Women’s Business Leadership Conference Features Lunch and Learn Sessions
JONESBORO – The 2018 Women’s Business Leadership Conference at Arkansas State University will feature a new format for the lunch break that will provide different ways for attendees to learn at the same time they lunch. Instead of one meal break for all, six separate lunch areas will be available with each featuring speakers and presentations that cover diverse topics.
The fourth annual conference is Thursday, March 29, in Centennial Hall at the Carl R. Reng Student Union, third floor. FedEx is the presenting sponsor. Admission is free and lunch is provided. The conference opens at 9:30 a.m. and runs through 2 p.m., with check-in beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Centennial Hall entrance. For a full schedule and to register, go to AState.edu/COBWBLC or email WBLC@AState.edu.
In addition to the four keynote speakers who will address the group in two scheduled plenary sessions, 12 speakers are speaking in the Lunch and Learn gatherings from 12:10-1:30 p.m. Those attending the conference may select one of the sessions to enjoy a meal and listen to a knowledgeable speaker.
“Leading Nonprofits: Hindsight is 20/20!” is the topic of session one, with Lisa Melton, special projects manager for the Texas Access to Justice Foundation (TAJF), serving as moderator. The panel includes Gina Gomez, executive director of El Centro Hispano; Nanette Heard, United Way of Northeast Arkansas; Denise Snider, City Youth Ministries; and Barbara Gay Jimenez of the Delta Symphony Orchestra. The session and lunch is in the Spring River Room.
Session two is “Employment Law and Gender,” with M. Kimberly Hodges, an attorney and shareholder in the Memphis office of Ogletree Deakins as the presenter. Guests will pick up lunch in the Pine Tree Room and go to the Mockingbird Room.
The third session available to visitors is “Wealth Management Strategies for Women,” with Susan Naylor, senior vice president, wealth management and senior financial adviser at Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith, Inc., and Aimee B. Spencer, financial adviser at Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith, Inc. It will be held in the Arkansas River Room.
Julie Mohajir, wife of Arkansas State University Director of Athletics Terry Mohajir, owns a wellness business that focuses on health education and teaching people about the power of their diet. She will host the fourth session, “Eat Well, Live Well” in the Black River Room.
Session five is “Getting Real About Privilege,” presented by Dr. Faye Cocchiara, instructor of management at A-State. Cocchiara’s presentation and lunch will be in the White River Room.
Sarah Scott, instructor in communication studies and director of the communication center at Arkansas State, and Natalie Eskew, career counselor, will present the sixth and final session. It is called, “Amplifying Women’s Voices and Increasing Women’s Visibility in Our Careers and Communities.” The presentation is in Centennial Hall with lunches provided.
Additionally, 40 young women from J.A. Fair High School in Little Rock plan to attend the conference and remain to participate in activities with A-State’s leadership interns.
For more information about the conference, contact Dr. Patricia Robertson, faculty coordinator for the Women’s Business Leadership Center, at probertson@AState.edu or by phone at 870-972-2300.
