Joining a friend at a meeting of the Triangle Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association(ABWA) was just what I needed. Not only was I impacted by the warmth of the women, but their mission:To bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and to provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support and national recognition.
Pondering whether to join or not, I decided to do some research. I found that this illustrious group of women are part of a national structure uniting women of different nationalities and across cultural boundaries. Believe it or not, ABWA was started by a man. Get outta here! In an era where the roles of women were defined inside the home, it’s tantamount that a man would lobby for women to be recognized in this manner.
What a difference a world war makes–World War II in fact. When the men were called upon to defend their country, this left a void in the workforce that cried to be filled. No one else was available so the women left home to go to work. Besides, their family’s survival depended on it since the breadwinner was now absent. Despite this contribution to preserve the family and the economy on American soil, when the men returned the women were expected to return to their homebound existence.
Hilary A. Bufton, Jr. said no way. He did not want these ingenious women to go unnoticed, but he knew his solitary voice could not penetrate the biases of his time. So, he partnered with three businesswomen and established the American Business Women’s Association, incorporating it on September 22, 1949. This single action sparked a change that would challenge traditional roles forever.
Though Mr. Bufton is now deceased, his daughter continues his legacy serving as Chief Executive Officer. Under Carolyn Bufton Elman’s leadership, the organization continues to be an indomitable force of empowerment and support. Changes have been made over the past 50 years to remain in step with ever-evolving trends but the underlying values are the same.
What grabbed my attention most were the educational opportunities sponsored by the association. They are the ABWA-KU MBA Essentials program and the ABWA-KU Management Certificate Series. The former is a master’s level degreed program but the latter does not require any educational prerequisites. Nonetheless, both expose professional women and entrepreneurs to advanced courses developed and taught by faculty from the University of Kansas School of Business and its KU Center for Management Education.
Do that offer online courses? They do! They even have a Business Skills Tuition Reimbursement program making education affordable. Wow!
At last night’s meeting, the members raved about the national conference. My friend nodded in agreement, whispering to me how inspiring it is and how it is a great networking opportunity. Now get this, this year’s conference is in Greensboro, NC. That’s only a 1 1/2 hour drive from where I live. That’s rare. According to the officers, most of the meetings are in other states. The last one was in Anaheim, California. Members were exhorted to take advantage of this rare opportunity.
My friend explained that there is an agenda at each meeting. At this one, there was a guest speaker educating the members about the prevalence of Multiple Sclerosis, especially among women. I was surprised that there were several women, including myself, who knew of someone suffering from the illness. While mingling, one of the members shared that she had been diagnosed in the past. While eating our meal, the group discussed upcoming events, business and one of the members showcased her jewelry business.
At the conclusion of the meeting, I spoke with one of the officials about being a guest speaker. Though the group doesn’t compensate their speakers, this would be a great platform to launch into public speaking. Part of coaching is interacting with people one-on-one but also in groups. Accordingly, I anticipate blending a little education and actually engaging the women in a group coaching session. Who knows where this might lead!