, a fashion designer, a cancer survivor, and an entrepreneur. What one thing would you tell your 29-year-old self, as far as your journey, and some advice to your younger self?
If I could sit across from a 29-year-old Sonya, I would tell her that experimentation itself is a form of self-love, and trying something new, whether it is a garment, a career path, or just tapping into the next chapter of who you are as a person, is how you build confidence. It is not necessarily through certainty, but it is through that exploration process that you can find that confidence in yourself.
I would tell her that if she thinks that she is lost, it is probably not the case. She is probably just evolving into something far more aligned with where she wants to be, and you are in that process of evolution. If anyone is listening and they need that encouragement to take that leap, I would say confidence is not something you arrive with. It is something you build by continuing to show up.
Show up. Half the battle in life is showing up. We just keep showing up and moving forward.
Choosing to do so through the noise that we have sometimes, especially as women, is powerful. When you do show up, it is a statement to yourself. I think we should all savor that and not gloss over it. That is excellent advice. Along the lines of taking good care of ourselves, both mentally and physically, we would love to know a little bit more about your self-care regimen. We would love to ask our guest what their personal journey looks like and maybe share some non-negotiables that you use to protect your energy, your creativity, and your joy.
My self-care journey is always being worked on every single day that I get to get up. I try to take better and better care of myself. It is never in a perfect state. Prayer is the foundation for the ability to show up and to have the courage to be present in this journey. Being spiritually present every day has really helped me. It is something that I leaned very much into during treatment, and it stayed with me and made me a stronger person for it.
My self-care journey is something I work on every single day I get to wake up. I try to take better and better care of myself, but it is never in a perfect state. Share on XIn addition to that, I would say rest and nourishing my body are non-negotiable. I have my goals in that area, and I try to stay as close as possible as I can, knowing that some days it does not work that way. Having a goal and a standard helps you move in the right direction every day. Outside of the physical stuff, I also love to intentionally create these spaces for inspiration outside of my studio.
Whether that is going on a date with myself and visiting a fashion exhibit, walking through a different neighborhood, traveling, or simply observing different displays of culture, I am very aware that creativity needs room to breathe. When you expose your mind to these different spaces, it brings you the ability to let down your boundaries as to what is possible.
Beyond that, I have stopped expecting perfection from myself. I really believe in small, consistent acts of self-care and just this idea that healing starts in a very basic format. It can just be sleep, hydration, movement, and taking some quiet time for yourself. I think that is an excellent thing and should not be downplayed at all, especially given how busy our lives. Those things are really important basics.
To someone who wants some encouragement in this area, I would say small steps are more powerful than you might realize, not just to get yourself physically in a place of self-care, but also to build trust with yourself. Over time, that trust fuels your confidence, your energy, your creativity, and hopefully your joy as well.
I love all of that. I am going to take away the date with myself for sure. You have shared so much with us. The fact of showing up for yourself is one of my main takeaways. Taking care of yourself and the fashion that you choose to display for yourself first definitely shows others. It is just those small acts that we sometimes do for ourselves that actually brighten someone else’s day or inspire someone else to do good in the world.
We could certainly talk to you all day, Sonya. The audience would love to let us. We thank you so much for the gift of your story, your vision, and your heart. You reminded every woman listening today that resilience is not just surviving, it is creating something so beautiful out of your struggle that it becomes a crown for someone else.
If this episode moved you, and I know it moves me, we want you to do three things. First, find Style Esteem Wardrobe and explore the collection. Whether you are on a hair journey of your own or you simply want to wear something that is beautiful and made with intention and love, then there’s something there for you. Second, share this episode with a woman in your life who needs to hear it. Third, leave us a review. It helps more people to find Boss Leap and to find our community.
Sonya, if you have anything that you want to share with our audiences, any parting words?
Small Consistent Acts Of Self-Care And The Call To Crown Your Royalty
I just hope that everyone tuning in remembers that they have a bit of royalty in them and that they just have to crown it. You can decide what that looks like for you, but never forget that you have that royalty in you. I would be remiss if I am on a podcast sharing my story, especially with two incredible doctors, and did not tell people to do their monthly breast self-exam. I have started a movement on my platform, especially being of Indian and Muslim background, a place where it is a little bit taboo sometimes to talk about breast health.
I have started this movement called #GlamSelfExam to remind women that knowing your breast health can be the most empowering and beautiful thing. To drive the point home, I do my breast self-exam in all kinds of places. If you go to our feed, you will see that we just launched our Dubai collection, and yes, I did do my breast self-exam atop a camel in the middle of the night. Love that. Anywhere.
It’s #GlamSelfExam.
If anyone wants to join that movement where you just feel like you are in a moment of empowerment, and you want to share that you are doing your breast self-exam, please post with that hashtag, and I would love to support you as well. I think you asked about our social handles. I encourage everyone to hop online and connect with us. You can explore all of our styles, the entire collection, at StyleEsteem.com. That is like self-esteem, but with style. You can find us on social media, on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok at Style Esteem. If you want to connect with me, I am on Instagram @Sonya.StyleEsteem.
Thank you so much. Boss Leapers, thank you for spending time with us. We do not take it lightly, and we know that you have a choice to be here, and we are so glad that you have chosen.
Remember, the leap is not the scary part. The leap is where you find out who you really are. We will see you next Wednesday. May you be well.
May you be well.
Important Links
- Style Esteem Wardrobe
- Sonya Keshwani
- Style Esteem Wardrobe on Instagram
- Style Esteem Wardrobe on YouTube
- Style Esteem Wardrobe on TikTok
About Sonya Keshwani
Sonya Keshwani, the founder of StyleEsteem Wardrobe, has an inspiring story of resilience and creativity. As a breast cancer survivor, she experienced the challenges of losing her hair to chemotherapy at the young age of 29. Frustrated with the limited options available for head coverings, she decided to take matters into her own hands and design her own solution.
Being a creative person, Sonya drew from her love of fashion and began visiting a fabric shop after each chemotherapy infusion and experimented with her mom’s sewing machine. As her personal turban collection started to grow, so did her confidence, as she regained her voice and power through this new passion. Inspired by the elegant and feminine silhouette of the turban, she made the bold move and launched StyleEsteem Wardrobe, the first fashion label to design headwear according to the season and occasion.
StyleEsteem’s mission is to empower every person through fashion, no matter where their hair journey takes them. Today, StyleEsteem’s designs are featured on runways and in the media glo bally, as well as on notable celebrity figures, including its latest release, the couture collection. However, Sonya’s vision for StyleEsteem extends far beyond fashion. As Sonya continues to gracefully build her brand in the fashion industry, StyleEsteem’ s Grace with Style initiative supports a vast patient community through beauty and mental health programming, and turban donations.
Sonya envisions StyleEsteem headpieces as one-of-a kind crowns for the modern man and woman. With a history dating back as far as 4,000 years, Sonya believes that turbans can be a symbol of empowerment and self-expression for everyone, regardless of their gender, cultural background, or hair journey.
In addition to her groundbreaking work in fashion, Sonya is on the Board of Twist Out Cancer, served as a Susan G Komen NYC Power Ambassador, Sonya Keshwani Biography.docx is the Rear Commodore at the Old Greenwich Yacht Club, and is a faculty member at Columbia University.