Female leaders tell students to 'take a leap of faith' at fourth annual OWN IT summit

Penn’s fourth annual OWN IT female empowerment summit was held on Saturday, bringing women leaders to University City to share their career experiences with Penn students. 

This year's conference, which was held at The Study at University City, marked the first time that the event was not held on Penn's campus. Leaders said the change was intended to bring more authenticity and professionalism to the event. 

Last year, Penn’s OWN IT chapter shifted its focus from female leadership to women’s empowerment and gender inclusivity, a change the group's co-presidents continued this year. Co-president of OWN IT Penn and Wharton senior Anna Alvarado said focusing the conference more specifically on gender equality drew a larger variety of people to attend the summit. 

By shifting the focus, Alvarado said the chapter has been able to invite women that have had “unconventional career paths” to speak to help attendees “make sure that they're making the best career moves for themselves, no matter what the field is.”

Featuring 32 speakers and moderators, women of various career paths and backgrounds led discussions on topics such as the effects of social media on self-image. Speakers included Morgan Brown, a Wharton alumna and social media influencer, and Kalisha Dessources Figures, a Ph.D. student at Yale University and former Policy Advisor to President Barack Obama's White House Council on Women and Girls. 

Panel topics included “OWNing Your Image” to “OWNing Your Impact,” which focused on how to succeed in the workplace, despite systemic obstacles like sexism.

This year’s event began with a Keynote Discussion with Samantha Fulgham, the chief creative marketing officer at Bumble. When asked by a moderator how she made the decision to join Bumble as one of its first hires in 2014, Flugham told attendees to “take a leap of faith."

“Never take no for an answer,” Fulgham said. “Everything's an opportunity and if you can get past the haters, keep going and listen to that gut.” 

This sentiment was echoed in various panels throughout the day, with various speakers emphasizing the need to “listen to your gut”.

In the OWNing Your Impact panel, Tamara Harris, a former Congressional Candidate and CEO of Tamara Harris LLC, told listeners to “align your accountability and your authenticity” around your passion. 

“When you are in misalignment, it will become so increasingly clear that that is not your path,” Harris said. "When you let go of that dream, that vision, that version of yourself that is not in alignment, then the right things will start to flow to you.”

College first-year Hailie Goldsmith, who attended the event, said she enjoyed listening to “ambitious and driven women who are leaders in their field."

Master of Behavioral Sciences student Saba Kauser echoed this sentiment, and said she enjoyed "all the insights and conversations" at the conference.

OWN IT Penn is part of a series of satellite summits which first began at Georgetown University in 2014. The conference has since expanded to 11 universities across the nation.