Soroptimist International of Indian Rock hosted its third annual Dream It, Be It Career Conference for Girls March 11, at Spring Mill Country Club in Northampton.
Those among the 40 registered high school students who attended the free, daylong conference learned how to match careers to values, set achievable goals, and overcome barriers to success.
Kiera Seidman came to the conference to learn about careers and how to attain them. “It’s really nice to set a clear, reasonable goals,” said the Bensalem High School junior. “I now have developed action steps – quantifiable, measurable steps – I can take each day or week that will help me attain my goals.”
During the interactive, empowerment-directed sessions students learned ways to recognize and handle sexual harassment, family obligations, bullying and gender discrimination.
For Gracie DeSaro, the conference was helping her learn how to navigate a career path in the male-dominated field of engineering. While the Central Bucks South senior said she knows she’ll need to overcome gender barriers, she realizes she has the resources and support to lead her to success. She said, “I’m definitely feeling more confident and reassured that I’ll have the in-depth information and drive I need when I need it.”
Mary Fran Bontempo and Kristin Smedley were two of the many inspirational speakers who shared their life stories and the paths to their chosen careers. Bontempo, having gone through her son’s traumatic overdose and heroin addiction, and Smedley, raising two blind sons, learned that it is possible to not only survive, but thrive in crisis. They tapped into the simple, effective system they used to manage their crises and founded Brilliantly Resilient, a program that teaches people around the world how to uncover their resilience and brilliance 15 minutes at a time.
Kathleen Waddington explained the ongoing role of the Dream It, Be It program she chairs. “Our goal is to help girls in secondary school reach their goals by providing the professional role models, career education and the resources they need to overcome barriers and become the strong, successful, happy adults we know they can be.”
Soroptimist International of Indian Rock is a chapter of the global women’s organization, Soroptimist International of the Americas, whose members volunteer to improve the lives of women and girls through programs leading to social and economic empowerment.
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