Helping others drives our Women of the Year. See what makes them proud.
We find pride in helping others.
And USA TODAY's Women of the Year honorees are no different. Their proudest moments are never about themselves, both others.
Here are some moments they shared with us:
José-Marie Griffiths, President of Dakota State University, has a lot of accomplishments. But her biggest?
Bringing up my daughter (Rhiannon). I tried to make sure she was strong, comfortable and confident in herself and her abilities. She took a different pathway academically, but that’s OK. That’s what she wanted to do. I encouraged everything she wanted to do, just like my parents had encouraged me.
Ann Cabell Baskervill has returned to work after a frightening medical crisis - and worked on one of the county's most high-profile criminal case.
But she finds pride within.
"Staying kind and human. That was always really important ... having empathy and not getting really angry. Maintaining that world view is what I’m proudest of because it helps me to be as fair as possible and really seek justice without any sort of agenda. I really do think about individuals and community, and I try to do that with kindness.”
"We [Revista Etnica] celebrated our 5th anniversary. We threw a party because we love to party. We threw ourselves a ball, dressing like belles, elegantly in black and white. We danced, we ate, we embraced and greeted one another," Antonetty Lebrón says.
"I would say that the creation of the environment, at the party, was a source of great pride — recognizing that we are reclaiming our joy, radical joy, as Black people on a consistent basis. And ultimately understanding that, obviously, we need time to create as much as need time to rest and celebrate. It was very beautiful. And now we want to throw a party like the one we had every year," Lebrón says.
Kathy Flores is is the former anti-violence program director for Diverse & Resilient, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit focused on LGBTQ+ safety and well-being.
"The thing that I am most proud of in my career has been the passage of laws to protect transgender people in my community. This is something you'd expect from cities like Madison and Milwaukee. Being able to do that (in Appleton) was my proudest moment. And now, having a transgender partner who works for the city and benefits from those laws, that's the gift that keeps on giving," she says. "On a personal level, I'm most proud of my daughters and the women they are today. I'm proud that they are strong women, and I'm so honored that they still come to me for advice on life and love."
Jill Landes-Lee oversees, called the “Utah Bridge Program,” offers advanced college-level coursework for students after they’ve passed the AP Language test. Utah's language-learning program, unique in the country, gives students a leg up if they choose to go to college, or allows them to start their career professionally bilingual.
Utah's public school system has immersion programs in six languages: Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.
As director of the Bridge Program at the University of Utah for more than 10 years, Landes-Lee has made it her mission to rethink how early college programs attract and support students, particularly those from historically underrepresented backgrounds.
Hearing students tell teachers about what the program meant to them. When they come back and say, 'You know what I did after I left?' or 'This is what the program meant to me.’
"I know a student who wanted to become a plumber. He said he is able to interact with language communities that he never would have been able to do business with if he didn't know his second language.I know of another student whose dream was to be a chef. She moved to France and sent us back a video of her being a dual immersion student in French, and now living in France, and realizing her dream career.
It’s everything. Whatever it sets students up for next in their lives. That’s why we’re here."
Katie Trautz’s steady and methodical care for those around her proved to be just what her city needed when tragedy struck. She took on a role that didn’t exist – helping an entire community recover after a natural disaster when flooding hit Montpelier, Vermont last year.
"One of my proudest moments is watching Montpelier come back after the flood and wandering the streets and noticing how vibrant it actually feels now compared to four or five months ago. And really feeling the community spirit that brought us to where we are," she says.
