30 Mar Women Who Inspire Fluent
In celebration of Women’s History Month, we asked a few of our Fluent team members to write about the women who inspire them. From lauded professors to pioneering civil rights activists, read below to learn more about the important work and incredible achievements of the women we admire.
Quantitative Researcher Amber González on Joan Trumpauer Mulholland
In November 2016, I had the pleasure of meeting Joan Trumpauer Mulholland — a renowned activist. Joan participated in and helped organize some of the most influential moments of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, including the Freedom Rides, Jackson Woolworth’s sit-in, the March on Washington, and the Selma to Montgomery March.
Despite her upbringing as a young white woman in the segregated South, being a child of segregationists, and a great-granddaughter of slave owners, Joan had an unwavering dedication and commitment to challenge racial segregation. She shed light on the repercussions of her involvement, including being disowned by her family, imprisoned and placed on death row, and hunted by the KKK for execution. It was truly inspiring to hear a first-hand account of stories from an unlikely hero of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, whose devotion to the cause required the utmost conviction and courage.
Her legacy does not end there. To this day she continues to challenge racist ideology through the efforts of her organization, the Joan Trumpauer Mulholland Foundation whose mission is to educate youth about the Civil Rights Movement and inspire others to make a difference through activism in their community.
Reflecting back, I’m grateful I crossed paths with Joan when I did, during my senior year of college, one week after the 2016 election. It was a period marked by an uptick in incidents of racist and xenophobic harassment on my college campus and across the country, and her inspiring story and words of wisdom reinvigorated me to remain engaged in activism on and off campus.
Senior Researcher Sylvia Rusnak, Ph.D. on Brené Brown
One woman that inspires me is author and professor Brené Brown. She researches courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy. I admire her because her research has real-world impact; her work helps us understand ourselves and create meaningful change in our lives.
Brené is a storyteller and communicates her work in a way that resonates. As a researcher, I strive to conduct research that ultimately improves the lives of others and communicate it in a way that clicks.
Brené’s work also has importance for how we show up in our lives for ourselves, for others, and also for how we work. Vulnerability at work allows for creativity and meaningful conversations. Her work inspires me to try to be brave: to show up to take action, rather than to stand by on the sidelines, simply observing or commenting on the actions of others.
Senior User Experience Researcher Farrah Brensinger on Grace Hopper
If you have ever noticed and reported a ‘bug’ to software developers, you have Grace Hopper to thank for this offbeat way to describe a software glitch. Hopper minted the label after a bonafide moth got stuck in her computer and caused it to go haywire.
Hopper’s influence in software goes far beyond adding the unusual term to our everyday computer lexicon. The first woman to receive a Ph.D. in Mathematics from Yale, she went on to create A-O, a ‘compiler’ program that translated mathematical terms into machine-readable computer code. She later invented a compiler that made machine-readable code from English-language inputs, enabling mainstream computer usage for those with non-programming backgrounds. She received the 1991 National Medal of Technology from President George Bush, recognizing her technological impacts on ‘open[ing] the door to a significantly larger universe of users.’
When asked about her most important accomplishments, she listed training young people right alongside her programming triumphs. Undoubtedly, Grace Hopper would be pleased to see so many young women entering the computer science field today, ready to push the boundaries of programming, just as she did.
Grace Hopper’s story inspires me to innovate for good and look for additional opportunities to get life-changing technologies into the hands of as many people as possible.