Monday marked the start of the White House Summit on Working Families. The summit is a joint collaboration on the part of the White House Council on Women and Girls, the Department of Labor, and the Center for American Progress. In an attempt to make the summit more open to the public, the White House has encouraged people to join in from anywhere, by using #FamiliesSucceed and filling out a questionnaire about their personal experiences.
The summit comes on the heels of remarks from President Obama on Saturday about the need for more comprehensive maternity leave benefits and measures earlier this year that raised the minimum wage. The White House has released a fact-sheet in tandem with the summit that promises "more opportunities for hard-working families." At the summit, the President will also sign a memorandum that pledges:
To protect pregnant working women, increase investments for research to understand the economic benefits of paid leave, expand apprenticeships for women, target resources to help more women enter higher-paying STEM and other fields, and make child care more affordable for working families.
Speakers at the summit include leaders in business, media, education, labor rights, and issues relating to women and children. Here are some of the people we're most excited to hear from...
Dr. Jill Biden
The "second lady," who has an impressive track record working to raise awareness about issues relating to education and health, contributed to Monday morning's opening remarks. Dr. Biden helped to run a summit on working families in Seattle earlier this spring that brought together business leaders from the community and was open to the public.
Mika Brzezinski
Morning Joe host and mother of two, Brzezinski knows a thing or two about juggling work and family. Brzezinski's first book, All Things At Once , explores the challenges making working women face. At the summit, Brzezinski is scheduled to moderate a panel discussion on "Career Ladders and Leadership," which will include U.S. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, and Gloria Steinem. It sounds awesome.
Robin Roberts
Robin Roberts, anchor on ABC's Good Morning America, made headlines in January when she spoke openly about her struggle with cancer and the support she received from her partner, Amber Laign. Roberts opened up to the American public about her sexuality, through a Facebook status in which she thanked Laign for her help during Roberts' recent health crisis. Roberts will give the closing remarks at Monday's summit, along with First Lady Michelle Obama.
Maria Shriver
Maria Shriver has worn many hats; she's an award-winning author, a journalist, and served as the First Lady of California. This morning, Shriver penned a piece for the Huffington Post, entitled "Working for Our Working Families," in which she discusses the goals of the summit and discusses the burdens on working American women. Shriver was interviewed at 1:40PM Monday at the summit.
Valerie Jarrett
Jarrett is a senior advisor to the President and spoke this morning during the summit's remarks. Jarrett is the same advisor who recently broke to the American public that Obama was drafting an executive order on LGBT discrimination in the workplace. Jarrett has experienced the difficulties of being a working parent. In a recent piece for the Huffington Post, Jarrett writes:
Young women are questioning their ability to thrive in the workplace as they try to balance the needs of their families with their responsibilities at work. Nearly half of America's workforce is now comprised of women, and three-fourths of households are headed by a working single parent, or two working parents. Most parents, myself included, have felt at times like we were barely holding on by our finger tips as we try to meet all of the demands on our time.
