The Leadership Forum at Silver Bay: A Legacy Of Leadership

Betty Spence

Leadership Forum 2005

Betty Spence, is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and advocate for women. In April, 2006, she founded Equal Voice, as a nonprofit educational organization committed to challenging stereotypes about women leaders. Although women are 51% of the US population, they are only 16% of Congress: 16 out of 50 U.S. Senators, and 71 (16.3%) of 435 members of the House of Representatives, of whom 21 are women of color. Women represent only 13 states in the Senate and 29 in the House. Four states have never sent a woman to Washington.

Dr. Spence has served as President of The National Association for Female Executives (NAFE) since 2001, with 60,000 members nationwide, where she advocates for women's business success.

Prior to NAFE, Dr. Spence served as Vice President, Communications and Publications at Catalyst. For Catalyst, Dr. Spence wrote Be Your Own Mentor, a book on propelling your own advancement published by Random House in 2001; and she oversaw the editing and publication of two Catalyst books, Advancing Women in Business: Best Practices from the Corporate Leaders and Creating Women's Networks.