The Wond’ry is recruiting 25 women of color from Nashville-area universities to attend interactive workshops aimed at bridging the gap between organizations who want race and gender diversity in their boardrooms and management and the women who could fulfill those roles.
Called Disruptive Women Lead, the series launches at 9 a.m. Nov. 10 and will span five additional dates in December and February. The idea is to build a cohort that will provide support long after the last workshop ends, said Dominique Anderson, lead for equity, diversity, inclusion and social ventures at the Wond’ry.
“We want to inspire and empower young women of color from all these institutions so that they can become innovative, disruptive servant-leaders,” Anderson said. “We want to end the narrative of ‘We’d like diversity, but we can’t find anyone.’”
The group is partnering with Deloitte, which will provide both a leadership assessment and a facilitator to conduct it; Launch TN, which is providing materials and thought leadership; Vanderbilt’s Office for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the Provost’s Office for Inclusive Excellence.
The first session will feature Vanderbilt University’s Melissa Thomas-Hunt, vice provost for inclusive excellence, and Tiffany Galvin Green, assistant provost for inclusive excellence. Yolanda Shields, Wond’ry mentor and founder of Yes Builds, will lead an interactive session.
Through Disruptive Women Lead, the cohort will have access to networks and opportunities to engage and learn new skills—from juggling to social entrepreneurship—to empower them as leaders.
Interested women should contact Anderson at dominique.anderson@vanderbilt.edu or 615-875-9614. The deadline to enroll is Nov. 2.