7th Annual Young Women's Spirit of Leadership Conference Showcases San Diego Teen Leaders; SiteLab Co-Founder Chairs Mentor Committee; Mentors Recent Attendee.

News Editors

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 24, 2003

As part of The Jenna Druck Foundation's (JDF) ongoing commitment to supporting the development of young women in San Diego, the organization announces its 7th Annual "Young Women's Spirit of Leadership Conference." Held on Saturday, March 29th, at UCSD, the conference recognizes 500 young women of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds throughout San Diego County who demonstrate leadership skills and aptitudes. This year's day-long event features a keynote address on Leadership and Self-Esteem by Sandra McBrayer, CEO of The Children's Initiative and former Teacher of the Year.

Young Women's Leadership (YWL) works with high school age young women to instill within them the spirit and knowledge that they are leaders and have the ability to create lives of meaning -- lives that enable them to be the best that they can be. In addition to the annual conference, YWL offers SD G.I.R.L., a monthly high school leadership forum, Channel 10 Leadership Day, internships, mentoring and opportunities to enhance their lives and assume leadership roles within their communities.

The program has also enabled some girls to get their first glimpse at women in professions in which they have an interest. In one such case, a student from High Tech High School leveraged an introduction with a mentor, Dana Todd, into an internship opportunity at SiteLab, one of the country's leading interactive agencies.

SiteLab International is a Top 100 Interactive Agency and premier provider of Web design and interactive marketing services. The company created some of the first sites on the Web and continues to provide a full suite of Internet services including branding interface and backend development, ecommerce integration, search friendly sites and optimization, and extensive online marketing campaigns.

Advancing the Cause of Women and Young Women

As co-founder of the company that she helped to spin-off from Bien Logic in 1997, Dana Todd's previous experience included employment in both advertising and journalism. Working with clients in high technology and biotechnology, Todd gained an appreciation for the opportunities that the fields of science and technology offered -- and recognized that within these disciplines there were significant opportunities for careers and advancement of women. When asked to participate in a planning session for a young women's conference eight years ago, Todd worked with other women to define the mission and vision for the conference itself. One focus for the conference from its inception was a major effort towards diversity -- for both the young women attending the conference and the women mentors participating on the day of the conference. Accepting the role as Chair of the Mentor Committee, Todd's energy and enthusiasm for diversity has resulted in surpassing that goal.

Attending last year's conference was Kira Sandage, then a sophomore at High Tech High School. Nominated by her school as a young woman with leadership capabilities, Sandage attended last year's conference and plans to attend the conference in March as well. Sandage signed up for a workshop entitled Women and Technology which Todd chaired. "I liked Dana and stayed after to ask questions. She mentioned that SiteLab was doing the Jenna Druck Web site and, since I have to do an internship before I can graduate, I asked to work with SiteLab on the JDF site," Sandage recalled. "I enjoyed Kira's participation in the workshop. Interns can be a boon or bain to a company that is as fast-paced as SiteLab. We operate at breakneck Internet speed -- and Kira has been admirably aggressive in learning what she needs to know," observed Todd. Another benefit of the Conference for Sandage was her introduction to Young Women's Leadership. "I've never known of an organization that does the things they do -- a group that is involved in helping teen age girls to be leaders. Everyone is friendly, professional and interested in us having the best experience possible. I will definitely go again this year," Sandage concluded.

Conference Events

At noon on the day of the conference, March 29th, U.S. Congresswoman Susan Davis will keynote the Mentor Lunch Program. At that time conference participants will meet with 75 successful women who are interested in mentoring them and providing insights into careers they have chosen and challenges they have overcome. In addition, the conference will also consist of sessions covering topics ranging from Leadership Styles, Time Management and Image Awareness, to How to Select (and Finance) the College of Your Choice and Leadership Through Community Service.

A newly developed project of YWL that has grown out of the conference is SD G.I.R.L. (San Diego Girls In Roles of Leadership). This project's goal is to further enhance high school young women's leadership skills. "Our objective is to reach young women in San Diego who are leaders in their own ways and demonstrate leadership qualities," commented Joelle James, director of Young Women's Leadership. By participating in the conference, attendees (who are nominated by their counselors, teachers, community leaders etc.) can learn more about the programs and activities that Young Women's Leadership and SD G.I.R.L. have to offer. At the conference, the Jenna Druck Foundation's Spirit of Leadership Award, a scholarship, will be given to one outstanding young woman who demonstrates genuine caring and competence in her leadership. The selection for this award is made by a committee comprised of teachers, counselors and administrators. "If we can instill the spirit of leadership and success while also providing the resources these young women need to know about, then we have succeeded in doing what we set out to do," James noted.

For more information on this exciting event, visit http://www.jennadruck.org/YWL.

"The 7th Annual Young Women's Spirit of Leadership Conference"

When:

Saturday, March 29, 2003 from 8:30-4:30

Where:

UCSD Price Center

Registration:

Selections are based on recommendations. Forms can be obtained by calling the Foundation at 619/294-8000 or by emailing [e-mail].

About The Jenna Druck Foundation

The Jenna Druck Foundation was established in 1996 to honor the life and spirit of Jenna. JDF is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization offering two unique programs: Young Women's Leadership provides resources for high school young women to become leaders; Families Helping Families provides support for families who have suffered the death of a child.