Vestal, NY – Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo and Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul hosted a Women's Roundtable with more than 20 local women from government, business, academia, and the not-for-profit sector on Wednesday. The discussion centered on the challenges faced by women as they work toward leadership positions.

“Next year we’ll be celebrating the 100th anniversary of Women's Suffrage in New York State,” said Assemblywoman Lupardo, who is the elected Chair of the Legislative Women’s Caucus. “While we've accomplished many firsts since then, we have a long way to go in terms of women's leadership roles. This roundtable was a great opportunity for women in our community to come together to share their stories and ideas.”

“Today, I joined Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo to bring together women leaders from non-profits, academia and business in the Southern Tier to have a candid conversation about the barriers to success,” said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. “Encouraging more women to step up to leadership roles includes addressing road blocks like balancing career and family obligations and breaking through stereotypes. I think we all agree we can do more to be role models and mentors to help realize the potential of the next generation of women leaders.”

Policy at the state level designed to help women and families includes paid family leave, a stronger focus on child care, increasing awareness of breast cancer and the availability of screenings, and advancing equal pay legislation. Ideas shared at the roundtable included encouraging more women to serve as mentors to young women and girls, supporting existing programs like the Girl Scouts, and establishing a local Women's Leadership Council.