NFA North Welcomes All Female Panel

NEWBURGH – On Monday, December 10th, there was a panel in the auditorium of Newburgh Free Academy’s North Campus that featured female entrepreneurs and leaders who are active in Newburgh.

The inaugural project of weNBNY (Women Entrepreneurs of Newburgh, NY), a program aimed at highlighting female entrepreneurs and leaders in our community, was hosted in partnership with The Blacc Vanilla Community Foundation.

All female students at NFA North were invited and encouraged to attend. Scholars were able to submit questions on index cards for the hosts to facilitate. Questions ranged from specific steps to decide and then develop a certain career oath to details requests for starting and running a business. The panel hoped to showcase multiple avenues that our young scholars could follow in order to step into their own future leadership roles. Seeing the support from other influential local leaders is paramount to letting our female students know that we see their potential.

The panel was facilitated by 10th grade scholar Fatou Jammeh and teacher Ms. Christine Hutchinson. Ms. Jackie Hesse and Ms. Christine McCartney coordinated the event.
Panelists included:
Isabel Rojas, Newburgh Police Officer and published author;
Amal Ishak, Owner and founder of Cream and Cream Vintage;
Inaudy Esposito, Executive Director, Orange County Human Rights Commission;
Allison Capella, lawyer and board member of multiple non-profit organizations;
Kelly-Ann Kostal Larrier, Executive Director, Safe Homes of Orange County.