Shaping A Stronger Future Economy

Sima Ladjevardian (Co-Founder, President and Board Chair) brings over 25 years of leadership experience spanning the private, governmental, and nonprofit sectors. A lawyer, entrepreneur, and strategic advisor, she has spent her career at the intersection of business, policy, and community advancement—working to expand economic opportunity for all.

Ms. Ladjevardian came to the United States with her family after fleeing political persecution and upheaval. Her experience as an immigrant shaped her belief in the power of opportunity and hard work inspiring a lifelong dedication to ensuring that all can access the tools they need to build secure and independent futures. 

She has successfully managed her own law practice while co-owning and advising family-run businesses in manufacturing, construction and investment. Her work in the private sector is matched by deep public service, including a federal appointment as Regional Director for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she helped shape and implement policy across a five-state and 68 Federally recognized tribes. She also served as Chair of the National Women’s Business Council, where she championed initiatives to increase capital access and business ownership for women entrepreneurs nationwide. She is an experienced board leader and currently serves as a Trustee of Harris Health System and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

A skilled convener and connector, Ms. Ladjevardian is known for bridging the worlds of business, policy, and philanthropy and her ability to build cross-sector partnerships and mobilize resources for systemic change.

She earned her B.A. in Business Economics from UCLA and her J.D. from Hastings College of the Law, and is fluent in French, Farsi, and Spanish.

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Erin Hustings (Co-Founder and Secretary) is an equity, opportunity, and civil rights policy strategist and subject matter expert. In two decades of work with community development organizations and mission-driven entities in the nation’s capital, Erin has advocated inclusion and agency in immigration policy, elections, public data collection, education, workplaces and workforce development programming. She helped to draft and secure favorable votes on the Voting Rights Advancement Act, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act, and other key federal legislation; and has briefed elected officials, Members of Congress, and the public on topics ranging from quality of public hate crimes data to dangers of conducting government business in English only.

Erin began her career as a junior high teacher in the Peace Corps in West Africa and did organizing and development work for public foundations focused on empowering women and children. Since becoming a lawyer, she has been an active volunteer with the Election Protection Coalition’s hotline and poll monitoring program, pro bono counsel to immigrants seeking humanitarian protection, and is the co-founder and coordinator of the DC Detention Visitation Network, which supports people affected by immigration detention in Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Erin earned her B.A. from Grinnell College, and a J.D. cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center, where she received the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Service to the Law Center Community and the Joyce Chiang Award, and was a Pro Bono Pledge honoree.

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Tené Dolphin (Co-Founder and Treasurer) has dedicated her career to creating opportunities through impactful policies and programs at both local and national levels. Most recently Tene served as the Executive Director for the National Women’s Business Council (NWBC), Tené provided leadership and advocacy on issues that affect America’s women business owners, championing initiatives that empower women entrepreneurs and drive economic growth.
       
Before joining NWBC, Tené was the Strategy and Operations Lead for Wells Fargo’s Small Business Growth Philanthropy division. In this role, she developed partnerships that provided direct support for women entrepreneurs through the Connect to More platform, expanding resources and opportunities for small business owners.        
Prior to her tenure at Wells Fargo, Tené served as the first Director for the Office of Business Diversity and Opportunity for the City of Birmingham. In this capacity, she established the Mayor’s Inaugural Small Business Advisory Council, developed the City’s inclusive procurement program, launched a disparity study, and created essential local and national partnerships to connect resources to the City’s small business community. Additionally, she served on the Supplier Diversity Council for the 2022 World Games, further advancing economic inclusivity.
               
Tené’s earlier career includes significant contributions in Washington, D.C. In 2017, she was appointed Senior Deputy Director for the Department of Small and Local Business Development by Mayor Muriel Bowser. From 2008, she served in the Senior Executive Service at the U.S. Department of Commerce under President Barack Obama. In this role, Tené directed the Office of the Executive Secretariat and later served as Chief of Staff for the Economic Development Administration (EDA), where she championed the work of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and coordinated strategic initiatives across the White House, department, and agency.
             
Previously, Tené served as Chief of Staff for Mayor Adrian Fenty and as Director of Special Projects for the Kerry/Edwards presidential campaign at the Democratic National Committee. She began her career in public service as a teacher in Prince George’s County Public Schools, inspiring her third-grade students to see education as a pathway to economic opportunity.    
                           
