It takes a village to raise a child, and the community came out to share inspiration and encourage girls to dream big and be well at our 5th annual Young Women's Leadership Conference! Our 56 participants heard from MSKSI Mentor and Keynote Speaker, Dr. Aliya Fredrick, MD who is a pediatric neurosurgeon at Rady Children's Hospital and ALSO the current reigning Ms. Regency International! She shared how mentoring helped her reach goals she never dreamed she would accomplish in medicine, not to mention supporting female BIPOC students to pursue medical careers and reigning in pageantry with STEM as her platform!
We learned how to engage bodily presence and regulate our bodies and minds with our healer and inspirational speaker, Victoria Platt, who showed us how to identify dis-regulation, and how in simple steps, to get re-connected with our bodies, regulate, and listen within to find our place of balance. Leading others begins with self-regulation and self-care!
We had a tasty and healthy brunch featuring chicken and waffles (with a twist!) and a vegan brunch menu catered by The Jazzy Flamingo and Chef/Owner Rachel Rodman. Finally, we honored our 2022 mentees who completed programs with MSKSI and heard from one of our MSKSI alumni who currently attends Hampton University as a STEM major as she shared the impact MSKSI has had in helping guide her life, college, and career decisions.
Representatives from Abbott Technologies Black Business Network were present and expressed interest in supporting MSKSI STEM initiatives in the future. Other community leaders and sponsors were present and were inspired to see the potential in the room, and how supporting MSKSI will create an opportunity for them to be mentored and empowered to become the next innovators who cure diseases, explore space, heal our environment, start and run businesses, and create technology that changes the world.
Many girls who were participating with MSKSI for the first time are excited to join our community in the new year. It was a time of healing, joy, and encouragement to start our new year with intention, girl power, and good vibes!
For more information on upcoming MSKSI events, visit our events page.
