By Megan Guerrero and Jane Hanna
Many young girls around the world seek to find a pathway to success through entering the world of business. Unfortunately, many young women do not receive as much encouragement and opportunities as their male peers in the business workplace.
“Women often take less influential jobs and stray away from their dreams because they don’t see anyone out there who represents them and goes after the same dreams as them,” junior and co-president Makyla Cervantes said.
Cervantes and her co-president senior Phoebe Quach work to give girls an opportunity to explore the world of business through their club. Women in Business seeks to level the playing field of gender in the business world.
“We wanted to motivate girls on campus to pursue careers in business because there are many gender and economic disparities for people entering this world” Cervantes said. “Our goal is to encourage girls to pursue their career passions now at this young age, and not stop just because there is male domination within the field.”
The club was inspired by the Pepperdine Graziadio Women’s Business Association, a student-led organization that encourages women in college to enter entrepreneurship. These types of organizations are extremely popular throughout universities because they support and encourage women through conferences, workshops, and networking. Cervantes and Quach felt these groups should start in high school.
“At a young age these girls have dreams to become CEOS and CFOs in workplace environments,” Cervantes said. “We should start now to encourage girls to pursue these careers before they enter college and choose their majors. This is the most influential time of their lives. So, our club seeks to foster and uplift this community of women interested in business through networking, mentorships and community building events here at Granada.”
Throughout the school year, the Women in Business club has hosted multiple events to demonstrate careers in business to young girls on campus.
The club partners with the Pepperdine Women’s Business Association. Through this mentorship, they have created panels with professional women whose topics have included financial literacy, marketing, and the job interview process.
During the pandemic, the club held virtual panels which allowed members to meet and interact virtually with guest speakers who have already pursued their dreams in business. These speakers helped members learn the steps they took to get to their positions.
“My favorite thing about these panels is how our members are able to hear from these women within different fields of business that already have experience,” secretary and senior Gabrielle Samilton said. “We are also able to form mentor relationships with them.”
One of the recent professionals who spoke to the club was Diana Sanchez, a manager of human resources at the Los Angeles Airport. She met with the club to discuss her career and her experiences as a woman in a high leadership position.
“All of the members and officers are so unique in their careers that they want to pursue, but it’s so motivating to be surrounded by girls who have similar dreams and passions in business and in the future,” Cervantes said.
Women in Business meets Fridays at 3:30 p.m. in Q4
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