Tené is a proud graduate of Howard University, where she earned a degree in Psychology. She is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., the Nation’s Capital Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, and various local and national humanitarian organizations. Among her many achievements, her most cherished role is being a mother to her extraordinary son.      
                 
With extensive experience in government, philanthropy, and community development, Tené has consistently built systems from the ground up, revitalized organizations to enhance team performance, and fostered inclusive ecosystems that drive sustainable economic growth. Her dedication to creating opportunities and advancing equity underscores her commitment to empowering communities and shaping a more inclusive future.

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Virginia Littlejohn (Board Member) is an accomplished advocate for women’s entrepreneurship who has held numerous leadership roles. She is the past President of the National Association of Women Business Owners, and has occupied positions with the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs, the Global Banking Alliance for Women, and the International Trade Centre, a joint agency of the UN and World Trade Organization on a 10-year initiative to get women entrepreneurs into the global supply chain.

Virginia co-founded Quantum Leaps in 2002 to accelerate global women’s entrepreneurship. She has been inducted into the Enterprising Women Hall of Fame and has won numerous international awards, including Lifetime Achievement Awards from The International Alliance for Women and the America-China Business Women's Alliance. 

Virginia currently leads the U.S. delegation to the Group of 20's Women 20, and the assembly’s Women's Entrepreneurship and Finance Working Group. She and the other delegates develop and propose policy recommendations to support gender equality and women's economic empowerment.

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Dr. Shakenna Williams (Board Member) is the Executive Director of the Center for Women Entrepreneurial Leadership (CWEL) and founder of the Black Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership (BWEL) program at Babson College. She is an adjunct faculty member in Babson’s MBA Program, owns Kenna Business Solutions, and previously served as Deputy Academic Director and Lead Faculty Director of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program.

With her passion to propel women entrepreneurs to new levels of success, Dr. Williams is the proud recipient of the Babson Entrepreneurial Thought and Action Award, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Changemaker Award, and the African American Female Professor of the Year Award. She authored The Mark (excerpt) and is writing her first book, Hooked: Entrepreneurial Leadership Skills Learned While Fishing with My Dad.

Dr. Williams received her doctorate from Capella University (dissertation, Talent Management and Retention in Small Family-Owned Businesses: A Multiple-Case Qualitative Study), her MBA from Oklahoma City University, and her B.S. (Finance; Investments) from Babson. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., The Links, Incorporated, and the Academy of Management. Dr. Williams cherishes being a foster mom, and loves to travel, spend time with family, cook, and paint.

Ruth Jacks is an award-winning senior executive with more than three decades ofexpertise in enterprise transformations, commercial banking, data analytics, andmergers and acquisitions. She has been profiled in prominent publications such asBloomberg, Forbes, and Yahoo Finance.
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As Executive Vice President at Wells Fargo, she runs the $40billion dollar Client Growth Segments business within the Commercial Bankinggroup. This national line of business is responsible for fueling the growth ofdiverse-owned businesses with revenues between $25 million and $2 billion by providingavenues to capital, education, insights, and tailored programming. Ruth is alsoa member of Wells Fargo’s leadership team and Commercial Banking’s Operatingand Risk Committees.
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Previously, Ruth led an organization of over 2,000 employeesspread across three continents. In this role, she spearheaded thetransformation of the Commercial Bank’s go-to-market strategy by establishing arobust sales enablement platform leveraging data and analytics while mitigatingrisk within the frontline coverage models. Her leadership stands out for itsblend of operational expertise, strong risk management and governance, and anauthentic dedication to driving purposeful growth.
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A military veteran, Ruth’s professional journey began inmanufacturing with progressive roles in engineering, audit, and six sigma whereshe became a certified Master Black Belt at General Electric. While at GE, Ruthtaught and applied Six Sigma to C-suite hospital administrators certifying the1st Master Black Belts in the Healthcare Industry, winning her multiple awardsincluding GEs Icon award for global community impact and industry firsts. She laterspent 15 years at Bank of America in strategic leadership roles, advancing fromleading a single business line’s revenue growth to shaping Bank of America’s enterpriseresponsible growth strategy.
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Ruth holds academic credentials from the University ofPennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and Graduate School of Banking. Basedin Atlanta, Georgia, she is a trusted private sector board advisor who enjoys qualitytime with her three young daughters adopted in 2023.

