Author: Krysta Jones

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s organization or of ARLnow.com.

“When women succeed, America succeeds.”

Women play an instrumental role in the U.S economy. Forty percent of American households with a child under the age of 18 depend on a woman’s salary as the sole or primary source of income.  Women are estimated to make more than 70 percent of all retail purchasing decisions, and women investors are the fastest growing sector making investments on Wall Street.

Just-released findings by McKinsey and Company note that efforts to advance women’s economic equality could improve global Gross Domestic Profit by $12 trillion. Since the 1970s, female labor participation has accounted for fully a quarter of the United States’ total GDP growth.

Yet, nearly a century after women earned the right to vote, America still has a gender pay gap. Women of all races and ethnicities working full time, year round in the United States earned an average of only 78 percent of what white men earned in 2013. For black women, it was 64 percent. For Latina women, it was 54 percent. These disparities have a detrimental effect on our families and communities.

On Oct. 10, Rep. Don Beyer will host his first “Women Driving the Economy” conference, aimed at helping women in Northern Virginia acquire the skills needed to succeed professionally, build critical relationships with their peers, and learn valuable lessons from leadership experts.

The event’s keynote speaker is U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet, a pioneer in establishing women in leadership roles in the economy as a public and private sector manager and philanthropic champion. As of 2014, it is estimated that there are nearly 9.1 million women-owned businesses in the United States, generating over $1.4 trillion in revenues and employing nearly 7.9 million people.

Administrator Contreras-Sweet’s keynote delivery will be followed by a plenary panel moderated by Megan Beyer with Judith Warner from the Center for American Progress and author of the 2005 New York Times best-seller “Perfect Madness: Motherhood in the Age of Anxiety,” local small business owner El Brown and Rebecca Shambaugh, a leadership trainer for women in the workforce.

Following the panel discussion, participants will choose leadership training sessions on a number of topics, including:

• Interview skills with Mary-Claire Burick, President of the Rosslyn BID;

• Image and Branding with Sonya Gavankar, Journalist and Co-Founder of HerExchange.com;

• Resume building with Sonja Henderson and Virginia Lyon of the HR Certification Institute;

• Social Networking and Career Advancement with Dagny Evans, a senior operations and technology leader;

• Strategies for Financial Security with Laurie J. Blackburn, CFP^® and First Vice President – Investments with the Speck Caudron Investment Group of Wells Fargo Advisors;

• Salary Negotiation Strategies with Barbara Mitchell, Managing Partner of The Mitchell Group;

• Mindfulness Exercises with Patrice Winter, Assistant Professor in the Department of Global and Community Health at George Mason University.

This event is free to the public and will be held at George Mason University-Arlington campus, from 8 a.m. to noon.  The address is 3351 North Fairfax Drive and public transportation to and from the Arlington campus is available. Child care is also available. Attendees must register online at https://beyer-womendrivingtheeconomy.eventbrite.com.

Although it is important to cite statistics and talk about the barriers facing women’s economic empowerment, it is even more important to try to do something to help women overcome those barriers. By providing a forum for discussion, fostering networks and developing key skills, we can help women — and America — succeed.

Krysta Jones is founder and CEO of the Virginia Leadership Institute, and in 2014 was named by Leadership Arlington as a Top 40 Leaders Under 40 awardee.

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s organization or of ARLnow.com.

Last week I attended the Women’s Campaign School at Yale (WCS). This 20-year-old non-partisan, issue-neutral leadership program works to increase the number and influence of women in elected and appointed office in the United States and around the globe. Several of the speakers repeated the same line all week, “Women are 53 percent of the population…stop acting like we are in the minority.”

Arlington’s own Allida Black, (Eleanor Roosevelt Scholar and co-founder of Ready for Hillary), spoke at WCS about her journey as a child of the civil rights movement to creating a social movement for Secretary Clinton’s candidacy: “Politics is equal part dream, courage, and sheer grit. WCS is essential training for any woman, especially women in Arlington, who want to run for office. It shows in very real ways what decisions you must make in order to fortify yourself, concretize your dream, build your community, and give you the confidence to introduce your vision for an effective community-based party.”

