How She Leads

In this episode, we interview Katerina, the founder of ENGin that connects young Ukrainians and their peers in the US and all over the world. Katerina shared how she started with only a lofty goal as helping and giving back to her community in Ukraine but gradually and organically arrived where she is now. During this process, she explored many ideas and learned a lot of essential skills. She said “no” to Yale who offered her admission and now introspect, Katerina commented that is the best decision she has ever made. In college selection, it is not about the level of prestigiousness but how well the program would fit one’s (current and/or long-term) goals. Without a clear career path at the very beginning, Katerina was learning all the critical skills that eventually helped her in creating and leading her own non-profit organization. Let’s hear more from Katerina.

Join Julia and Yubo for inspirational stories from younger female founders building technology-based solutions that enhance access and inclusion and an open Q&A discussion.

Mariella Satow, founder of SignUp - Overlay Sign language on streaming platforms

Katerina Semida Manoff, founder of ENGin - Rebuilding Ukraine Through 1-1 connections

Julia Newell, founder of Hear You Know Me - EL training to unleash disability success

Ivy Wu and Emma Tao, founders of Lumiere Arts - Collaborative digital art creation

Shared at NGO Committee on Status of Women (CSW) United Nations Forum 67

In this episode, we interview Kristen Amundson who has had a diverse and accomplished career as a leader in education and public service. She is the past president and CEO of the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), founder and current board member of Edututor, an organization supports student who are behind in their studies through online tutoring. As a former Virginia State Delegate, a former school board member, Kristen has a strong commitment in public education. Kristen grew up in a small town in South Dakota, where her father was involved in education and served on the school board and in the South Dakota legislature. In the early days, though career choices were very limited for women, her upbringing instilled a belief in the importance of education and a sense that anything is possible without feeling constrained. Kristen recently authored a book called "Unfinished Learning," which explores the impact of the pandemic on children's education. Through Kristen's personal stories we have learned as a leader, the importance of knowing the issues and doing the homework, working harder than other and building the network. Kristen's journey showcases her own commitment to education and her dedication to making a positive impact in the field through various leadership roles and initiatives. As she quoted from congresswoman Shirley Chisholm “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” Let's hear more from Kristen Amundson.

In this episode, we interview Linda Graham a MFT and an arthur of two award-winning books Bouncing Back: Rewiring Your Brain for Maximum Resilience and Well-Being, (2013) and Resilience: Powerful Practices for Bouncing Back from Disappointment, Difficulty, and Even Disaster (2018). Linda Graham combines contemporary Western psychology with scientific evidence of neuroscience of resilience and ancient Eastern contemplative wisdom.  We strongly recommend checking out her weekly Healing and Awakening into Aliveness and Wholeness newsletter (since 2008) which provides practical daily exercises people could use to learn new, safe and effective coping strategies. Let's hear more from Linda and her journey as a therapist.

In this episode, we interview Jessyca Matthews, a language arts teacher, a racial, environmental justice, and institutional racism activist. In 2017, Mathews was a finalist for NEA’s Social Justice Activist of the Year for her work on the Flint water crisis. Mathews was named Michigan’s Region 5 Teacher of the Year in 2019-20. In 2018, she was named Secondary English Teacher of the Year by the Michigan Council of Teachers of English and received the Samford Award for Most Inspirational Teacher of Michigan. Mathews has a voice in multiple areas of needed change in education. Let's hear about Jessyca's stories, how she stands for what's right and is involved in good trouble, and most importantly, how she assists young people in finding their own voices. 

You can learn more about Jessyca here: http://www.jessycamathews.com/. 

Dr. Ingrid Murra is a mission-driven entrepreneur and orthodontist passionate about democratizing access to confidence by way of smiles. She’s the 48th Latin woman to secure over $1,000,000 Venture Capital funding in the history of the United States, a Harvard-trained orthodontist, and the founder & CEO of the orthodontic startup, Two Front. In this episode, Dr. Murra shares her journey how she's revolutionizing the dental industry by connecting top orthodontists to dental offices and providing orthodontists with the tools to run modern, clear aligner practices from unused office space at dental offices. Not only do doctors make more money, but customers save money and time as well! Let's hear more about Dr. Murra's entrepreneur story. 

In this episode, we interview Dr. Lynette Henry. Immigrating from Barbados, Dr. Henry serves as the manager of college success program at the 10th largest public school district in the United States. During the interview, Dr. Henry emphasizes on the direct impact of our counselors and teachers on our students. To succeed, besides acquiring necessary skills, students need to be affirmed, to be seen and heard to build up their confidence in pursuing their dreams. Let's hear more from Dr. Henry.  

In this episode, we interview Helen Adeosun, Founder & CEO of CareAcademy. Helen has been listed as one of Fortune’s 2020 40 Under 40 in Health. She has worked with Teach for America, Boston Public Schools, and Pearson Education as well as a number of companies focused on caregiving issues. She holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame in Politics and Arabic Studies and an EdM. from Harvard University in Education Policy and Management.

As a daughter of Nigerian immigrants to the US, Helen combined her family tradition of work in the healthcare industry with her own passion for education and established CareAcademy to provide professional training for home care workers. In our conversation together, Helen explores the journey she has traveled, including her constantly changing her roles and responsibilities as an entrepreneur and leader. Let’s hear more from Helen and her journey as an influential and impactful entrepreneur.

In this episode, we interview Lorena Racanelli who is a dance resource teacher at Bailey’s elementary school, Fairfax County Public Schools. Lorena sets a great example of integrating non-core subject learning into core subjects. She has developed an integrated curriculum with the grade level standards so students are not only learning the elements of dance, self-control, and self-expression, but also deepening their understanding of science, social studies, language arts, and math. Lorena used social studies as an example and illustrated how movements could be integrated into storytelling and provided students a vivid picture of the settings of certain historical events. Lorena is able to combine her passion for dance and education to provide unique learning experiences to ESOL students at FCPS. With limited English proficiency when first landed in this country, Lorena believes understanding her own core values and persistently pursuing it is critical. She works with students everyday and teach them the importance of being strong internally. Let’s hear Lorena’s story of “strengthening the core” both physically and mentally.

In this episode, we interview Dr. Kimberly White-Smith, Professor and Dean of the LaFetra College of Education (LFCE) at the University of La Verne. Dr. White-Smith was adopted when she was a little girl, and her adoptive mother told her stories when she was growing up about her biological parents being highly educated university graduates. It later turned out that her adoptive mother had fabricated such stories, but in part as a result, Kimberly attributes this to never doubting her own abilities, or likelihood to succeed.

The power of storytelling is so important for people to see all possibilities in themselves, and consequently achieve their potential. Dr. White-Smith also recognizes the great community support she received along her journey. As a way to give back to the community, Dr. White-Smith is dedicated to fostering academic justice for minoritized students through enhanced educational environments, organizational structures, policies, and teaching practices. In our interview, Dr. White-Smith talks about how the teaching approach should not be limited to one norm and it needs to be adapted to meet individual students’ needs as well as their learning styles. Let’s hear more from Dr. White-Smith about addressing historical schooling inequalities through teacher education.