5th Annual Young Women’s Leadership Summit Hosted by Bloomberg

By Bloomberg

On Saturday, March 3, Bloomberg hosted its 5^th annual Startup Young Women’s Leadership Summit, convening 500 high school and college-aged girls at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a day of networking and mentoring. More than 200 employees in the Bloomberg Startup program joined together with students from 34 diverse partner organizations, including CUNY’s Macaulay Honor College, the Young Women’s Leadership Network, PENCIL, and our partner school University Heights High School, Girls Who Invest, the Ghetto Film School, and other high schools that participate in our FIRST Robotics programs.

“Bloomberg’s Young Women’s Leadership Summit provided our students with unique access and opportunities to connect with professionals in their aspiring fields in an incredible New York cultural institution like the Met. Over 4 years, we’ve seen this event grow and provide new ways to engage our students while inspiring our next generation of leaders,” said Andrea Shapiro Davis, Associate Vice Chancellor, City University of New York.

“Bloomberg employees have shown a real commitment to connecting students at University Heights High School to success by helping to support our young people as they prepare for college and careers. Through the PENCIL partnership, our students are offered opportunities for internships, scholarships, unique workshops, group mentoring, and invitations to attend events such as the Young Women’s Summit helping them expand their horizons and envision great futures,” Gregg Betheil, President, PENCIL.

The event, in partnership with the Bloomberg Women’s Community and Bloomberg Startup, featured a screening of the Sundance Film Festival’s award-winning film, STEP, which was followed by a special performance and discussion with Amanda Lipitz, the director of STEP.

STEP chronicles the true story of a Baltimore-based girls’ high school step team who are empowered on and off the stage by teachers, teammates, coaches, and families in the pursuit of their ultimate dreams: to win a step championship and get accepted to college. The documentary examines how one school is reshaping the futures of its students’ lives by making it a goal to have every member of the senior class get accepted to and graduate from college. For many, they are the first person in their family to do so. Watch the trailer here. The film, supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2017.

Throughout the month of March, Bloomberg is celebrating International Women’s Day and the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women at events across the globe. These will include professional workshops, mentoring discussions with female leaders, volunteer opportunities that directly help women, male advocacy panels, and cultural events. At Bloomberg, we are committed to making a lasting impact on the lives of women around the world, through valuable career development opportunities for our colleagues, our support of global health and wellness programs and initiatives like the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index.

Photo: Bloomberg

Originally posted on Bloomberg and distributed by 3BL Media.