My WCS classmate from Arlington, Natalie Trisilla (program manager for a DC-based nonprofit) concurred. We intend to rely on our vision, courage and grit to use what we learned at WCS to make a difference in Arlington.

Fortunately, Arlington has been a leader in women’s empowerment issues in both the political and business contexts.

For example, The Leadership Foundry, in conjunction with Northern Virginia-based Women in Technology, prepares women to serve on corporate boards. The Leadership Foundry is co-chaired by the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women’s (CSW) Vice Chair Marguerete Luter.

Marguerete has also been a key part of local Congressman Don Beyer’s efforts to promote women’s economic empowerment. In May, Congressman Beyer introduced the Gender Diversity Investment Act, which would provide federal employees the freedom and flexibility to invest their retirement savings in companies that demonstrate a strong commitment to gender diversity and women’s economic empowerment.

The progress of women leaders in Arlington was the focus of CSW’s Women of Vision reception on June 11, honoring women who have made an impact in Arlington in the government, nonprofit and business sectors.

CSW awarded its government award to Karen Darner, who served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1991 to 2004. Delegate Darner set an example that continues today. Our County Board is chaired this year by a woman, Mary Hynes. In November, the ballot will reflect continued engagement by women leaders. Incumbents on the ballot will include Barbara Favola (State Senate), Ingrid Morroy (Commissioner of the Revenue), Carla de la Pava (Treasurer), and Theo Stamos (Commonwealth’s Attorney). Among other women running for office will be CSW member Katie Cristol (County Board candidate).

Notwithstanding Arlington’s successes and programs like WCS and the Leadership Foundry, women still continue to lag behind in political and corporate leadership, both nationally and throughout Virginia. Women represent only about 19 percent of the U.S. Congress. In Virginia, about 20 percent of our state senators, and 25 percent of our state delegates are female. Recent research shows that women hold only about 17 percent of the board seats at Fortune 500 companies, and about 15 percent of senior executive positions.

There is much discussion about the women’s vote, but not as much recognition of the key role of African American women in electoral politics. As Jessica Byrd, formerly of Emily’s List, has noted, since 2008, Black women voters have the highest turnout percentage in electoral politics.

Although Arlington has never elected an African American woman to the County Board, we have elected African American women to the School Board, and African American women are active in other positions of leadership. CSW gave its nonprofit award this year to Sarah Summerville, long-time community leader and cofounder and president of the African American Leadership Council of Arlington.

CSW awarded its business award to Mary-Claire Burick, President of the Rosslyn Business Improvement District (BID). Among other women serving as President of leading business groups in Arlington are Kate Roche (Arlington Chamber of Commerce) Angela Fox (Crystal City BID) and Tina Leone (Ballston BID).

I am proud to say that in Arlington, we generally don’t act as though women are in the minority. Our progressive values have led us to elect and promote women to the highest levels of leadership. Hopefully, Arlington’s leadership can help our state and our nation to put even more cracks in our glass ceilings.

Krysta Jones is founder and CEO of Virginia Leadership Institute, former chair of the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women, and a member of both the Leadership Foundry and the Junior League of Northern Virginia.

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Our community and our society are becoming more aware of and educated about the issue of sexual assaults. This is, in part, due to high-profile cases that have drawn increasing press attention, including national media stories involving the military, college campuses and the National Football League. This issue is a difficult one, with many facets. But it is one that we must address fully and fairly.

According to whitehouse.gov, “Young women… face the highest rates of dating violence and sexual assault. In the last year, one in 10 teens have reported being physically hurt on purpose by a boyfriend or girlfriend. One in five young women have been sexually assaulted while they’re in college. While men compromise a smaller number of survivors, male survivors are no less important.”

Locally, Arlington data shows there were 201 sexually related offenses with reported victims in 2011. As is generally true, victims of sexual offenses in Arlington have been predominantly female.

