An Official White House transcript of the commencement speech can be read here.

Yesterday, President Obama spoke at Barnard College’s Commencement Ceremony.  President Obama shared that he graduated from Columbia in 1983, the first year women were admitted to his school. He expressed his gratitude to the women in his life that helped him grow into the leader he is, and also shared his strong conviction in the power of women leaders.  He told the young women of Barnard, “You are now poised to make this the century where women shape not only their own destiny but the destiny of this nation and of this world.”

His main pieces of advice for the new graduates include: to fight for a seat at the head of the table; never underestimate the power of your example; be a mentor and a role model; persevere; and that nothing worthwhile is easy.  The President also emphasized the need for more women in Congress not only to advocate for women’s issues, but also to help America become the best it can be. Graduating Senior and PLEN Alumna Camille Van Kote shared, “It was such an inspiration to hear about the hard working and strong women that have formed the man he is today as well as the women leaders he works with on a daily basis at the White House and more. Nothing will be handed to us which is why we must make sure to set the example and to never quit.”

Since 2011, PLEN has been proud to have Barnard College as a Member School.  Kathryn Kolbert, the Constance Hess Williams Director of the Athena Center for Leadership Studies at Barnard College, serves on PLEN’s Board of Directors. Congratulations to the Class of 2012, including PLEN Ambassador to Barnard, Camille Van Kote!

PLEN PREPARES COLLEGE WOMEN FOR LEADERSHIP IN FOREIGN POLICY, HOLDS SALARY NEGOTIATION WORKSHOP

WHAT: The Public Leadership Education Network (PLEN) is holding a week-long series of career development workshops on leadership in foreign policy, including a salary negotiation workshop, for the college women of PLEN’s Women & International Policy program. The salary negotiation workshop will be led by career coach Alyssa Best and will guide the students towards taking on a leadership role in their career paths. PLEN is  the only national organization with the sole focus of preparing college women for leadership in the public policy arena.

WHEN: May 25, 2012 — 12 NOON–1:00 P.M.

WHERE: Edison Electric Institute

701 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, 4^th Floor

Washington, DC 20004

WHO: ALYSSA BEST, CAREER COACH (http://alyssabest.com/) & PLEN

MORE: Credential media are invited. Photo opportunities and interviews are available.

EVENT DETAILS: http://plen.org/programs/seminars/international/

CONTACT: Pamela O’Leary, poleary@plen.org, http://plen.org/

Phone: 202-872-1585 (office); 510-541-8289 (mobile)

Join PLEN’s Rising Women Leaders call with Marie Wilson!

Usually these calls are open only to members of Rising Women Leaders, but we’re opening it up to non-members one time only!

A Conversation with Marie Wilson

Founder and President Emeritus of The White House Project, co-creator of Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work ® Day

Tuesday, May 8th

7:00-8:00p.m. EDT

USA Toll-Free 1.800.704.9804   or  Direct Dial 1.404.920.6604

Participant Code: 5744552

Participants will have the rare opportunity to directly ask Marie a question during the call.  Marie will share about her career and leadership advice.

Please Tweet during the call using #PLENRWL

Help us participate in the awards by posting a review of your experience with us. All reviews will be visible to potential donors and volunteers. It’s easy and only takes 2 minutes! Go to http://www.greatnonprofits.org/reviews/write/public-leadership-education-network-plen/campaign:womens-empowerment-2012/

With your help, we can make our network even stronger!

Congresswoman Virginia Foxx was reelected to her fourth term to represent North Carolina’s Fifth District in the United States House of Representatives in November 2010.  During her first three terms, Foxx established herself as a champion of conservative values and helped lead the national movements to reduce federal government spending and increase accountability within the federal government.

The non-partisan magazine National Journal ranked Foxx the most conservative member of the North Carolina Congressional Delegation and more conservative than 91.3 percent of all House members.  She was also one of just 38 Republicans to score a 100 percent approval rating from the American Conservative Union.

Representative Foxx is a visible leader in the House Republican Conference, where she regularly takes a stand for the principles of individual freedom and limited government. She was also the first member of her 2004 class to introduce and pass a substantive bill in the House.

In 2008 Foxx successfully passed a bill to streamline the federal government and save taxpayer money.  This accomplishment makes her one of the few members of Congress who took office in 2004 who got legislation signed into law in both the 109th and 110th Congresses.

Congresswoman Foxx currently chairs the House subcommittee on Higher Education.  She also serves on the powerful House Committees on Rules.  The Rules Committee determines what legislation comes to the floor of the House and what amendments will be allowed during floor debate.

Prior to serving on Capitol Hill, Foxx spent ten years in the North Carolina Senate where she successfully sponsored several statewide and local bills and consistently voted against tax increases and for legislation that would make governments more efficient and less wasteful.

Dr. Foxx is a graduate of the University of North Carolina atChapel Hill where she received her A.B. degree in English and M.A.C.T. in Sociology.  She earned her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Teaching/Higher Education from UNC-Greensboro.

Dr. Foxx began her career as a secretary and research assistant at UNC-Chapel Hill.  She taught at CaldwellCommunity College, was a sociology instructor at Appalachian State University and held several administrative positions at ASU, including Assistant Dean of the General College.  Dr. Foxx also served as Deputy Secretary for Management in the N.C. Department of Administration for Governor Jim Martin. Prior to her election to the Senate in 1994, she served as President and later a consultant at Mayland Community College from 1987-1994.

