Inspiring the Next Generation of Female Leaders

The fifth annual Westmont Women’s Leadership Luncheon, equipping and inspiring the next generation of female leaders, features Tamika Catchings, humanitarian, businesswoman, entrepreneur, athlete and leader, on Tuesday, January 28, at 11:30 a.m. at the Four Seasons Biltmore Santa Barbara. Tickets to the event, which cost $100 per person, may be purchased at westmont.edu/wlc20.

Westmont has created a network of women leaders from the community who foster, coach and mentor our female college students.

Catchings knows what it takes to be a champion, having won an NCAA National Championship, WNBA Championship and four Olympic Gold Medals. She has made her greatest impact by founding the Catch the Stars Foundation, which helps underprivileged children reach their full potential in sports as well as academics. ESPN honored her with their first Humanitarian Award in 2015. Her autobiographical story, “Catch A Star: Shining through Adversity to Become a Champion,” details how she overcame hearing loss, separation from family, high expectations and the pain of debilitating physical injuries through hard work, perseverance and her Christian faith. Recently named general manager of the WNBA’s Indiana Fever, Catchings also serves as vice president with Pacers Sports & Entertainment.

Kirsten Moore, director of the Women’s Leadership Initiative at Westmont, and Women’s Leadership Council co-chairs Anna Grotenhuis, Penny Jenkins and Andria Kahmann, launched the event, sponsored by the Mosher Center for Leadership and Learning. “The Mosher Center is committed to the development of leadership throughout America and our community, including the lives of our students,” Moore says. “We want to help our students capture a sense of their capacities and help them see skills they may not even recognize that they have.”

Past luncheon speakers include Kathy Ireland, super model turned business mogul; Shauna Niequist ’98, New York Times Bestselling author of five books; Megan Alexander ’02, correspondent with Inside Edition; and Teresa Goines ’97, founder of Old Skool Café.

“Our most basic yet loftiest goal is to elevate the expectations, dreams and skills of our female students by connecting them with our community’s finest female leaders who can also invest in mentoring them,” Moore says. “This is all about working together to recognize and empower women today and into the future.”