Second annual Women’s Leadership Conference inspires personal, professional growth

庆祝, honoring and empowering women was the theme as more than 100 alumnae, 学生, Centre employees and community members participated in the second annual Women’s Leadership Conference, 是3月8日至9日在校园内举行的吗. 

肯塔基州的Lt. 州长, 杰奎琳·科尔曼04届, 他在周六上午发表了一些简短的讲话, 帮助正式启动活动. 

Olympic medalist Lauren Gibbs delivered the keynote address, sharing her seemingly improbable journey from corporate executive to elite athlete — in part because she was open to new challenges. 

“I absolutely enjoyed Lauren Gibbs,” said Maria Sanchez, class of 2026. “Her story is one of courage and perseverance to achieve things she never thought possible, and it motivated me to pursue all the opportunities that come my way.” 

还有她的运动追求, Gibbs serves as vice president of business development for the Posse Foundation. Centre has a nearly 20-year relationship with Posse, which partners with colleges and universities to award full-tuition leadership scholarships to 学生 who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes. 

“作为一名学生, seeing her love for the organization is incredible, and she motivated me to change my way of seeing things,桑切斯说.

Other speakers focused on pertinent issues women face throughout their lives, such as Ashley Vinsel Herd’s session on combatting imposter syndrome. 2003年毕业于中央大学, Herd’s timely message and entertaining presentation especially stood out to fellow Centre alum, 艾琳·梅纳德·斯伯丁，09年. 

“太棒了。. She spoke about how we tend to think negatively about ourselves and abilities and encouraged us to tell our friends what we admire about them,斯伯丁说. “It’s a simple way to lift each other up and remind our friends and colleagues why they are absolutely fit for their roles.” 

Another relevant topic covered at the conference was work-life balance, a presentation co-led by Brian Briscoe ’00 and Sarah Parsons ’00. 

“Work-life ‘balance’ is a myth we’re all sold, especially as women,斯伯丁说. “It was wonderful to sit in on a session addressing it. It’s important for us all to hear we need to prioritize different parts of our lives at different times and to continuously check in to make adjustments.” 

斯伯丁不仅仅是WLC的参与者. 作为1926 Collective的联合创始人, Spalding and her colleagues hosted a networking lunch to promote the newly formed name, 形象和相似(NIL)倡议. 

“Our mission is to support female athletes at Centre College through NIL and professional development opportunities,”她说。. “Engaging alumni to support that mission through donations and business connections is a huge part of our success. The WLC was a perfect fit for our audience and mission.” 

1926集体提供的背景, the networking lunch proved to be meaningful for connecting the different groups of attendees. 

“I was able to meet and connect with so many influential women whom I might be able to work with in the future,桑切斯说. “The networking opportunity was very relevant to my current stage of development and future aspirations.”

When asked about her biggest takeaway from WLC 2024, Sanchez replied, “这次会议充满了伟大的, courageous women who aren’t afraid to pursue every opportunity that comes their way, 因为最后, 我们只后悔没有抓住机会.”

bwin体育校友 & Development Office now turns its attention to the 2025 Women’s Leadership Conference, which promises to build upon the previous two events. 如有任何建议, comments or other inquiries regarding the Women’s Leadership Conference, 电邮给麦肯齐·尼克尔斯·汤姆林.nichols@unreelangling.com.