Celebrating 15 Powerful Women -- And Their Support for Each Other
Gender equality is not a solo endeavor ‒ for every women leader in history there were hundreds of other women supporting her throughout her life to overcome the obstacles that come with inequity.
This Women’s History Month we are celebrating women who have committed their lives to support their fellow females and who fight for women empowerment.
1. Susan Diane Wojcicki ‒ CEO YouTube
While Wojcicki champions diversity within her company, she takes the conversation a step further by remaining an honest and transparent advocate for women in tech. She frequently discusses the discrimination still present in the industry, and gives advice on how companies can alter their culture to create a more inclusive environment. Oh, and did we mention she's ranked #13 on Forbes’ Most Powerful Women?
2. Chelsea Clinton ‒ Author and Philanthropist
As the daughter of Bill and HIllary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton grew up heavily exposed to the politics of gender equality. She has truly committed her life to progressing women, founding the Caribbean-focused Women in Renewable Energy (WIRE) Network, a professional development group for women working in energy within island nations. Additionally, she’s author of #1 New York Times bestseller She Persisted, along with other women-focused books intended to empower young girls.
3. Jean Chatzy ‒ CEO of Her Money
The gap between male and female financial literacy is one of the reasons why women in the United States own 32 cents to every dollar owned by men. Chatzy recognized this and co-founded Her Money to help women build their personal finance skills and build their own wealth.
4. Gunjan Kedia ‒ Vice Chairman at U.S. Bank
Kedia has held the title of Most Powerful Women in Finance for three consecutive years. Within an industry as male-dominated as Wealth Management, her influence and success is incredibly inspiring to the young women who aspire to be in her field.
5. Alexa Curtis ‒ CEO and Founder of Life Unfiltered
Curtis shares tips and advice surrounding self-love, social media, and mental health to young people on her podcast and blog. The content she shares is especially relevant to young girls who are struggling with self-confidence and the qualms of growing up in the age of social media and constant comparison.
6. Fatima Goss Graves ‒ CEO and President National Women’s Law Center (NWLC)
NWLC is a non-profit organization aiming to protect women’s legal rights, including economic security, education, employment, health, and more. Outside of her work within this organization, Graves serves on the board of many equality-focused groups such as Equal Justice Works.
7. Melissa Kilby ‒ Executive Direct Girl Up
Girl Up is an internationally focused organization providing leadership development programs to over 75,000 girls in nearly 125 countries. Their central phrase is “when girls rise, we all rise”, and we couldn’t agree more.
8. Jamie Candee ‒ CEO Edmentum
Education is a major focal point in the discussion around gender equality. We understand that in the traditional schooling system, women may not be exposed to STEM subjects as much as their male classmates, leading to a lack of STEM pursuit and representation. Edmentum customizes learning strategies to change that, and given the female leadership present in the company, we’re excited to see how these new approaches to learning will improve female representation in male-dominated fields.
9. Patricia Lizarraga ‒ CEO at Hypatia Capital
We know that female entrepreneurs received only 2.2% of the $85 billion venture capitalists invested in 2017. Lizarraga hopes to change that ‒ Hypatia Capital is a private equity firm that specifically focuses on investing in women founded companies.
10. Blessing Adesiyan ‒ Founder and Ceo Mother Honestly
While Adesiyan works as a Strategic Advisor at Famtech, she recognized the struggles women have when balancing their careers and homelife (particularly for mothers). She founded Mother Honestly to build a community for working mothers as to support each other and provide resources.
11. Heyward Donigan ‒ CEO Rite Aid
With less than 50 female CEOs running Fortune 500 companies, Donigan is a perfect example of female representation in the C-suite. Outside her leadership within Rite Aid, she also actively engages in diversity related discussions on her profession channels.
12. Danika Brysha ‒ Co-Founder Self Care Society and CEO Modern Meal
Brysha is a model who initially had a unhealthy relationship with food. The struggles she faced within this restrictive industry harmed her mental health, and as a result she has now committed herself to spreading the message surrounding self-care, wellness, and a healthy relationship with food.
13. Vicki Saunders ‒ Founder SheEO
SheEO is a community intended to support women and non-binary people launch their own initiatives through what they call “radical generosity.” This generosity expands past pure financial support for ventures, and into mentorship, advice, networking, and more.
14. Indra Nooyi ‒ Former Chairman and CEO PepsiCo
As the Former CEO of one of the largest companies in the world, Nooyi has some major influence. She uses this influence to share information pertaining to female progress and professional development, remaining an advocate for women in the workplace.
15. Gloria Feldt ‒ President Take The Lead Women
Take The Lead Women aims to place women in their equal share of leadership roles across all sectors by 2025. Outside of Feldt’s work in this organization, she is a frequent speaker at women’s leadership events.
Girls With Impact is proud to partner with many of these women and organizations. Understanding and appreciating the power of a female-driven network, and embracing support that comes from it is crucial to regaining the confidence that young women traditionally loose as they enter adulthood.
So, with a few more weeks remaining in Women’s History Month we recommend reaching out to the women in your life that empower you ‒ send them a text and let them know how much you appreciate their support. When it comes down to it, these are the women who will celebrate you at your best and uplift you at your worst.
Jody Bell, 19, is Girls With Impact’s Chief Editor and a program graduate. Girls With Impact is the nation’s only online, after-school, entrepreneurship program for teen girls, turning them into tomorrow’s business leaders and innovators.