ASU conference empowered her; now she empowers others

Planning a virtual conference from more than 2,000 miles away is no easy feat, but PowHer organizer and ASU Panhellenic Executive Council Director of Women’s Leadership and Diversity Taylor Sebastian said the experience ended up being an opportunity for growth.

“The transition to PowHER 2020 online was upsetting at first but showed promise to expand our audience to other Arizona universities,” she said. “There has been very active planning and collaboration involved in PowHER to ensure the same impact is being made as an in-person conference,” she said. 

A session at the 2019 PowHer conference

The Oct. 18 event was the sixth annual conference presented by ASU’s Panhellenic Council to provide skill-building workshops, inspiration and empowerment for college women. PowHER is a free event that encourages women to support and empower one another rather than compete against each other.. 

Sebastian, who is a senior studying family and human development, had been planning the event with the Panhellenic Council while taking classes online from New York City, where she moved after finishing up an internship with the Arizona Diamondbacks. She said her sleep schedule has been on Arizona time, but it’s been a fun way to stay engaged in campus life and Greek life. Sebastian is a member of Sigma Kappa.

This year’s PowHer drew 200 registrants, with 86 participants on average at any given time, and featured even more philanthropic initiatives and partnerships with other student organizations in its workshops. Collaborators on campus included women’s athletics at ASU, the Black African Coalition, SKY @ ASU and the United Nations Association of ASU. Sessions covered topics such as body diversity, allyship, justice, self-reflection, a women of color panel and discussions about women in sports. 

The emphasis on lifting each other up and the philanthropic initiatives hit home most for Sebastian.

“The biggest part of being an empowered woman is empowering other women, and taking the lead in our philanthropic initiatives has been very rewarding,” she said. 

Planning this event for Sun Devils was also a full-circle moment for Sebastian, who remembers how much the event meant to her after she transferred to ASU from Mesa Community College.

“PowHER 2018 was the first Arizona State University event I attended after transferring from community college,” she said. “I will never forget the message ‘we create our own story.’ A message so simple kick started the motivation I lost after high school and caused me to reroute my life.”

Keep up with PowHer on Instagram.