Celebrating Women in Leadership

This Women’s History Month, Common Impact is proud to put the spotlight on women in leadership who are strengthening their communities, breaking barriers, and making strides for gender equality. At the same time, we want to take this opportunity to recognize how COVID-19 has disproportionately affected women, especially women of color. Since February 2020, over 2.3 million women have been forced to leave the workforce due to layoffs and bearing the brunt of childcare needs and other family responsibilities.

As you explore the stories of exemplary women below, we encourage you to consider how we as individuals and institutions can rework existing systems to be more equitable and inclusive, to create pathways for women to return to and stay in the workforce, and to ensure they are appropriately recognized and rewarded for their accomplishments. After all, as the history we celebrate this month has shown, women make incredible leaders and community members!

Hear directly from female leaders across the private, public, and social sectors.

Pro Bono Perspectives Podcast

• Delores Morton, CEO of Step Up, talks about the importance of representation and mentorship for young women of color.

• Ngozi Okaro, Executive Director of Custom Collaborative, leads an entrepreneurship and workforce development program that supports women from low-income and immigrant communities in launching successful careers in fashion.

• Sarah Beaulieu, Founder of The Uncomfortable Conversation, shares how her nonprofit works to normalize conversations about consent and healthy relationships in an effort to engage men in dialogues about sexual harassment and violence.

• Stay tuned for new episodes this Women’s History Month featuring Marie Claire Editor-in-Chief Sally Holmes and NYC Chief Service Officer Anusha Venkataraman!

Black Leadership Spotlights

• Jerelyn Rodriguez, The Knowledge House

• Elizabeth Frederick, Avenues for Justice

Common Impact Champions

• Janelle Woods-McNish, Managing Director of The Trustees Reservations, member of Common Impact’s Board of Directors (listen on Pro Bono Perspectives)
   
• Rachel Hutchisson, Vice President of Corporate Citizenship & Philanthropy at Blackbaud, member of Common Impact’s Board of Directors (listen on Pro Bono Perspectives)

Read about Common Impact CEO Danielle Holly’s experiences as a woman in nonprofit leadership and why gender diversity and equity is essential, especially at senior levels.

• Lead Like a Girl

• Creating Connections, Driving Change: A Q&A With Common Impact’s Danielle Holly

• 5 Steps We Must Take to Truly Create an Inclusive, Representative, and Equitable Society

• Social Impact Heroes: Danielle Holly of Common Impact

• Big Ideas with Common Impact CEO, Danielle Holly

Learn how Common Impact and our partners are using the power of pro bono to support women & girls’ causes and promote women in leadership.

• Cultivating Leadership, Confidence, and Presence in Female Technologists with Fidelity Investments and First North Carolina

• Supporting Women Entrepreneurs During COVID-19 with Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center and S&P Global

• Our COVID-19 Nonprofit Impact Report features sections on philanthropic and skilled volunteer support for nonprofits primarily serving women and their families, such as childcare and domestic violence organizations.

Is there a woman in leadership whose story you’d like to share? Tell us more!