Louisville Athletics Introduces Women of Influence Program
September 19, 2017 | Beyond the Buzzer
The Women of Influence program connects female student-athletes with the city’s most influential female leaders
The University of Louisville Athletic Department is proud to introduce a new initiative focused on the professional development of female student-athletes.
The Women of Influence program connects female student-athletes with the city's most influential female leaders. The program provides unique mentoring and professional development opportunities to inspire female student-athletes to plan and prepare for life beyond the court and field.
The program has offered four events to date, while two more events are on the calendar for 2017. The first event featured 16 upper classmen and 15 female Humana employees for a one-on-one working luncheon. The attendees were paired with a female employee from Humana at the director level or higher who works in the student-athlete's area of study.
The second Women of Influence event featured eight female entrepreneurs hosting round table discussions. Each tabletop focused on a different question to guide the conversation. Some discussion topics included the top-five suggestions for nailing an interview, the most important characteristics of a successful new hire and how recent graduates are going to transform the business world. The groups discussed and then rotated for a chance to connect with each of the female business leaders.
"Wow! What an impressive group of young women," Alli Truttmann, President of Wicked Sheets said about the second Women of Influence event. "It made me think back to my days as a student-athlete and I can only hope that I presented myself with an ounce of the passion and dedication to their teams and education as they did that morning. Keep up the great work!"
Fifty female student-athletes attended the third Women of Influence event. Owner of Primp Style Lounge, Shannon Kessler, educated the attendees on how to dress for the workplace. The attendees learned the power of personal presentation and noted some quick tips on style basics for an appropriate and versatile work wardrobe.Â
The fourth, and most recent, Women of Influence event featured Senior Vice President and Regional Executive Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Louisville Branch, Nikki Jackson who spoke on the importance of growing a professional network. Jackson offered tips on how to navigate the job market, best practices when transitioning into new roles and how to tackle racism and sexism in the workplace.
"We should use our time as student-athletes to our advantage," said Arica Carter, a junior on the women's basketball team who attended two events. "The Women of Influence program has shown me the importance of hard work, teamwork and how to be competitive in the job hunt and workplace. I also learned to not be close-minded when you get an opportunity, because you might like it and it could lead to other opportunities that can help your future."Â Â
The next Women of Influence event is scheduled for November.                 Â
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The Women of Influence program connects female student-athletes with the city's most influential female leaders. The program provides unique mentoring and professional development opportunities to inspire female student-athletes to plan and prepare for life beyond the court and field.
The program has offered four events to date, while two more events are on the calendar for 2017. The first event featured 16 upper classmen and 15 female Humana employees for a one-on-one working luncheon. The attendees were paired with a female employee from Humana at the director level or higher who works in the student-athlete's area of study.
The second Women of Influence event featured eight female entrepreneurs hosting round table discussions. Each tabletop focused on a different question to guide the conversation. Some discussion topics included the top-five suggestions for nailing an interview, the most important characteristics of a successful new hire and how recent graduates are going to transform the business world. The groups discussed and then rotated for a chance to connect with each of the female business leaders.
"Wow! What an impressive group of young women," Alli Truttmann, President of Wicked Sheets said about the second Women of Influence event. "It made me think back to my days as a student-athlete and I can only hope that I presented myself with an ounce of the passion and dedication to their teams and education as they did that morning. Keep up the great work!"
Fifty female student-athletes attended the third Women of Influence event. Owner of Primp Style Lounge, Shannon Kessler, educated the attendees on how to dress for the workplace. The attendees learned the power of personal presentation and noted some quick tips on style basics for an appropriate and versatile work wardrobe.Â
The fourth, and most recent, Women of Influence event featured Senior Vice President and Regional Executive Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Louisville Branch, Nikki Jackson who spoke on the importance of growing a professional network. Jackson offered tips on how to navigate the job market, best practices when transitioning into new roles and how to tackle racism and sexism in the workplace.
"We should use our time as student-athletes to our advantage," said Arica Carter, a junior on the women's basketball team who attended two events. "The Women of Influence program has shown me the importance of hard work, teamwork and how to be competitive in the job hunt and workplace. I also learned to not be close-minded when you get an opportunity, because you might like it and it could lead to other opportunities that can help your future."Â Â
The next Women of Influence event is scheduled for November.                 Â
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