From education to business.

This Women's History Month, we meet the South Florida women blazing a trail and empowering the next generation of female leaders.

That and more, stay with us as we dive into Your South Florida.

Hi, I'm Pam Giganti here at Miami Dade College's Wolfson campus.

Welcome to Your South Florida.

From Marjory Stoneman Douglas and her crusade to save the Everglades, to Activist Eula Johnson and her fight to end segregation on beaches and in schools, South Florida has been home to an impressive list of women whose work has left our communities a better place for generations to live and work.

This Women's History Month, we are shining a light on the latest women leaders, who are breaking the glass ceiling while uplifting our communities all at the same time.

After more than 60 years and proceeded by four male Presidents, late last year, Madeline Pumariega, became the first woman President of Miami Dade College, one of the largest public higher education institutions in the country.

Earlier I had the chance to sit down with the Hialeah native and MDC alumna, to tell about family, faith and her vision for the future of Miami Dade college.

So congratulations on being the first female President of MDC.

Thank you so much.

And thank you for being here and coming to visit on the campus.

It's awesome.

It's exciting to be here.

You're also an alumna.

So how special is getting this role to you, and how important is it really for women to be in leadership positions at institutions such as MDC?

Well, it's very special.

And as you said, I started my career at the college as a student, as a student athlete, playing basketball.

So to be able to come back, to the place that gave me such great opportunity and give back and give back to our community, and I think it's so important for women to be in leadership roles is because you can't, you don't believe what you don't see.

And so they're little girls and young women professionals right now who are saying, "I too can be the President at Miami Dade College.

I can be a college President."

And I think that's important.

And I take that role really seriously only because not only mentoring young girls, but mentoring our own leadership team, our campus Presidents, you know, for our women, our Provost is a woman.

Our Chief Information Officer at the college is a woman.

So I think that those are all ways in which we can elevate each other.

I know you have short term goals, and long term goals.

You've talked about a holistic approach.

What does that look like?

When we think about reimagining the student experience when we went to college, it might have been a little different, a lot more paper.

Today our students that are coming are used to Uber and social media and other things.

And so when I speak about reimagining that we are really modernizing everything that the college does.

We spent the last year talking to students and faculty and staff, and are going through a whole optimization.

[pam giganti] Part of that optimization includes the launch of MDC Tech, which will expand the college's current innovative programs.

While creating a talent pipeline to fuel Miami's rapidly growing Tech ecosystem.

It's hard to go anywhere in Miami and not hear whether it's Mayor Suarez or Mayor Daniella Levine Cava talking about technology and attracting a tech company or someone creating jobs.

And I think that that's a ecosystem that the college is really working on, whether it's stackable credentials and cyber security, our partnership with Amazon Web Services and Cloud Computing, and then most recently around artificial intelligence and everything that we're doing around AI and data science analytics, it really is changing the way that we work and we play and learn.

And we want students to learn AI across the disciplines, whether they're majoring in Teaching or Nursing, or whether they're majoring in Computer Science, that they understand data and analytics and how you can use AI to really advance what you're doing and advance your job.

So tell me a little bit about this space.

This is really cool.

It is really cool.

It's the Business Innovation Technology Center.

And right here, these are real financial Bloomberg terminals, and students get to trade and be able Wow!

to work with our faculty in trading and following stocks.

Yeah.

And the entire market and learning financial literacy, which is so important.

So important, yeah.

And right here, as we go in, is our we're kicking off our AI Lab, artificial intelligence.

Everything that you're doing here plays out in these big screens.

So really allows the students to be live and interactive, both from where they're sitting the professor from up here.

And you can bring in guest speakers from anywhere in the room.

And so now all of a sudden there could be a group of students at another campus, and they are coming in.

Oh wow!

To the room and interacting with the students and the professor that's here.

Students love this, and this is the kind of experience they wanna see when they come into college.

It really is the modernization of the college experience.

There's been a lot of talk about free college or community college as an educator.

How do you feel about that?

You know, it's hard, right?

I think that college needs to be affordable and accessible.

And I think that we do a great job here in Florida in providing that.

If you think about our colleges and universities, haven't raised tuition in pretty much 10 years, and that is making it affordable for families.

And so there are some other states that haven't, they've continued to double tuition in the last 10 years, in Florida we haven't, and we've also have bright futures.

We have our American Dream Scholarships at Miami Dade College, and we have the Federal Pell Grant which allows students that qualify for it really to have all their tuition and books covered at Miami Dade College.

So I think it's more about creating partnerships with the private sector, for example, in nursing, you know, a partnership with CareerSource and Jackson and Baptists that allow students to come and be a nurse, and not get in debt, have a scholarship for that.