Representative Foxx has been active in civic and business affairs, serving on many state and national committees.  She served on the Executive Committee of North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry and was elected to three four-year terms on the Watauga County Board of Education.  She was confirmed by the United States Senate for a Presidential appointment to the National Advisory Council for Women’s Educational Programs.  She also served on the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation Advisory Panel. Other current or former service on boards includes the Board of Directors of the John William Pope Center for Higher Education Policy, Board of Directors of the N.C. Center for Public Research, the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Visitors, National Conference of State Legislatures’ Blue Ribbon Advisory Panel on Child Care, Charter Member of the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History and the Foscoe-Grandfather Community Center Board.

Dr. Foxx is a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, the world’s largest women’s patriotic service organization.  Her support for America’s veterans and active-duty military is characterized by her introduction of the HERO Act, legislation that extends IRA benefits for troops serving in combat zones.  She has also supported bills that expand veterans’ disability compensation and that significantly increased overall Veterans Affairs funding.  Dr. Foxx has also voted in favor of honoring our nation’s fallen by prohibiting demonstrations at military funerals held at national cemeteries.

Dr. Foxx is the recipient of several state and national awards.  Among those awards are the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Spirit of Enterprise Award, the Family Research Council’s True Blue Award and the Alan Keith-Lucas Friend of Children Award, the highest honor granted by the North Carolina Child Care Association.  She is a former Rotarian.

At Mayland Community College, Dr. Foxx implemented several nationally recognized programs including a curriculum evaluation program which has been adopted by major universities.  In another major success, she raised over $1 million in private funds for an on-campus, state-of-the-art child development center built by prison inmates.  At ASU she implemented a model orientation/academic advising program which is still in existence.

Virginia Foxx is married to Tom Foxx.  Prior to her entering Congress, the couple owned a nursery business in Watauga County. Dr. Foxx is a lay leader in her church and her hobbies are reading, gardening and being a grandparent to two.

Ms. Senkeeto completed her Masters of Public Policy with concentrations in Women’s Studies and Global Health at the George Washington University.  She holds a BA in Political Science from Rutgers University.

Jennifer Luray

Jenny served as Chief of Staff to Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-Maryland). From 1999 to 2004, she was the principal political, communications and policy advisor to Senator Mikulski, the third highest-ranking Democrat in the U.S. Senate and the dean of the women Senators.

Jenny managed a staff of 50, including committee staff responsible for the funding and oversight of key agencies such as the FDA, NIH, NASA, HUD and the EPA. Jenny worked closely with the Democratic leadership in the Senate, attending the weekly caucus lunches and Chief of Staff strategy meetings.

Prior to her work in the Senate, Jenny served in The White House as a Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach from 1998 to 1999.  Upon Jenny’s appointment, President Clinton said “her extensive background in the primary issues concerning women will be enormously helpful as we continue our strong advocacy on behalf of women and families.”

Jenny was the principal White House liaison to women’s groups and to government officials running women’s programs.  She helped develop the Administration’s policies related to women’s health, family planning, and social security.  Jenny represented the President by speaking at events in Washington and around the United States.

Prior to serving in the White House, Jenny was Legislative Director for Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-New York), where she handled health, education and labor appropriations.  Jenny was the key Hill strategist behind the passage of landmark bipartisan contraceptive coverage legislation.

Jenny’s experience on Capitol Hill also includes work as a policy analyst for the House Democratic Study Group and researcher for the Joint Economic Committee.

Jenny earned her M.P.A. from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in 1991 and her A.B. in Sociology from Brown University in 1983.  She has been a Visiting Senior Fellow at UCLA’s School of Public Policy.

Karen Mulhauser has been providing consulting services to nonprofit organizations, grantmakers and candidates for public office since 1988. She brings many years of leadership experience as CEO and board member of domestic and international nonprofit groups, with particular expertise in management assistance, public affairs, meeting and program planning and facilitation, fundraising, coalition building, strategic planning and evaluation. Karen is widely known in the non-profit and international development communities for her ability to develop highly collaborative coalition and to manage complex projects effectively. She is also known for her deep commitment of mobilizing issue activists into political activists through work with political action committees and by coordinating voter engagement activities with various constituencies.  Before consulting, Karen was the Director of the Center for Education on Nuclear War and an affiliated lobbying coalition, Citizens Against Nuclear War (CAN) and was Executive Director of the National Abortion Rights Action League during most of the 70s and through 1981.  She coordinates a network of over 640 women served on 35 boards and advisory boards often in leadership positions. She chairs the Advisory Council of consultants www.consultingwomen.com and her office manages its active list serve and web site.   She has served on 35 boards and advisory boards often in leadership positions. She chairs the Advisory Council of Women’s Information Network and each year since 1994, WIN has presented a woman with The Karen Mulhauser Award for service to support the advancement of young professional women.

For over three decades, professional and volunteer activities have been dedicated to mobilizing informed constituencies to enter public policy debates, whether at the local, national or international levels, and to become involved in collaborative efforts to shape solutions. She was a Senior Advisor to the Obama for America campaign and has worked in previous presidential and congressional elections.  Karen has been deeply committed to voluntary service throughout her life, in community programs, political campaigns and through board service.