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Jane Veron is the Co-founder and CEO of The Acceleration Project (TAP), a nonprofit that empowers small business owners and accelerates their growth. TAP is creating a more equitable and inclusive economy by providing advisory services to under-resourced small business owners across the country. Since co-founding TAP in 2012, Jane has grown the organization to over 200 consultants that serve thousands of small business owners annually. TAP’s areas of expertise include finance, operations, strategy, marketing, and support throughout the entire capital lifecycle.

In addition to her leadership of TAP, Jane is the President of EJA Industries, a holding company for middle market private equity investments and serves on several PE boards. Previously, Jane worked in strategy and marketing at Bain & Company and American Express.  

Jane’s commitment to public service led her to serve as Mayor of Scarsdale, New York, from 2021 to 2023. Prior to that she was Deputy Mayor and a Trustee of the Village of Scarsdale from 2016 to 2020. Jane has held many civic leadership positions, including Chair of the Scarsdale Planning Board and President of the Scarsdale League of Women Voters.

Jane has received numerous awards: the Scarsdale Mayor’s Award for Exceptional Leadership; the Daily Point of Light Award (organization founded by President George H.W. Bush); Crain’s list of Notables in Nonprofit and Philanthropy; the 2021 Global Game Changer award from TalentNomics for “Walking the Talk”; Westchester Magazine’s 2022 “914Inc Top Women in Business”, the 2023 Harvard Business School Latino Alumni Association’s (HBSLAA) Distinguished Alum in the Latino Community Award for leading TAP's work with Latino business owners, and the 2023 Profiles in Diversity Magazine “Women Worth Watching Award”. She was featured in Joanne Lippman’s 2023 book NEXT! The Power of Reinvention in Life and Work and received front-page Wall Street Journal coverage.  In 2024 Jane received The Visionary Catalyst Prize, the “Scarsdale Bowl” by The Scarsdale Foundation, the Women’s Bond Club’s Betty Cook Award, and 2024 Trailblazer Nonprofit Award from City & State and NYN Media.

Jane was appointed to the Investment Capital Advisory Committee (ICAC) of the U.S. Small Business Administration. She is also a member of the Advisory Board of Gamechanger by Dick’s Sporting Goods and serves on the Harvard Women’s Leadership Board; the Regional Plan Association Board; and the Nonprofit Westchester Board. Jane earned a BA magna cum laude from Yale University and an MBA with honors from Harvard Business School.

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As the editor and publisher of Enterprising Women, Monica Smiley has spent the last 14 years building the national — and now global — magazine she leads into a strong voice for women entrepreneurs.With the nation's only women-owned magazine published exclusively for women business owners, Monica and her team have crafted a magazine that is like a reunion with an old friend. Under her leadership, Enterprising Women has become a friendly meeting place, a public forum, and an international stage for the critical issues confronting women's businesses and daily lives. She leads a team of writers who share the unique perspectives and experiences of entrepreneurial women — women who dare to think big, make the leap, and follow their dreams.The print and digital editions of the magazine now reach nearly a million women entrepreneurs in 185 countries around the globe.While Enterprising Women is in its 14th year serving the women business owner community, Monica has been the president of a magazine publishing and marketing communication business for nearly 30 years, publishing both consumer and trade magazine titles.

Prior to co-founding a magazine publishing and consulting business with her husband, John W. Dancer, in the early 1980s, she spent seven years publishing a trade magazine for the photography industry. She established Enterprising Women Inc. as its president and CEO in 1999, and her team published the first issue of Enterprising Women together in May 2000.Considered a global thought leader on women's entrepreneurship, Monica is a member of the Women Presidents' Organization, and leads Enterprising Women as a founding coalition partner of Women Impacting Public Policy, a national advocacy organization that represents women business owners before Congress, the White House, and in all 50 state capitols. Enterprising Women is a media partner of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). Monica serves on the NAWBO Advisory Council, as well as the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women (IEEW) Board of Directors.Monica has represented the United States six times as a delegate to the Global Summit of Women (in Marrakesh, Morocco; Berlin, Germany; Santiago, Chile; Beijing, China; Istanbul, Turkey; and Athens, Greece), a gathering of nearly a thousand women entrepreneurs, women business leaders, and women Cabinet- or Ministerial-level government leaders from more than 90 countries.She was the first recipient of the Adrienne Hall Award in April 2009 presented by the Women Presidents' Organization in recognition of her work to support the WPO's mission, and build bridges and alliances to strengthen the women's business community.The International Alliance for Women (TIAW) presented her with the TIAW World of Difference 100 Award in 2010 in recognition of her outstanding contribution in making "all the difference in the world" to the economic empowerment of women.