As a single woman living in Arlington, it is something I think about a lot. A few years ago there were disturbing incidents on Arlington’s recreation trails, one by my home. I made the difficult decision to alter my exercise routine, but was pleased with how the county and citizen groups came together to respond to the incidents and address the broader safety issue.

As many of these crimes are not reported, it is hard to know for sure whether there has been an increase or decrease in assaults from year to year. Yet one thing is clear: in 2015, it is imperative that Arlington’s progressive values guide our work in preventing, raising awareness, and addressing sexual assault.

Fortunately, Arlington County has a history of addressing difficult community concerns, and it is responding to the issue of all-too-frequent instances of sexual assault. For example, during my term (2011-2014) on the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women, one of our top priorities was addressing sexual assault and rape.

One priority was establishing a local hotline for sexual assault incidents. Before now, the county’s only hotline for sexual assault incidents was the Virginia Domestic and Sexual Violence Action Alliance in Richmond. Although answered 24/7, the hotline’s location prevented those in urgent need of an immediate response from being connected with a County Violence Intervention staff person for assistance.

In Arlington’s FY 2015 budget, funding was included for a hotline in Arlington. As chair of the Commission on the Status of Women, I was proud to join organizations like Project Peace in supporting an Arlington-based hotline.

According to the county website, Arlington’s Violence Intervention Program (VIP) provides survivor services including safety planning, hospital accompaniment, or support when contacting law enforcement. The VIP program is also committed to preventing abuse from occurring by providing programs to a broad range of adults and adolescents. The VIP also offers consultation and training to allied professionals on the issue. (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Arlington is grappling with issues common to communities with urban areas. We can remain inclusive and value diversity as we progress and seek to remain competitive, but we must consider the importance of affordable housing as part of that competitive edge.

The need for affordable housing evokes different images — providing shelter for families in need; allowing lower-income workers to live closer to their jobs and to transit, promoting economic activity without adding to congestion; encouraging greater diversity and inclusion; aging in place without having to give up one’s home as real estate prices rise; strengthening and stabilizing communities; and, for some, housing “projects” and crime.

Arlington has attempted to maintain affordable housing as the cost of living has increased. In 1975, AHC, Inc., began working as a nonprofit affordable housing developer. In 1989, the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing was founded to develop and preserve quality rental communities for individuals and families earning approximately $20,000-$60,000 per year.

Housing is considered affordable when rent or mortgage, plus utilities, is no more than 30 percent of a household’s gross income. Across the nation, an estimated 12 million renter and homeowner households pay more than 50 percent of their annual incomes for housing. In 2012, average rents in Arlington increased to $1,999.

One must make generally make 60 percent or less of the area median income to qualify for affordable housing, which in Arlington is $45,180 for a single person.

Arlington County provides affordable housing by expanding the supply of Committed Affordable Units (CAFs) for low-income residents, and offering Market-Rate Affordable Units which are owned by the private market and tend to have higher monthly rents.

According to a 2011 literature review by the Center for Housing Policy, “the development of affordable housing increases spending and employment in the surrounding economy, acts as an important source of revenue for local governments, and reduces the likelihood of foreclosure and its associated costs.”

In 2012 the County commissioned a three-year task force to create a shared community affordable housing vision, but not everyone is happy with the direction of affordable housing in Arlington.

• Although it ultimately failed, in 2013 the Arlington Green Party (AGP) spearheaded a ballot initiative to create a low income housing authority. In a 2013 Washington Post article, AGP chairman Steve Davis noted, “…a housing authority would raise funds more easily, lower administrative costs, and provide more affordable rental units.”

• The County offered developers more density for their projects if they preserved 6,200 units of affordable housing on Columbia Pike as a part of the Columbia Pike Revitalization Plan. It is unclear whether developers will still be interested in building and preserving affordable units in light of the recent streetcar project cancellation.