And so, you know, the same around with teaching that are more about how do we align those areas that we need for the workforce, and make those programs accessible and make sure that students entering those careers enter without any debt.

I know you're from Hialeah.

You're a hometown girl.

You've talked about that.

You've even said Yeah.

like when it comes to the students, I'm one of you.

So talk about how your family and your faith, you were raised Catholic, how that has helped you in your life and even as a leader.

So, you know, I think being raised Catholic, it's faith, it's God, there's something bigger than us, you know, you've gotta trust and having faith is that you really don't know what's around the corner, but you believe, right.

And you hope, and I think that that was the optimism found in my house.

And it has a lot to do with my parents coming from Cuba, you know, being processed through the Freedom Tower, and then spending their early years really forming a family and bringing their family from Cuba.

And I think that seeing that first hand, seeing the sacrifices that you make for the people that you love, you can talk about it or you can see it.

And I saw it every day in my parents and in my family.

And so as a result, we are a tight knit and I've got about 40 cousins that we do everything together.

And they really are, you know, my best friends and extended brothers and sisters.

And I think we get that from our parents and probably being raised in Hialeah too.

You know, everybody's your mom in there.

Yeah, there's always something to celebrate too, right?

Yeah.

Somebody's birthday, anniversary, graduation.

It's endless, but it's wonderful.

Brings everybody together.

As a mom, how has that impacted your life being a mom?

Well, it's greatest blessing, right?

So I don't think, we do any more of an important job, than to be a parent, to be a mom, to be able to contribute to the world, the person.

And I think that's will always be my greatest gift.

And my greatest blessing is to be a mom.

And certainly the title that I treasure the most, you know you're able to give that unconditional love to somebody who loves you and return that way.

And that nurturing aspect, I think really makes me be a better leader, also because I bring that same nurture to everything that I do in the office and making sure that people feel that they can take chances that it's a place where we value family, we value faith.

And we also believe in one another.

What advice would you give young women who are gonna be watching this and looking at you and admiring you and seeing where you are, what advice would you give them as they launch their careers and run into, everybody's gonna run into some tough times.

Find your purpose.

And that sometimes is a thread between your passion and your faith.

What do you feel really passionate about?

And when you do that, then you'll know how to you'll just know where to go next.

The one thing I would say is that there are mentors that wanna be supportive and help, find those people to help.

And if you ever need help, you call me.

But I think, believe in yourself and believe that most people are good and they are willing to help out and help you find your way or build your career and, you know, take that chance.

Yeah, absolutely.

Lastly, what's your hope for the future?

Oh, it's a great question in the middle of a pandemic, but you know, Yeah.

that, I think, you know, my hope for the future is that, we learn to live with COVID and that we're able to continue to be successful in our community, and in building pathways to prosperity for everyone in our community.

I think that when you feel like you have a path to be able to provide for your family, that's powerful, and that's really through the power of education, it's through education and opportunity, that you do have that chance, to be able to get that job, and provide and I think that's what everybody's hope is, when you wake up in the morning, you hope for health.

And right after that, you hope that you can provide for your family, and that you can have a meaningful and purposeful life.

And my hope is that the college continues to be that beacon of light, and opportunity for everyone in our community.

The late PBS NewsHour Anchor Gwen Ifill, once said, "We can't expect the world to get better by itself.

We have to create something we can leave the next generation."

EmpowHER of the Palm Beaches is working to do just that.

This nonprofit connects female high school students with mentors, helping these young women to build character and leadership skills.

Earlier I spoke with EmpowHER's Founder and President Geanine Wester, to learn more about their work and her hopes for the next generation of women leaders.

Geanine, thank you so much for joining us.

It's great to have you with us today.

Thank you for having me.

So let's talk about this organization that you created EmpowHER.

What was your motivation?

And what's the mission.

EmpowHER of the Palm Beaches was created in 2015.

It started after my Presidency, with the League of Women Voters of Palm Beach County.

I've met a lot of powerful women through the League and I don't think they really understood, how powerful they really were.

So I was on a quest and on a mission to empower any woman that I met.

And so in 2014, 2015, I sat down with a colleague and we talked about it.

And then I was awarded the Women of Excellence Award from the West Palm Beach Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta.

And I actually spoke it into existence.

They asked me, what was I gonna do after my tenure, as President.

And I said, I see myself empowering women.

So here we are EmpowHER of the Palm Beaches.

And our mission is; "To connect women and girls find their strength of character, leadership to influence and transform the political business and power structure within our community."

And so we do this through annual conferences and training tracks, focusing on leadership, branding, economics, political advancement, and youth empowerment.