She received the President's Award in 2011 from Women Impacting Public Policy to recognize her leadership role and the significant impact that Enterprising Women has had on the growth of the women's business community.Actively involved in the IEEW PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS Program, Monica served as a mentor in the 2009 program, hosting three Rwandan women entrepreneurs in North Carolina for five days. In June 2010, she hosted two Afghan women entrepreneurs in North Carolina as part of the program, and in July 2011, she hosted Astrida Uwera, a Rwandan journalist and publisher of the only online magazine for Rwandan women. In July 2013, she began a new mentorship with a young woman artist and business owner from Afghanistan. Monica now mentors women from Afghanistan, Rwanda, and China on an ongoing basis.By establishing the Enterprising Women Advisory Board in 2002, Monica has brought together the leaders of every major U.S. organization that supports women's entrepreneurship, Fortune 500 leaders from companies with strong women's business initiatives, and outstanding women entrepreneurs from across the United States, Canada, and around the globe. Increasingly, the magazine is spearheading an effort to share the best practices of U.S. women entrepreneurs with women entrepreneurs around the world, while bringing the most inspiring stories and best international ideas back to its North American readers.Monica established the Enterprising Women of the Year Awards program in 2002 to recognize outstanding women entrepreneurs worldwide based on solid business growth, mentorship and support of other women and girls, and community leadership.

She also founded the Enterprising Women Hall of Fame to recognize accomplished women entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders with a lifetime of achievements.The annual Enterprising Women of the Year Awards Celebration and Conference is hosted each spring and attracts top women entrepreneurs and members of the magazine's Advisory Board for a three-day event that shines the spotlight on outstanding women entrepreneurs.In March 2011, Monica and her team launched the Enterprising Women Foundation, a nonprofit that encourages philanthropic giving among women business owners and will support projects to grow women's entrepreneurship in the United States and around the world. The Foundation is launching a national mentorship project in 2014, with events held around the United States to promote and encourage mentorship of girls and young women entrepreneurs. The project will begin with a January 24, 2014 kickoff luncheon in Washington, DC.Closer to home in North Carolina, Monica has been actively involved in her children's schools, serving as president of the Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School Parent Teacher Association (PTA), where she launched a Young Entrepreneurs Club, mentored middle-school-aged youth, and served on the school's Business Alliance.A native of Bay City, Michigan, Monica and her husband John Dancer have lived in Cary, North Carolina for 17 years with their two sons, Austin (23) and Alex (21). She has three grown step-children and four grandchildren.Monica earned a degree in journalism from Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois, and began her career as an award-winning newspaper reporter and editor.

Nicola Corzine serves as the Executive Director of the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, a non-profit that delivers world-class resources and mentoring to enable every entrepreneur across the globe to realize their maximum potential. As Executive Director, Nicola is responsible for strategic and operational leadership that help drive research, programing, fundraising, and operations for the organization.

Nicola brings over 15 years of strategic business development and entrepreneurial thought leadership programming experience to the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, most recently in her role as Investment Manager for the Band of Angels, a position held since 2004 as well as Partner in the 2009 Acorn fund. During her time at the Band, she was as an early advisor to Startup America and led the development of the first national and regional Angel Capital Association conferences.

Prior to Band of Angels, Nicola was the founder and executive director of Financing Partners, an organization that delivered education to both entrepreneurs and investors to enable them to reach their mutual objectives. Before Band of Angels, she was part of three startup companies in the US and UK.

Nicola is a frequent speaker on angel investing, technology trends and seed financing at Universities including Stanford, Wharton and Duke, national conferences, including IEEE Women in Engineering, NVCA and Innovation Enterprise, and has served as a formation advisor to several regional and international angel groups and seed funds.

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Katica Roy is the CEO and founder of Denver-based Pipeline, an award-winning SaaS company that leverages artificial intelligence to identify and drive economic gains through intersectional gender equity. Katica is a highly regarded gender economist driven by a passion for eradicating economic inequity.

Katica serves on Bloomberg’s New Economy Forum, Fast Company’s Impact Council, and the US Small Business Administration’s National Women’s Business Council. Among her many accolades, she was named a LinkedIn Top Influencer for gender equity; and has received recognition from TIME, Fast Company, and the Colorado Governor’s Office for her groundbreaking work.

