Second annual Women鈥檚 Leadership Conference inspires personal, professional growth
Celebrating, honoring and empowering women was the theme as more than 100 alumnae, students, Centre employees and community members participated in the second annual Women鈥檚 Leadership Conference, which took place March 8-9 on campus.
Kentucky鈥檚 Lt. Governor, Jacqueline Coleman 鈥04, provided some brief remarks Saturday morning, helping to officially kick off the event.
Olympic medalist Lauren Gibbs delivered the keynote address, sharing her seemingly improbable journey from corporate executive to elite athlete 鈥 in part because she was open to new challenges.
鈥淚 absolutely enjoyed Lauren Gibbs,鈥 said Maria Sanchez, class of 2026. 鈥淗er 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.鈥
Along with her athletic pursuits, 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 students who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes.
鈥淎s a Posse student, seeing her love for the organization is incredible, and she motivated me to change my way of seeing things,鈥 Sanchez said.
Other speakers focused on pertinent issues women face throughout their lives, such as Ashley Vinsel Herd鈥檚 session on combatting imposter syndrome. A 2003 graduate of Centre, Herd鈥檚 timely message and entertaining presentation especially stood out to fellow Centre alum, Erin Menard Spalding 鈥09.
鈥淚t was fantastic. 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,鈥 Spalding said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a simple way to lift each other up and remind our friends and colleagues why they are absolutely fit for their roles.鈥
Another relevant topic covered at the conference was work-life balance, a presentation co-led by Brian Briscoe 鈥00 and Sarah Parsons 鈥00.
鈥淲ork-life 鈥榖alance鈥 is a myth we鈥檙e all sold, especially as women,鈥 Spalding said. 鈥淚t was wonderful to sit in on a session addressing it. It鈥檚 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.鈥
Spalding was more than an attendee for the WLC. As a co-founder of The 1926 Collective, Spalding and her colleagues hosted a networking lunch to promote the newly formed name, image and likeness (NIL) initiative.
鈥淥ur mission is to support female athletes at 果冻传媒 through NIL and professional development opportunities,鈥 she said. 鈥淓ngaging 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.鈥
With The 1926 Collective providing the backdrop, the networking lunch proved to be meaningful for connecting the different groups of attendees.
鈥淚 was able to meet and connect with so many influential women whom I might be able to work with in the future,鈥 Sanchez said. 鈥淭he networking opportunity was very relevant to my current stage of development and future aspirations.鈥
When asked about her biggest takeaway from WLC 2024, Sanchez replied, 鈥This conference was filled with great, courageous women who aren鈥檛 afraid to pursue every opportunity that comes their way, because in the end, we only regret the chances we didn鈥檛 take.鈥
The Centre Alumni & Development Office now turns its attention to the 2025 Women鈥檚 Leadership Conference, which promises to build upon the previous two events. For any suggestions, comments or other inquiries regarding the Women鈥檚 Leadership Conference, email Mackenzie Nichols Tomlin 鈥17 at mackenzie.nichols@centre.edu.
