Compared to men, there are very few women in leadership positions, which is why several organizations came together to host a leadership conference called “Unmute Yourself: The Urgency of Women’s Leadership” Nov. 8. Another event called “Pack + Party” was held on Nov. 7 that focused on making period kits for students in need.
Organizations that helped organize these two events are:
- GolfHER
- The Policy Project
- The Governing Group
- Women’s Business Center of Utah
- Women Who Succeed
- Utah Women Run
- The Women’s Leadership Institute
Nina Barnes, Utah Women Run representative for southern Utah, helped start this conference eight years ago. She has served on city, university and state councils prior to her current position.
Barnes said: “I just realized there were not a lot of women there with me [in leadership positions]. We needed to elevate the voices of women, families and children and have them heard as we make decisions for leadership in southern Utah. They were missing.”
Barnes said this event is meant to bring women in leadership positions together to talk to other women about their stories, barriers they found in getting to where they are right now, and how they overcame them and the possibility of change.
Amber Williams, a director of finance for real estate and attendee of the event, said, “It’s good motivation and a reminder of what we’re working toward and just to stay motivated and inspired to go on and make connections with other women who are doing work in the community.”
Women of all ages and careers were present at the conference to hear the messages that these successful women presented. They talked during the breaks, making connections with other women to learn about leadership.
This conference featured several women in leadership positions as speakers such as:
- Tami Pyfer, chief of staff and vice president of external affairs for UNITE, a national organization that works to bridge culture and politics, and is co-creator of the Dignity Index, an eight-point scale used to measure the level of dignity and contempt in language used during disagreements.
- Becky Edwards, a previous member of the House of Representatives from 2008-2019 and founder of The Governing Group, a group that works to help Republican candidates run for office in Utah.
- Melinda Pfundstein, the executive director of community and workforce development at Southern Utah University.
- Emily Bell McCormick, founder and president of The Policy Project, an organization that creates policy solutions to solve problems. Projects they have include The Focused Student Project, The Safe Child Project and The Period Project.
- Ali Mulhall, who is a 19-year-old golf champion with 371 national tournament titles.
- Shirlee Draper, chief operating officer of Cherish Families, a non-profit organization that serves people from polygamous backgrounds by providing support services for trauma and helping them gain their independence.
Several other women talked, including a keynote speaker, Congresswoman Celeste Maloy, who represents Utah’s second district and serves on the House of Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and House Committee of Small Business. Maloy discussed a lesson on leadership she learned early on from her mom.
“If I ever didn’t get my homework done on time, or got into a scrape, or was fighting with my friends, whatever, my mom would not bail me out. She’s not a helicopter mom,” Maloy said. “My mom would say, ‘Well, you’re smart, figure it out.’ And it drove me crazy, but I think it’s the reason I’m standing here today.”
This message taught her to solve problems and set her up for success in leadership positions.
“I think sometimes we act like women have to do something special and feminine to be leaders. We are all special and feminine just by being women. All we have to do to be leaders is believe that we’re smart, and we can figure it out and apply the skills we’ve all been learning our whole lives,” Maloy said.
The room was packed full, and people were attentive to the speakers, several taking notes. Many asked questions during the panel section with Maloy and Pyfer. The talks and questions had an overall message of women supporting women.
While not many college students were in attendance, it was an important message for them as well.
“Our young people on campus particularly need to see the potential within themselves and that they belong in those spaces and in the rooms where decisions are made and budgets are decided and rules or laws are made,” Barnes said.
The overall message of the conference was to support each other in leadership and that women need more representation in these roles.
Maloy said: “There are two kinds of successful women. There’s the queen bee type who gets to a position and then burns the bridge behind them because they want to look like they’re special and they’re the only ones who could have ever done what they did. And then there are the type who go and pave the bridge behind them and invite other people to come along and try to make it easier and easier for someone else to get where they are.”
