There is nothing better during the summer months than the laughter of kids, a generous dose of sunshine, and eating fresh tomatoes from my garden. This year I am growing more romaine lettuce than I can possibly eat. Summer is also the time when Voice4Equity holds its national When Women Lead conference, and this year we are heading to Charleston, South Carolina for a game-changing convening! 

Charleston is a beautiful town, with architectural wonders, on a peninsula in South Carolina just steps away from the Atlantic ocean. It is full of history from its pre-colonial times, to its European roots, to its significance in the Civil War and dark history in the slave trade.  Charleston was also important to the establishment of early colleges and the growth of learning, the arts and music. There is no better way to appreciate and learn from history, than to be in the place of that history, and experience firsthand the rich cultural contributions of many peoples. When Women Lead selected this historical location so that together we can deepen our knowledge, purpose, connections, and readiness to serve our nation’s diverse children. 

In preparation for one of our keynote speakers, Emily Ramshaw, co-founder of The 19th, I encourage you to check out The 19th News, a non profit news agency dedicated to timely stories on gender, politics and policy. If you’ve wondered where you can experience news that honors the diverse perspective of women in the U.S., this is it! I love their weekly online newsletter with stories about pressing policy issues such as the recent decisions around vaccines and pregnant women, the removal and then reinstatement of books by women and people of color at the Naval Academy, and the planned shut down of federal services and safeguards for victims of domestic violence. I look forward to Emily’s talk about gender, policy, and power! 

Talk about perspective! I want to introduce you to Antoinette Banks, a parent turned innovator, CEO and business owner who is having a tremendous impact nationally improving the quality of IEPs for differently abled students. Her sit down with me focuses on the intentional balance between impacting others and taking care of the self. 

As you pack for Charleston, I hope that you will enjoy all of the features included in this summer edition from the Wellness Corner offering from Tiana, to information about our executive coaching services, to words of wisdom offered by our featured leader Antoinette Banks.  Don’t forget to pack your sneakers for Charleston!

With joy,

Christina

June 2025 | DR. CHRISTINA KISHIMOTO

When Antoinette Banks was struggling with her daughter’s special education program at school, she was determined to find a better way. Working with other parents of neurodiverse children, she built a platform to make it easier to create more effective IEPs. Enjoy Antoinette’s conversation with Dr. K and learn about her journey from motherhood to company founder.  

Learn more and set up an informational meeting

We are excited to announce the early-access release of a new app, designed by women for women to help you get moving and build healthy habits. Using the app, you can subscribe to simple wellness plans like “Ten Days of Yoga with Tiana” and you’ll get a friendly reminder each day to complete your yoga activity, with ad-free video and an easy way to track your progress.

Attendees at When Women Lead 2025 will be among the first to get access to the new app, with the opportunity to complete a three-day wellness challenge during the conference, and a year of free access to a growing set of activities and wellness plans that make it easy and fun to create your own wellness journey. Not able to attend WWL25? Click here to join the early access list and you’ll be notified when the app is generally available.