Women's History Month One Year Later – What 40 Epic Mentors Have Been Up To & What's Next
When Lady Magic, Olympian and Basketball Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman gave a shout out to The Epic Mentor Guide during Women’s History Month, I was touched. Exactly one year since the book’s morning release on The Today Show and evening launch with Veronica Beard on Madison Avenue, it is always a joy hearing from the 180 extraordinary women who participated in the book.
It got me thinking – what have these extraordinary women been up to over the last year? The answer turned out to be – a lot! As we close out Women’s History Month, join me in a fast review of 40 of the phenomenal women from The Epic Mentor Guide – what they’ve been up to and what’s next.
Sport game-changers like:
Blake Bolden creating the emBolden Her Mentorship program for young athletes
Kim Ng eyeing MBL Opening Day and just appointed to the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition
Nancy Lieberman forming new partnerships and speaking up about mentorship
Founders like:
Bobbi Brown opening a second Jones Road storefront this month in NYC
Carly Zakin & Danielle Weisberg launching their creative agency SKM Lab
Debbie Sterling announcing her first animated series for preschoolers
Kara Goldin adding sunscreen, deodorant and other new product lines to Hint Water
Shelley Zalis bringing gender equality to Davos, Cannes Lion and SXSW
Entrepreneurs like:
Tyra Banks stepping away from Dancing With the Stars to leap into ice-cream full-time
Advocates like:
Anita Bhatia advancing “techquity” across India for women and girls
Claudia Romo Edelman featured in AHA! Moments of Diversity & Inclusion
Haben Girma named a Top 25 Women of Influence this Women’s History Month
Mita Mallick spotlighting important stories of inclusion with Brown Table Talk
Executives like:
Callie Reynolds moving to VP of Customer Success at Top Hat
Michele Ghee vaulting to President of Multicultural Advertising at Byron Allen
STEM stars like:
Audrey Sherman driving innovation at 3M with a record 2600 patents
Tarika Barrett leading Girls Who Code into their 10th impactful year
Tere Riley promoted to Director of Marketing at Redwire Space
Academics like:
Sian Beilock graduating as President of Barnard College to become the first female President-Elect of Dartmouth College
Fashionistas like:
Eleni McCready helping Lilly Pulitzer launch their loyalty program Club Lilly
Rebecca Minkoff having honest convos in her newsletter and podcast
Veronica M. Beard paying it forward every quarter with #VBGivesBack
Journalists like:
Alisyn Camerota bringing out her brand new show on CNN
Elizabeth Vargas joining NewsNation with a fresh evening news show
Hoda Kotb starring as the first guest on Michelle Obama’s podcast and introducing her own called Making Space with Hoda
Maria Hinojosa adapting her memoir for next gen readers
Sara Sidner gearing up for a new morning show called CNN News Central
Money Masters like:
Jean Chaztky telling today’s teens exactly How To Money and why
Jenny Just inviting women to fintech board tables and poker tables
Maggie McGrath celebrating 30 women over 50 with Forbes in Abu Dhabi
Authors like:
Angela Duckworth writing a new book about situation and circumstance
Kate T. Parker encouraging girls to raise their voices in When We ROAR
Lydia Fenet cultivating confidence in the bestselling Claim Your Confidence
Marie Benedict uncovering history with The First Ladies coming June 2023
Omi Shelly Bell releasing Originate, Motivate, Innovate in May 2023
Movie Mavens like:
Dawn Porter premiering The LadyBird Diaries at SXSW earlier this month
Joanne LaMarca Mathisen producing a new documentary on menopause
Lilly Ledbetter watching her story come to the big screen with LILLY
Musicians like:
Chloe Flower dropping an upcoming Christmas album in her singular popsicle (pop x classical) style
What an impressive year for these extraordinary women, with so much more to come! Next quarter we'll review another 40 phenoms from the book, keeping you updated as to their latest projects, passions and publications.
They are epic mentors, one and all, and I'm so grateful to have their words answering girls' questions and guiding first steps as the next gen ventures thoughtfully into the workforce.
Looking forward,
Illana
ÊXTRAS: To read more about the 180 boss women from the book one year later, read heartwarming reviews here, download a Kindle copy here or grab the hardcover here. All proceeds ensure that Être's mentorship events remain free for every girl, everywhere. Always.