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Leslie Lynn Smith is Vice Chair of CAE’s board of directors. She is a nationally recognized entrepreneurial and business development leader.  She is the founder and principal of Themis Strategic Partners, a consulting firm focused on the intersection of equity and growth, and serves as a Senior Strategic Advisor for GET Cities (Gender Equality in Tech), where she works to build a national movement that will march with energy and intent toward the creation of a tech economy that recognizes, celebrates and elevates the gifts, talents and contributions of women, non-binary and trans people.  GET Cities is led by SecondMuse and Break Through Tech in partnership with Pivotal Ventures, the investment and incubation company created by Melinda Gates.

Before joining GET Cities in October 2020, Leslie was the founding president and CEO of Epicenter, the nonprofit hub of the greater Memphis entrepreneurial movement. Using a systems approach, Smith led a team that drove strategy and measured impact among a network of economic development, academic, corporate, and government partners to increase support to new and existing tech startups, creative and community-based businesses, student entrepreneurs, and others across industries and stages of growth.  The Epicenter team and its partners connected these entrepreneurs and their innovative ideas to programming, capital, customers, and talent in order to create a just, inclusive, and growing economy that benefits all Memphians.

Smith’s role in Memphis came after five years of successful entrepreneurial leadership as president and CEO of TechTown, Detroit’s most established business incubator and accelerator. Under Smith’s leadership, TechTown created and launched novel urban economic development programs, expanded tech-based company creation and launched robust regional entrepreneurship collaborations with great and measurable impact.

Previously, she was director of business acceleration for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, overseeing the state’s $300 million start-up investment portfolio and managing the statewide innovation economy and its network of ecosystem partners, including 15 research universities, incubators, accelerators and the philanthropic and private sectors.

Smith’s current board service includes InBIA, Center for American Entrepreneurship, and Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc., and the University of Memphis Board of Visitors.

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“A baby boomer with the heart and soul of a millennial” describes Geri best. She grew up believing that dedicated, thoughtful people can change the world by working together.

She is a believer still. In fact, Geri is even more committed to the possibility of meaningful change because she realizes that we have a huge, untapped resource: Women!

For the last few years, Geri has researched and written about the challenges women face in the entrepreneurial world and the success factors that help them break through barriers, whether they are starting a business or scaling to a multi-million dollar enterprise.

Geri’s passion to get women on the radar as leaders of mega-firms led her to write Forget the Glass Ceiling: Build Your Business Without One. To find out best practices for investment crowdfunding — a great alternative for women entrepreneurs! — Geri undertook a successful rewards-based crowdfunding campaign herself and published the results in  Stand Out in the Crowd:  How Women (and Men) Benefit from Equity Crowdfunding [add link]

Geri is a questioner and a builder, and is passionate about eliminating barriers to entrepreneurial aspirations.

Geri’s accomplishments include:

• Mentor for WE NYC: 2016 to present
• 2015 Madam C.J. Walker Business Leadership Award from the National Minority Business Council.
• 2013 and 2012 Small Business Trends Small Business Influencer
• Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship at The New School
• Facilitator, Kauffman Foundation FastTrac courses for entrepreneurs
• Researched and published Ditch Digital Dabbling: How Small Businesses + Nonprofits Can Master Online Marketing
• Former board member for the New York City Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners. Was on the board for eight years.

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Edie Fraser is Honorary Board Chair of Women Business Collaborative(WBC), a non-profit to accelerate Equal Position, Pay and Power for all businesswomen.

WBC works with business women organization partners and stakeholders. Edie spent 14 years as Managing Director, Diversified Search and Founder and CEO of STEMconnector® and Million Women Mentors®(MWM)–with 2.5 million commitments. As a consummate entrepreneur, Edie built three companies and several movements. She received 56 major Leadership awards and served on boards, inducted into the Enterprising Women Hall of Fame and received the Mosaic Award from Diversity Woman. She was Chairman of the World Affairs Council of DC and is a Founding and Board member of C200. Edie was Founder and CEO of Public Affairs Group working with 250 Fortune companies, advancing best practice programs on women and diversity leadership. The company included Diversity Best Practices (DBP), the Business Women’s Network(BWN) and Best Practices in Corporate Communications. Her books include Do Your Giving While You’re Living and Women’s Entrepreneurship in America. In 2015, she released “Advancing a Jobs Driven Economy with STEMconnector® and WOW Facts and Women’s Quick Facts. She produced many reports related to diversity, including The Chief Diversity Officer and The Diversity Primer.

