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Soaring to Greater Heights

Bay Path Professional Development Conference Is Designed to Inspire

When neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor woke up one morning 12 years ago with a sharp pain behind her eye, little did she realize that she was about to become the subject of her own research.

The 37-year-old was having a stroke, which she experienced in full consciousness and now recalls in moment-by-moment detail. The stroke, which took eight years to recover from, did not destroy her. On the contrary, it gave her a new outlook on life. Damage to her left brain took away the critical, judgmental voice inside her head, enabling the creative and intuitive functions of her right brain to blossom.

Today she soars above it all by living in the moment and grabbing life by the horns. She sings, plays guitar, creates works of art, and shares her story about the beauty and resilience of the brain with others.

Taylor, who also wrote a book — My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey — is a keynote at the 14th Annual Women’s Professional Development Conference (WPDC) on April 30 at Springfield’s MassMutual Center, sponsored by Bay Path College. Taylor’s story embodies this year’s theme: Soaring.

“I think everyone is tired of the doom and gloom and pessimism portrayed in the news,” said Caron Hobin, vice president of planning and student development at Bay Path, and one of the architects of the conference. “We picked soaring as a theme to inspire people.”

Resilience and hope is a message also captured by the conference’s two other keynote speakers:

  • C. Vivian Stringer, head coach of Rutgers University women’s basketball team. Stringer is known for how she responded with grace and dignity to radio host Don Imus’s racially charged remarks concerning her team. She is also author of Standing Tall: A Memoir of Tragedy and Triumph, a book on the personal challenges she has faced in her own life.

  • Anita Renfroe, the comedian and YouTube favorite made famous by her “Momsense” song sung to the tune of “The William Tell Overture.” A stay-at-home mom, Renfroe has made a name for herself by making others laugh. She is a favorite performer on Good Morning America.
  • Sharpening Professional Skills

    While the keynotes deliver messages of optimism, the breakout sessions at the conference will focus on skill building. Attendees can choose from two of the four led by notable women professionals:

    • Dr. Nanette Gartrell, psychiatrist and author, takes a look at why even the most powerful and successful women have a hard time saying ‘no.’ She teaches an approach to setting limits without jeopardizing important relationships.
    • Carol Frohlinger is an attorney, corporate consultant, and co-author of the book Her Place at the Table: A Woman’s Guide to Negotiating Five Key Challenges to Leadership Success. She demonstrates how women can negotiate their way to the boardroom table.
    • Dee Leed, a certified financial planner, offers money advice from getting out of debt to retirement planning and savings. She is a regular contributor to CNBC Morning Call, CNN, and ABC World News.
    • Prill Boyle, author of Defying Gravity: A Celebration of Late Blooming Women, takes women on an exploration of their inner longings and demonstrates that life changes can be made at any age.
    • A Full Day of Inspiration

      The WPDC conference will kick off with a continental breakfast, after which Stringer will deliver her morning keynote about personal challenges she faced in surviving breast cancer, losing a husband at a young age, and dealing with a child who required 24/7 care.

      Attendees will then go to the breakout session of their choice. After lunch, Taylor will discuss what it is like to experience a stroke first-hand and how to use one’s right brain to live life more fully. The breakout sessions will repeat, and the day will conclude on a cheerful note with Renfroe’s lively singing and comedic performance.

      In between keynotes, attendees will have a chance to visit exhibitor booths, several of which are nonprofit organizations in search of volunteers willing to offer their time and talents to a worthy cause.

      During his state of the union address, Obama discussed the importance of giving back to the community, said Hobin, and Bay Path takes that message to heart.

      “Our vendor showcase this year gives people an opportunity to investigate a cause they are passionate about,” she explained. “We want our attendees to soar. We also want to give them the opportunity to help others in achieving their goals as well.”