Conference to help girls reach goals set for November

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake chapter of Soroptimist International will sponsor a new conference designed to give high school girls the resources to get ready for college.

The inaugural “Dream It, Be It – Career & College Conference for Girls” is scheduled for all day Nov. 5 at the Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center, 900 Yonezawa Blvd. It’s open to girls from Grant and Adams counties.

“Women from a variety of professional backgrounds, educations and experiences will be volunteering their time to share their stories and provide guidance to our local girls,” wrote chapter president Bea Lucio in a press release.

Admission is free. The organization’s goal is to sponsor a similar conference each fall and spring, said conference co-chair Veronica Bradley.

Washington state senator Judy Warnick will be the keynote speaker. Warnick will talk about how she achieved her career goals.

The program will include information on career opportunities, advice on setting and achieving goals, career and otherwise, and overcoming obstacles to success.

The day will includes sessions on “discovering your dreams,” creating achievable goals, coping with obstacles and rising above them, turning failure into success, balancing and overcoming stress and putting dreams into action.

A “mentoring lunch” is part of the program. Girls will have the chance to “ask the expert,” women with experience in a number of career fields. They include health care, agriculture, cosmetology, business administration, graphic design, health and fitness, veterinary, optometry, engineering, law and accounting, among others.

“Because we don’t expect that all girls will know what they want to do for the rest of their lives, and we also know that plans change, the skills developed through the day can be applied to any goals the girls identify throughout their education and careers,” Lucio said.

“The girls also will have the opportunity to speak with working women in a variety of careers and perhaps arrange a mentorship with a woman whose career interests them,” Bradley said.

Breakfast will be served along with lunch, and raffle prizes and awards will be distributed throughout the day, Lucio wrote.

Advance registration is requested, and the deadline is Oct. 25. Girls can register at www.DIBI2016.eventbrite.com. Women interested in volunteering can contact Carrie Nordberg at simoseslake@soroptimist.net.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached at education@columbiabasinherald.com.