And I know that you have a Leadership Academy.

So talk to us about what that looks like.

So you have the pieces of the puzzle.

You have these powerful, successful women, and then you have these girls that really could benefit from their wisdom.

So how do you put all of that together?

What's the Leadership Academy look like?

So I wanna start with the, the Board of Directors.

They are comprised of women from all walks of law life in all professions.

And we use their manpower, the mental manpower to assist with us, bringing speakers in to empower these young girls on a monthly basis.

The young girls that we mentor on a monthly basis are from various high schools here in Palm Beach County, from as far South, as Florida Atlantic University, as far North as Dwyer, far West in from Wellington, Royal Palm.

And we're starting to reach out into the Glades.

So we actually send an announcement to the school counselors, and we announce that we are open for students to send their applications in for the next school year.

And so that's how we do our recruiting.

We never see these girls.

Everything is based upon what's written on paper, their academic achievements, their goals and objectives, the things that they wanna do as, you know, as far as their next step in their lives.

So that's how they're selected to be a part of the Leadership Academy for girls.

And then in those sessions, Geanine, what kinds of things are go on?

Is it, do they just hear a speaker?

Do they get to work in groups?

I'm sure they get to ask questions of these women, cuz it's, there's a lot of mentoring that's going on as well.

Right?

There is a lot of mentoring.

So we, the monthly program is basically two hours, and then that two hours, and even before then, we try to find out what their in their interests are.

And with that, we developed the program around the individual and their interests, because not all, not every year is the same as the previous year.

Girls have different dreams and admirations just as you and I.

So we come in and we tailor the program for their needs and their wants.

And so at the beginning, you know, we do our program pledge, and then we start talking about upcoming events, what's going on in their lives, because we wanna hear from them to figure out how we can empower them.

And then from there, we'll have our speaker, we may play cahoots or some other type of game, to further enhance their learning opportunity.

And from there, we start with our Strategic Advocacy Project, because the program is centered around advocacy.

I know that your program has been so successful.

In fact successful to the point that some of these girls have come back as mentors as well in a program that you've called "Be Her Light."

So kind of talk about that.

The title "Be Her Light," was derived from a point by Amanda Gorman, "For there is always light If we are brave enough to see it and brave enough to be it."

So the program derived from her point.

And then some of the young ladies that have previously been in the program, returned back from college, graduating from college, came back to the Palm Beaches, and I invited them to come in and assist with the program and be mentors to the young ladies.

And so that helped with that bridging the gap, because they're in the midway.

And so we're still instilling the program experiences with the girls, the "Be Her Light" mentors are coming in, they're running the program.

We still have our speakers.

And that's how it runs.

Again I travel throughout the County, delivering materials for the program.

So I'm going to each individual program participant's house to deliver the materials for that particular session, because we're still virtual.

We're still virtual, Yeah.

you know, based upon the allowness of the CDC restrictions.

Right.

And Geanine, we were all so well aware of mental health issues, perhaps now more than ever, focusing on our mental wellness, especially after the pandemic.

So talk about what you are seeing with these girls, and some of the outreach that you're doing, because you're working on a program called, "It's Okay to Not Be Okay," right?

Yes, well we've launched a program each year.

The Leadership Academy advocates for a given subject.

And this year there was a pride We heard about the mental health issues from professional athletes.

You know, we had Simone Biles, unable to compete in the Olympics.

We had Sha'Carri Richardson, you know, who was tested positive for marijuana.

She couldn't compete because she was having mental health issues, coping with the loss of a parent.

We know Naomi, a tennis player who shielded herself from the press.

And then there was Michael Phelps who also experienced the So we thought that we develop a program because it happens right here in Palm Beach, in all walks of life, that our high school athletes are suffering the same type of experiences.

They're feeling, anxiety, isolation, frustrations, lack of control and anger because they're not able to compete at top level.

So we wanted to connect with them.

We're making these bracelets.

And this bracelet is a symbolization of a circle, connecting us to them, them to the rest of the world, and in hopes to provide an avenue where they can discuss, you know, their problems or when they're wearing this bracelet.

It inspires them to show the outer world, their confidence and all the things that they believe in and represents a strand against this isolation.

So we will be distributing these bracelets to high school students, beginning the month of March, as an expression for them.

And we hope that these athletes will gain that security that they need, and discuss their problems.

And if they don't have problems, just know that we're here rooting for them.

Geanine, as we start to wrap the things up here, what's one of the most important things you think that young women should remember, and should know about themselves.

One of the most important things is that you can and be anything that you want to be.

I'm very optimistic about this next generation, because young ladies today are becoming beacons of light.

