Minnesota Women Featured in This Month’s O, The Oprah Magazine
Won Coveted Spot in The White House Project-O Magazine Women Rule! Leadership Training Program
Only Eighty Winners Selected From Thousands of Contestants in Nationwide Search for Outstanding Women Leaders
Minneapolis, MN – Two women from Minnesota are featured in the November issue of O, The Oprah Magazine – hitting newsstands October 14th – after winning a coveted spot in the first-ever Women Rule! Leadership Training Program. The White House Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization aimed to advance women’s leadership, created the groundbreaking three-day training program designed especially for O readers who show leadership potential and have a vision for what to do with it.
Of the 3,000 phenomenal women from all 50 states who applied for a spot in the innovative training, only 80 were selected. Among the participants were:
- Cary Weatherby, of Bloomington, who launched Companies to Classrooms in 2004 to acquire usable surplus from businesses and get it into the hands of teachers and students-in-need. The non-profit works with schools in Bloomington and Richfield, and is expanding to the Minneapolis / St. Paul metro area.
- Camille Cyprian, of St. Paul, envisioned The Creative Arts Policy Institute – an initiative to bridge the gap between policy and art among urban youth, while fostering political engagement and oversight within the urban community.
Another participant, Janeen Comenote, started The National Urban Indian Family Coalition (NUIFC) to serve as a national sounding board and convener for Urban American Indians while strengthening American Indian communities through lobbying, funding, and outreach. While Comenote resides in Seattle, WA, she is currently convening the NUIFC National Conference in Minneapolis, MN Oct. 5th - 7th.
ÂThe weekend training also featured Minnesota State Senators Mee Moua (Dist. 67) and Patricia Toreres Ray (Dist. 62) who spoke to participants about their experiences as the first Hmong American and first Latina elected to the state legislature, respectively. Catherine Gray - the Associate Midwest Director for The White House Project who works from the organization’s St. Paul office – was also on hand as a lead Facilitator.
“When women are equipped with the information, inspiration, and necessary tools to bring their dreams to fruition, the world becomes a better place,” said Marie Wilson, President of The White House Project. “We were thrilled to meet and work with such a diverse and passionate group of women at Women Rule! Through this month’s feature in O Magazine, their stories will encourage other women across the country to ascend to positions of leadership - for their communities, their families, and for themselves.”
ÂWomen Rule!, sponsored by American Express and hosted, in part, by the Affinia Manhattan, took place June 20-22 in New York City.
ÂReaders can learn more about Women Rule! and participant experiences in the November issue of O, The Oprah Magazine, and online at www.oprah.com/omagextras.
ÂFor information on The White House Project’s leadership trainings held in Minnesota, contact Liz Johnson, Midwest Regional Director at ejohnson@thewhitehouseproject.org / 612.819.9898.
ÂThe White House Project, a national, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) organization, works to advance a richly diverse, critical mass of women into leadership positions, up to and including the U.S. Presidency. For more information, please visit: http://www.thewhitehouseproject.org.
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