Susan Yackee, director of UW-Madison’s La Follette School of Public Affairs, has achieved a lot in recent years, including creating the first La Follette School Policy Poll and the Wisconsin Main Street Agenda Project.
At the Progress Center for Black Women, Jazmynn Appleton connects with and mentors Black entrepreneurs, plans networking events for the Center and cultivates relationships with Madison-area businesses.
Personal experiences inspired Shaney Andler to write a manual for young people — “Back Pocket Tools for Teens to Nurture Their Mental Health.”
Based off of her experiences and a desire to help Black women avoid financial pitfalls, Afra Smith founded The Melanin Project, a business providing financial coaching and education about building wealth.
In honor of Native American Heritage Month, six Native women share how their culture, traditions and elders have influenced who they are today.
Nowhere but Madison feels like home to Arvina Martin. She logged a year in Arizona, spent part of middle school in Washington, D.C. and attended Dartmouth. College in New Hampshire, but they couldn’t compete.
Family has always kept Kyla Beard grounded and connected to her Native American roots. Her dad is 100% Ho-Chunk and her mom is a descendant of the Puerto Rican Taíno, an Indigenous tribe that was scattered throughout the Caribbean.
For Dakota Mace, art is inherently connected to history, to family and to the land where she was raised.
Samantha Skenandore had never thought about going to law school, but after she helped the tribe with a complicated legal situation, it piqued her interest in law.
Carla Vigue has been leading for years — at the National Council of Urban Indian Health, the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs and more — but when a Native elder had passed her the baton, she was inspired to do more.