BIPOC LA Women Leader Empowerment

BIPOC- and Women-Owned Businesses

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

BIPOC Women have been left out of spaces designed for economic growth, social mobility, leadership development, and professional development for far too long. In the book, This Bridge Called My Back, we learn how BIPOC women sacrifice our health and well-being to sustain our current society often taking on tasks that others do not want to do yet, we rarely reap the benefits of those efforts. For BIPOC women who have pushed through barriers and made it to executive level positions in our organizations, we are carrying with us our families and communities yet, while attempting to manage the institutionalized racism and sexism we face daily within and outside our organizations. Furthermore, because of our positions, we are often made to feel like we have to work harder and longer than anyone else to maintain our positions through statements or policies that question our commitment or ability to handle the work load. We need to provide systems of support for BIPOC Women Leaders.

We propose creating a safe space and community of BIPOC women and their champions in Los Angeles County to thrive. We will accomplish this through the following: I. BIPOC Women Leader's Empowerment Conference Women will have the opportunity receive cross-training from other BIPOC Women Leaders. Furthermore, we will have the opportunity to cross pollinate ideas, strategies and resources. A emphasis will be placed on obtaining sustainable funding for our organizations or private businesses. II. BIPOC Women in Medicine Conference We will leverage our past success over the prior 4 conferences and expand our program inviting leaders in other fields, who will provide needed insights and strategies for advancement and wellbeing. III. BIPOC Women Leaders Retreat We will spend 4 days and 3 nights at a healing retreat center in Southern California to renew and refresh ourselves. We will go deep in exploring trauma's we've experienced as BIPOC women leaders at the hand of institutionalized racism and sexism. We'll learn strategies to avoid internalizing other's inaccurate perceptions of us. We'll also learn specific self-care strategies for ourselves and our teams. We'll heal through laughter, food, team-building and self-respite care. We'll come back refreshed ready to take on the next challenges faced by our city and county. IV. In Person and Virtual Networking events We'll hold 5 networking events where BIPOP Women can promote their services and products.

BIPOC women leader are heavily invested in social services, education, health care, the foster youth system, domestic violence programs, gig economies, mental health services and personal services. We impact our county every single day through our hard work to help those most vulnerable in our communities. With our proposed programs, women leaders will have a greater network of support and will be able to push their businesses and industries to new heights tackling the most pressing problems in our communities and making positive long-lasting impacts. See this video of work our IED was a part of prior to coming to our organization: https://www.reelurbannews.com/dr-sheila-young-charles-r-drew-university-of-medicine-and-science-covid-19-testing-site-report-video/

We will conduct pre and post surveys of BIPOC Women Leaders to determine: PHQ9 score (with consent) Barriers to advancement Confidence in leadership abilities Understanding of best ways to navigate their industry Qualitative assessments of impact of programming, comparative assessments of other programs Nationally developed leadership development assessment tools i.e. Gallups Strengths Finder