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 Scientists Personal Journey is a keynote at the 14th Annual Womens Professional Development Conference (WPDC) on April 30 at Springfields MassMutual Center, sponsored by Bay Path College. Taylors story embodies this years 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 conferences two other keynote speakers:
C. Vivian Stringer, head coach of Rutgers University womens basketball team. Stringer is known for how she responded with grace and dignity to radio host Don Imuss 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.
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:
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 ones right brain to live life more fully. The breakout sessions will repeat, and the day will conclude on a cheerful note with Renfroes 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.