Skip to main content

Women's History Month Part 2

                                  

I never thought that I would start writing with a definition from Wikipedia. I was so happy that the definition shown there included the word feminist. In my generational growth, the “Glass Ceiling” was spoken of quite often in magazine articles, women’s magazines in particular and even movies.

A glass ceiling is a metaphor used to represent an invisible barrier that prevents a given demographic from rising beyond a certain level in a hierarchy. The metaphor was first coined by feminists in reference to barriers in the careers of high-achieving women. Wikipedia

The two women we will read about next, had dreams, goals, families and the drive to shatter the                “ Glass Ceiling”

Indra Nooyi, 

When I first read about Mrs. Nooyi I was quite moved. I personally have not agreed with many of her outspoken statements. Even though I do not agree with them all, but I am fascinated by her approach to taking on challenges. 

Being an immigrant woman and being a family person, Mrs. Nooyi embodied a certain type of drive. As a Yale business school graduate, she pushed her way forward to achieve. Her story and memories of the first time she worked for an American company in India, show the cultural and diverse thinking that she started to bring to the table early in her career.

Years later, she embodied the forward momentum needed to take a major company into “new” ways of looking at products. As CEO of PepsiCo, Mrs. Nooyi introduced Baked Lays chips and Naked drinks made from fruits and vegetables. Both items became mainstays in the American Market.

Mrs. Nooyi’s book “My Life in Full” is an excellent road map to the making of a woman of the times. She traveled to many places before achieving this remarkable and yet attainable goal. 

This brings me to the former CEO of Xerox, Ursula M. Burns. Mrs. Burns' story of breaking the “Glass Ceiling” resonates also as a sign of those times. In 2009 she became the first Black female to hold the position as a CEO at a Fortune 500 company. She followed in the footsteps of the outgoing CEO Anne Mulcahey. Two women in a row as CEOs of a major corporation!

Ursula Burns was raised in low-income housing in lower Manhattan, NYC. Ursula was one of three children born to her Panamanian Immigrant parents. Ursula raised a family, nurtured her marriage and created a positive environment at XEROX. 

As an Engineer utilizing her areas of expertise during a 29-year career at Xerox prior to becoming the CEO, Ursula raised many “ceilings”.

I hope these blurbs raise your interest to read about these remarkable women.


    


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Resources For Teaching For Racial Justice

We are all watching the demonstrations happening right now in response to the many years of discrimination and oppression of people of color and wondering what we can do as educators to help ensure that our society does better moving forward. As educators we have the power and the ability to be part of the solution. There are many resources available that can help guide us on that journey. We hope that the books,websites and resources below will empower you to help make the change that is needed right now.  We must also acknowledge that every teacher comes to issues of race differently based on their own experiences and identity/ies. White educators have a special responsibility to increase their own understanding and to listen when they are fortunate enough to hear about the experiences of their colleagues of color. However, we must ensure that the burden of informing others about the history and experience of racism does not rest on the shoulders of our colleagues an...
Post a Comment
Read more

How Times Have Changed: Technology in the Classroom

  In 2001 Larry Cuban wrote Oversold and Underused (978-6674011090). The book acknowledged teachers not having the power to use technological resources to teach and empower their students. Teachers were mostly told what curriculum was acceptable and had to follow strict guidelines for computer usage. Dr. Cuban would go on to do more research in this area and the area of reforming curriculum throughout the school systems. His articles span the k-15 level inclusive of special education. In the magazine The Journal (vol. 34, no. 6) printed in June 2007, the article on how to keep the cords and wires neat in the classroom setting caught my attention    The entire volume was devoted to technology in the classroom that was relevant at the time. There were articles on computers, in the classroom as well as how to use an interactive whiteboard. We have gone past cords and wires. We are no longer fascinated by whiteboards.   We have promoted to Chromebooks and laptops. W...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE WOMEN WHO ARE THE SUPPORT TEAM FOR EMERGING PROFESSIONALS: S.T.E.P. 2022-2023

The support team for Emerging Professionals has had a very busy and enlightening biennium. We have written articles, attended International, State and local conferences, added to our blog and are ready for our second “Penne Party” to honor the Penne Ferrell Grant recipients. We had successful Tuesday Teacher Talks/tips on important educational issues as well. Thank You DKG for supporting our team's efforts. CHRISTINA CLEMONS I am a recovered & "non-math person"! I've been teaching Middle School math for 9 years but I started out as an early elementary teacher so that I wouldn't have to teach, what I considered to be, "math". After teaching 2nd grade in Florida, and through lots of twists and turns, I was offered a teaching job in Oakland, California in January of 2015. I took over a 5/6 GATE class and 6th grade math after their teacher had left in November. I began taking as many math courses as I could from City College of San Francisco and ended up...
Post a Comment
Read more