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As Chief Operating Officer, Jill is responsible for strategic human resource planning and alignment of human resource strategies with organizational vision and mission at WBENC. In addition, she leads the strategic planning and execution of WBENC programs, driving continuous engagement and value for WBENC constituents and stakeholders. Jill also oversees the WBENC Board of Directors governance functions, ensuring a highly effective board with diverse representation and talent.

Jill joined the WBENC team in 2016 after serving on the leadership team of WBE firm, Point 2 Point Global Security, Inc. as Senior Vice President, Human Resources. Jill holds a BS from the University of North Texas, as well as a Senior Certified Human Resources Professional Certification (SHRM-SCP) from the Society for Human Resources Management and a Professional in Human Resources Certification (PHR) from the Human Resources Certification Institute.

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As President and CEO of Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), Angela Dingle leads a national nonpartisan organization advocating on behalf of women entrepreneurs, strengthening their impact on our nation’s public policy, creating economic opportunities, and forging alliances with other business organizations. Serving as the voice for the over 14 million women owned companies in the U.S., WIPP works with lawmakers to impact and influence policy that provides economic equity, procurement inclusion and access to the global marketplace.

Prior to serving in this role, Angela founded Ex Nihilo Management, an award-winning technology and management consultancy that provides governance, risk management and cybersecurity (GRC) to the public, private and non-profit sector. Her commitment to client success earned her a reputation as a trusted advisor and strategic partner.

Angela is a sought-after speaker and thought leader, sharing her insights and expertise at conferences and events focused on women in business and government contracting. She is the author of Discovering Your Girl Powers: 10 Strategies to Build Confidence, Charisma and Credibility and Unexpected Leader: 11 Tools for Transformational Leadership. She has written articles and publications that provide valuable leadership guidance.

Angela holds a MS in Management Information Systems from Bowie State University, a BS in Computer Science from DeVry University, a Certified Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Practitioner, and a Certified Management Consultant (CMC).  Angela is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

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Business
I have had the honor of working with NAWBO since 2008, and every day I’m inspired by the women entrepreneurs who make up this incredible community. My role has always been to advance NAWBO’s mission, collaborate with our National and Institute Boards to execute the strategic plan, and most importantly, ensure we are always serving women business owners at every stage of their journey.

I’m especially proud of the innovative programming and partnerships we’ve built – efforts that continue to create countless opportunities across industries and business sizes. Beyond our national impact, I’ve had the privilege of contributing to the global conversation on women’s entrepreneurship through my work with FCEM, the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs. These experiences deepen my understanding of the unique challenges women business owners face worldwide and fuel my passion for ensuring NAWBO continues to evolve in step with an ever-changing landscape.

I’m also honored to serve on the advisory committee for Enterprising Women magazine and to have previously served on the National Women’s Business Council, helping shape policies that impact the 14 million women-owned businesses across the U.S.

Lifestyle
Making time for health and family are at the core of how I stay fueled and focused, no matter how busy life gets.

I try to incorporate exercise and meditation into my daily routine – both clear my mind, relieve stress and give me space to reflect and recharge. One of my favorite rituals has always been walking each morning, a practice that gives me a precious pause in the day to connect with myself, breathe fresh air and reset.

Being a mom in a blended family brings a beautiful mix of joy, learning and everyday chaos – and it’s the role that keeps me most grounded. Our family reminds me daily that love and connection come in many forms, and they each teach me the importance of being fully present, whether I’m cheering for them on the side lines or soaking up our time together when they are home.

Community
Giving back has always been one of my guiding values, and I feel strongly about instilling that same sense of responsibility in the next generation. I regularly volunteer, whether at a local food bank or with programs that teach children the importance of service and connect families with community resources.

Supporting causes that touch my loved ones is deeply personal for me. Having experienced cancer in my family, I make it a point to participate in fundraisers that drive awareness and support. Since my college days working in a shelter for abused and runaway teens, I’ve carried with me the lesson that the simplest actions – a smile, hug and listening ear – can make the greatest difference. At the heart of everything I do is the belief that we should be the change we want to see, live with purpose and leave our communities stronger than we found them.

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