• Under the Public Land for Public Good program, the county identified three to five publicly owned sites with the greatest potential for affordable housing development in the next 10 years. Yet, the Long Range Planning Committee of the county Planning Commission recommended that the program be “set aside” and the Arlington County Civic Federation is asking the County to start over — both citing a need for more public input.

• Additionally, Columbia Heights West, the civic association that encompasses the new Arlington Mill Residences, is an advocate for more affordable housing in Arlington, but questions the high concentration of affordable housing in some neighborhoods. Early drafts of the Affordable Housing Working Group study included a provision to ensure more affordable housing throughout the county, but it was deleted by the Long Range Planning Committee.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Arlington is a community that has strong tradition of women in leadership positions — in businesses, government, nonprofits and electoral politics.

Carrying on that tradition is something that we cannot take for granted. Fortunately, our community creates opportunities to promote leadership and career opportunities for women.

Recently, the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women, Ballston Business Improvement District, Living Vicky and the Arlington chapter of the National Organization for Women held the 2014 Women in Business Conference titled “Women in Non-Traditional Careers.”

It was a good opportunity to network and listen to panelists in nontraditional careers for women: financial services, law enforcement, entrepreneurship, and corporate executive positions.

Moderated by Maureen Bunyan of ABC7, the panel engaged the audience with personal experiences, words of advice, and thoughts on encouraging women to pursue nontraditional careers.

I believe that we can learn those lessons at a young age. My father tells a story about when I was 2 years old. One minute he was watching me in the front yard and the next minute I was gone. He soon found me at a playground we frequented down the street. Although he helped me to understand risks, he also encouraged me to want to get back to that playground!

I imagine all of the dynamic women panelists have similar childhood stories of independence, taking risks and setting goals, just like I did in wanting to get to the playground.

The event ended with a raffle for an “Entrepreneur” Barbie. Despite her faults, the Mattel doll introduced in 1959 has had nontraditional and empowering careers — astronaut, politician, surgeon, and football coach. In that admirable way, Barbie has been a model for girls and boys to be open to and comfortable with seeing women in all types of careers.

Fortunately, I grew up at a time when women were increasingly encouraged to explore all careers. That helped me decide to go into the “nontraditional” career of politics. In 2014, fewer than 25 percent of elected officials at the federal level, in statewide office, and in state legislatures are women, and only 40 percent of all school board members are women.

A 2013 Huffington Post article cites Census Bureau reports that the leading occupations for women in 1970 were secretaries, bookkeepers, and elementary school teachers. In 2006-2010, the leading occupations, similarly, were secretaries and administrative assistants, cashiers, and elementary/middle school teachers. Leading jobs for men were also similar in 1970 (miscellaneous managers, truck drivers, and production supervisors) and today (truck drivers, miscellaneous managers, and freight, stock, and material movers).

Moderator Bunyan noted that her profession — journalism — has seen increasing numbers of women over time. She remembers when sexual harassment and discrimination were acceptable behavior. Today, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act offers protection to individuals encountering gender-based discrimination such as sexual harassment and direct requests for sexual favors, as well as workplace conditions that create a hostile environment for men or women.

According to Norma Carr-Ruffino, an expert on women in management, economic need drove many women to work. She credits affirmative action for redefining the cultural acceptance of working women and giving people an opportunity to “experience women and minorities in roles that they thought they could never be good at.” (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

As we watch the events in Ferguson, Mo., unfold, I am thankful for the progress we have made in Arlington to create a more diverse and welcoming community. I am even more determined that we work together to foster civic engagement and leadership opportunities for African Americans and to honor the historic contributions of African Americans in Arlington and all Arlingtonians who have worked to eliminate discrimination and expand opportunity.

Since I was younger than I can remember, I have watched documentaries on the American civil rights movement. Growing up in the 1990s, my mother made sure I understood the struggles and accomplishments of African Americans in our country and also how far we had to go as a community and a country.

These early conversations and experiences shaped my philosophy about civic engagement. I have wanted to do everything I can to repay those who lost their lives and sacrificed so much for me to go to integrated schools, use the same bathrooms as everyone else, and live in any neighborhood I wanted to make my home.

