Slippery Rock University is celebrating Women’s History Month by championing women in leadership with events throughout March.
Ayana Ledford is the featured speaker at the Women and Allies Mentoring Event at 5 p.m. on March 26 in the Smith Student Center Ballroom.
Ledford is an award-winning speaker and leadership mentor who specializes in developing equity-minded leaders and strengthening inclusive talent pipelines. For 20 years, she has designed leadership strategies across higher education, nonprofit and corporate sectors, expanding women’s access to opportunity.
“While there are many challenges that women are facing, there is a pathway forward, even though it’s never going to be a straight line,” Ledford said. “There’s still a lot of work to be done, and every small step that you make is something to hold onto.”
Ledford is associate dean for community impact and educational outreach at Carnegie Mellon University’s Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
She is the founder and executive director of PROGRESS (Program for Research and Outreach on Gender Equity in Society), CMU’s initiative for gender research, mentoring and leadership strategies that close gaps in advancement and compensation.
“The challenges that women face as it pertains to the economic and leadership gap, which is also compounded by being a woman of color, exist,” Ledford said. “While we amplify these stories each March, PROGRESS goes further. It acknowledges these barriers year-round and actively works to create meaningful opportunities to close the gaps.”
The Women and Allies Mentoring Event is free and about to the public but attendees are asked to complete an online RSVP form.
More information about additional programming for Women’s History Month at SRU is available on CORE, the University online platform for student organizations and events.
