From a passion for changing her Yorktown community, one local high-schooler had her eyes opened to enacting change on the national and global scale.
Elissa Carpio, who just finished her junior year at Tabb High, was selected as an ANNpower Fellow, a program by ANN INC. — the parent company of Ann Taylor and LOFT — in partnership with Vital Voices Global Partnership.
Founded in 1997 by Hillary Clinton, Vital Voices Global Partnership is a non-governmental organization that invests in women worldwide, training and mentoring them to be leaders in their communities. The group teamed up with the women’s fashion company. Since 2011 ANN INC. has selected 50 fellows each year to grow their skills while learning from one another and powerful figures.
The only Virginia representative among the 50 fellows from 25 states, Carpio attended a multi-day leadership forum, the ANNpower Vital Voices Leadership Forum, in June in the nation’s capital.
She was selected from a competitive application process for her commitment to community and leadership skills. A member of numerous Tabb honor societies, Carpio also volunteers at Riverside Regional Medical Center and a Boys & Girls Club thrift store.
A member of her school’s Model United Nations club as well, Carpio already had a zeal for international politics, but was inspired watching Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards along with the other sophomores and juniors participating in the forum. One of the award-winners being honored, Syrian civil rights activist Razan Zaitouneh, was not present because she was abducted last year.
“Watching Hillary Clinton demand the release of Zaitouneh was surreal to say the least, and the entire Kennedy Center seemed to be filled with an exciting, electric energy,” Carpio wrote in an email.
The next day, Carpio and others were able to speak with honorees at a panel the next day.
“The entire event of meeting these women and watching them accept awards for their work will always stick with me and continue to inspire me to help others make a change,” she said.
Carpio also left the forum with a notebook full of inspirational quotes and motivational phrases from the many mentors, CEOs and ANN INC. executives who spoke to the fellows. The pages were packed with her furiously scribbled notes, and since coming home Carpio said she has already turned to the journal for encouragement.
In addition to the workshops, roundtable discussions and mentoring sessions during the week, the ANNpower Vital Voices Leadership Forum also looks to give the young women a long-term support network they can turn to once they return to their communities.
“In our work, we’ve seen firsthand how the power of mentorship can propel women on their journey for change,” said Alyse Nelson, Vital Voices Global Leadership president and CEO, in a news release.
“Young women deserve and need role models who they aspire to be. I’m thrilled to continue our journey with ANN INC. as we leverage our complimentary networks and expertise to support these remarkable young leaders,” she said.
Carpio returned home, tasked to complete a project to benefit the area, for which she is eligible for a ANNpower Project Grant that would help put her ideas into action.
For more information about the ANNpower Vital Voices Initiative, click here.