Not long ago, things were very different.

In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled that American schools should be desegregated. In defiance of the Court, our state government in Richmond chose to work actively to prevent integrated schools.

In the midst of Virginia’s “massive resistance” efforts, the NAACP filed a suit on behalf of Arlington parents and students. Judge Albert V. Bryan ordered the Arlington schools to be desegregated. In 1959, four Black students entered Stratford Junior High School (now H.B. Woodlawn) with the protection of Arlington police officers, changing our history forever.

Since the 1950s, the struggle for full equality has changed. While our schools are legally desegregated, African Americans are still not fully represented in political leadership.

I founded Virginia Leadership Institute (VLI) in 2006 with the goal of increasing the number of African American elected officials in Virginia.

African Americans are 20 percent of the Virginia population and approximately 8 percent of the population in Arlington, yet only about 250 African Americans across the Commonwealth hold elected offices (county boards, constitutional officers, school boards, city councils, state legislature, Congress).

VLI believes that our elected and appointed officials should be diverse in age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and the like.

We believe that residents can be represented effectively by someone different than themselves, yet VLI also believes that one’s background, experiences and characteristics can provide different perspectives that are important as leaders seek to represent and discover solutions for growing and changing communities in Arlington, and throughout Virginia.

VLI, based in Arlington, focuses on teaching African Americans skills needed to win elections and govern successfully. VLI also provides personal leadership consultations to assist them on their life journeys.

In 2014, there are many who question why an organization would focus on helping one group of people get elected to office. Yet current events show us that diversity in leadership continues to be an important element of creating safe and healthy communities as well as addressing crises. (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Think for a second… how would you describe “the status of women?”

In Arlington, we have a Commission on the Status of Women that helps foster a community conversation about the status of women and how best to advance their interests in our community and society.

Arlington follows the lead of President John F. Kennedy, who in 1961 created the first Presidential Commission on the Status of Women.

Chaired by former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, the commission studied employment policies and practices, political and civil rights, and “services for women… including education, counseling, training, home services, and arrangements for care of children during the working day.”

The resulting 1963 report noted a need for “increased access to education for women, aid to working mothers, child care services, equal employment opportunities, equality of rights under the law, and a wider role for women in government.”

Today, most would agree that the status of women has improved, but issues such as political leadership, pay equity, and the continuing prevalence of rape and domestic violence remain relevant.

Fortunately, Arlington has taken a leading role in addressing these issues.

Rape and Domestic Violence. In 2011, the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a survey of rape and domestic violence and found that nearly one in five women surveyed said they had been raped or experienced an attempted rape. One in four reported having been beaten by an intimate partner.

As the Arlington community works to reduce violence against women, it is good to see the County remains dedicated to helping survivors. In the FY 2015 budget, the County Board funded a new sexual assault hotline in Arlington. The County also helps support social service groups that assist survivors, including Doorways for Women and Families.

This builds on long-term County efforts that have helped to reduce and address the effects of domestic violence. Through the efforts of leaders such as Barbara Favola, Arlington developed Project Peace — a coordinated community response to domestic violence.

Women in Politics. These days, the media has constant coverage about Hillary Clinton and whether she will seek to become the first woman president. While there are more women engaged in politics than the celebrated “Year of the Woman” in 1992, national numbers remain low. Women occupy only 18.5 percent of congressional seats; and minority women occupy only 4.5 percent of those seats.

Yet research shows that when women run, women win. That is particularly true in Arlington, where women hold top leadership spots as County Board and School Board members, Commissioner of Revenue, Commonwealth’s Attorney, and state senator.

Historically, women have played a key role in Arlington politics — from Elizabeth Campbell on the School Board to pioneering legislators like Mary Marshall and Elise Heinz. County Board leaders Ellen Bozman and Mary Margaret Whipple were key Metro board members and leaders in Arlington’s groundbreaking smart growth planning.

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