Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver to Headline Celebration of Womanhood Conference

image001-15New Jersey Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) will be the keynote speaker when nearly 200 girls from throughout the state gather at Seton Hall University in South Orange on June 11 for New Community Family Service Bureau’s ‘Second Annual Celebration of Womanhood’ Conference.

“Strengthening the Leader Within Me” will be the theme for the conference, set to begin at 9 a.m. and end at 2: 30 p.m., in the university center. The conference, subtitled, “Fabulous Me,” is for girls between the ages of 12 and 17 and is expected to attract female students from throughout New Jersey. During the morning session, Oliver will address the theme of leadership and share her journey to success, discussing her rise to the Assembly speaker’s position, becoming the first African-American female to hold the post.
During the second half of the day, the participants will attend breakout sessions, where the topics will range from Money Management and Building Self-Esteem to Life After High School and Healthy Relationship Building.

Funding for the conference is being provided by the New Jersey Governor’s Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Committee, administered by the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission. Co-sponsoring the event is Seton Hall University’s Marriage and Family Therapy Program, with planning being carried out by Juvenile Female Ambassadors, who have geared the day’s activities to topics of interest that most affect today’s teenage girls.

Entertainment during the conference will include an exclusive performance by the Rutgers University Scream Theater that will focus on Teen Dating Violence.
The closing ceremony will feature an interactive demonstration led by African Drummers, designed to leave the young ladies in attendance feeling unified and empowered as they take home a new sense of what fabulous female leadership means to them.

“At our first conference, the young ladies left so inspired by what they heard and experienced,” said Arti Kakkar, Executive Director of Family Service Bureau, a New Community affiliate. “We expect that this year will be even better with a role model like the Assembly Speaker sharing her story with these young ladies.”

Young women interested in attending the conference should contact Latesha Jenkins, conference planner, at 973 286-2826 or via e-mail at ms.ljenkins@gmail.com. Schools that wish to send female students to the event should also reach out to Ms. Jenkins.

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