Organizers Hope First Annual ‘Lead Out Loud’ Conference Will Be The First Of Many

By Susan Coney

Newtown High School athlete Mary Kate Conlan and her mother, Joan, could not have been more pleased with the successful turnout for the first annual Lead Out Loud teen leadership conference, hosted by Newtown High School on Saturday, September 10.

The first conference of its kind targeted high school age girls and their parents, drawing 218 participants.

“Mary Kate and her mom, Joan, served as the catalyst for the program,” said NHS Athletic Director Greg Simon. Last spring, Mary Kate had wanted to attend a woman’s leadership conference held at Sacred Heart University; when she was unable to do so due to a scheduling conflict she approached Redding resident and filmmaker, Suzie Galler, president and founder of the Esteemed Woman Foundation and co-organizer for the Sacred Heart conference, and encouraged her to hold a similar event for high school-age girls.

The Esteemed Woman Foundation is a nonprofit organization created by Ms Galler to empower women of all ages and backgrounds to build and maintain a healthy sense of self-worth. Mary Kate explained that when she contacted Ms Galler the idea snowballed, growing to include many community resources.

Joan Conlan along with Suzie Galler and Greg Simon teamed up to organize the event. Organizers used sports as a metaphor for leadership. The conference was to teach young women that if they use the skills necessary to be competitive athletes, they will find all they need to become successful leaders in any field. The conference provided participants with the chance to explore leadership skills, network with inspirational role models, and partake in an interactive format that encouraged feedback.

With the assistance of Mr Simon, several other school administrators and a core organizing committee consisting of Newtown High School students and counterparts from 14 other Southwest Conference schools in the region worked together to develop the program. The conference was offered to all female high school students and used the athletic directors to spread the word about the event. Ms Conlan stated, “If Greg Simon would not have been on board with this program it wouldn’t have happened.”

Ms Galler developed the events for the conference, which offered the attendees the opportunity to hear inspiring speakers, attend informational workshops, and participate in roundtable discussions. She jumped on board because she is passionate about working with girls and wanted to make it their event.

“It is so important for the people in a community to support these events. We want to have this grow and hold this event every year. I would like to build a council of girls to become involved in developing and coordinating the event. I want the girls to feel a part of it,” Ms Galler stressed.

State Comptroller Nancy Wyman welcomed participants to the conference and gave motivational opening remarks. She told the attendees, “If you take anything away from this day of meeting some very powerful women it is this: look at who you are and the leaders who are out there and know that you can do a little bit better because we all learn from each other. You can do anything!”

The keynote speaker addressing the opening general session for the day was Paralympic athlete Aimee Mullins. Ms Mullins, who had both legs amputated at the age of 1, proved to be a most inspiring speaker. Ms Mullins has participated in sports her entire life including skiing, soccer, swimming, and softball, as well as track and field. Growing up in a large family in Allentown, Penn., Ms Mullins never knew she was disabled because her parents did not treat her any differently and set high expectations for her.

In college Ms Mullins was on the track and field team for Georgetown University, and later participated in the 1996 Paralympics in Atlanta. In addition to being a successful athlete Ms Mullins is a model, actress, motivational speaker, and is presently writing a book on athletics, beauty, and motivation. She was named by People magazine as one of its “50 Most Beautiful People.”

Ms Mullins interjected self-deprecating humor in her speech, relating pranks she had pulled with her various prosthetic legs throughout her lifetime. She admitted her share of fears and related strong messages to the audience saying, “Take what you do seriously but don’t take yourself too seriously. Be able to laugh at yourself and have fun. Don’t be paralyzed by fear, but triumph over it. The ability to achieve greatness is in all of us. Learn to be comfortable with your fear and overcome it. Remember there is power in asking for help, sharing your dream with others, and putting yourself out there. You never know what will come back to you.”

She left an obvious impression on the audience with her most inspirational and motivating speech.

After the morning speakers the participants broke into smaller workshops lead by additional speakers including renowned psychologist and author Dr Roni Cohen-Sandler, whose new book, Stressed Out Girls, was just released this September. Other speakers covering the workshops were former Vogue cover model and body image expert Aly Dunne, ESPN Senior Vice President Jodi Markley, and Housatonic Community College President Dr Janis Hadley, to name a few.

Dr Hadley told The Bee, “I jumped at the chance to do this kind of thing. To have the opportunity to give direction and have young women think beyond the Britney Spears and Christina Aguileras and realize there are a thousand career opportunities out there. It is a nonthreatening forum for both moms and daughters, where they can have thoughtful time together. This conference hits heavy issues such as self-esteem, bullying, and discovering who you are. It provides a wonderful opportunity to begin building networks; it is never too early to start that.”

Mother/daughter team Gail and Jessica Wolff came from Fairfield to attend the conference. Jessica, a ninth grader, gave up a party to come to the event but was glad that she did. Both stated that the “Lead Out Loud” conference was very motivational and helped to clarify what issues are most important in life.

The day culminated with an encouraging talk given by Olympic soccer star Kristine Lilly who spoke about her experiences as a leader on the soccer field. Ms Lilly has won two World Cup titles and Olympic Gold and Silver medals. She is the third all-time leading scorer in US soccer history.

Toward the end of the day, Newtown student Kristen Williams was recognized with a special award for the outstanding leadership role she played in obtaining sponsors for the event. Ms Galler stated, “Kristen took it upon herself to make phone calls and line up sponsors. She is a leader in the making.”

Mr Simon thanked My Place restaurant for its donation of an extensive lunch that was provided as part of the day’s events. “Their donation was well above and beyond anything we could have hoped for and greatly appreciated,” Mr Simon said.

Organizers also thanked Starbucks for providing coffee and bagels for breakfast prior to the conference.

Wachovia Bank sponsored the “Lead Out Loud” conference and WOMAN magazine printed the program guide.

For further information contact The Esteemed Woman Foundation at 938-8833 or visit www.esteemedwoman.org.