They dream big, they find their, they find paths when barriers arrive, they see education as a tool to obtain these dreams.

And I think it's one, I mean, it's a most rewarding thing to see them blossom, at this discovery.

And in every woman, I'm sure you felt this in some walk of your life as well, having that mentor somewhere to talk to you and to guide you and help you make the right decisions.

So that's what I see our future as an optimistic dream for the next generation.

Geanine, thanks so much for being with us.

We appreciate and continued best of luck with your organization.

Thank you.

And in honor of Women's History Month, History Fort Lauderdale's latest exhibit, will celebrate Broward County Women Trailblazers, for their contributions to the community.

This second Annual Photo Exhibit will showcase influential women of Broward's past and present, all champions of change and progress in their fields.

Here's a sneak peek.

Last year during the pandemic, we're just coming through the pandemic.

It's always been a passion of mine to celebrate the women of South Florida.

That don't get as much recognition as the guys in historically.

So what we decided to do, was to honor six living women, and then they're linked to women in the past who really didn't get much recognition.

And it's kind of fun to tell both stories.

So this year's honorees, we start with Sebrina Alfonso, Maestra Alfonso is the Conductor of the South Florida Symphony and a really great force for classical music and musicians in South Florida.

And she's linked to just behind me, Juliett Lange.

So Juliett was a major Opera singer and Broadway singer in the the early early 1900s in New York, very recognized we've even got her records in the collection, but she came to South Florida in the 1920s, to care for her ailing father and stayed in actually in Fort Lauderdale Proper, but her property was out in Davie.

And she started like the Symphony Society and the Opera Guild.

And also that's kind of the important contribution she did that nobody knows about.

So linking her to the Maestra Alfonso allows us to honor the Maestra for her current day operation and classical and musical field.

And then also talk about what Lange Juliett did in the past and her great contributions.

We have Kathleen Cannon, and Kathleen Cannon, I think, you know, is the CEO of Broward United Way, a really important and very historic charity in South Florida.

And she's linked to Ruth Dichtenmueller who was also a Founderist of Early Charities and Early Fundraising for Social Services.

So very committed to raising money and raising the life experience of those who did not have the funds to do it for themselves.

Our third honoree is Alexandra Irons, and she is the CEO and Founderist of Total Marine Solutions.

It's an international corporation, very involved in Marine cleanup and ecology.

And she's linked to Gertrude Dennison who in 1948, came to Broward county with her husband established a boatyard, but was recognized in the years later before her death, as the Mother of Modern Interior Boat Design.

And I think at the two women sort of linked together as being real trailblazers in the Marine industry which is largely still a guy's world.

Our fourth honoree is Melanie Dickinson.

I think a lot of folks will recognize that name.

She is the Publisher of the South Florida Business Journal, very, very philanthropic in our community, very involved in all aspects of South Florida life, but she is linked to one of my personal favorites, who is Lorna Simpson.

So Lorna was a 1924 graduate of Fort Lauderdale High School, got involved in aviation in a very early age, and was one of the first commissioned World War II, Women Pilots, and Lorna Simpson in her later life, was very involved in newspaper publishing.

She was an author, she was a writer and a publisher herself.

So it's a good link back to Melanie.

Our next honoree is Bertha Henry one my personal heroes.

Bertha has been involved in Broward County government and in city governments for most of her career, 22 years in Broward County.

And at the last many years, as Broward County's Administrator and County Administrator.

And first of all, a woman in that position is rare.

This is an African American woman that has risen to that level and led us have been a terrific leader and a terrific mentor to other professional women.

She is linked to Anne Kolb, who is a very, very early elected official in Broward County County Commissioner, very involved in ecology and saving wetlands.

So seemed like a real good synergy between the two of them as well.

And then our sixth lady is Carolyn Michaels, Carolyn, probably a lot of folks don't know about she's Vice President of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce, very philanthropic, very involved in community, as far as making the community a better place for all of us to live.

And she is linked to Eva Oliver who believe it or not was the very first woman married legally on the soil in Broward County in 1902.

And she was an Historian and also a Community Builder.

So in my mind, the two of them had great synergy together, our mission, you know, to bring history to life and bring these stories to the world we're having, we're doing that.

And then also sort of establishing for one of a better word, like a pipeline of modern women, that will keep a record of and be able to share with future generations, which is part of our mission as well.

History Fort Lauderdale's Women, Trailblazers Photo Exhibit runs March 11th through the 31st at the Gallery of Fort Lauderdale with a special preview celebrating this year's honorees on Thursday, March the 10th.

For more information, head over to our Facebook or Twitter @YourSouthFL.

We'll see you next time as always, thanks for watching.