Extraordinary stories
from everyday
women leaders
Overcoming Barriers
and Celebrating
Successes
12
Leadership
Have you heard or spoken these
words:
• “She’s too old to start her leadership ca-
reer.”
• “She’s too aggressive when it comes to
personnel matters.”
• “She’s too soft/feminine when it comes
to decisions.”
• “She wears her heart on her sleeve.”
These quotes are a few of the responses to
the question we asked of women in educa-
tional leadership: What are some of the bar-
riers that got in the way of your progress on
your leadership journey?
We also asked the question: What has
supported you on your journey?
Their responses also included, but were
not limited to:
• “I had to learn the ‘good old boys’ system
and who my allies were.”
• “My mentor was a man who mentored
other men about the benef it of having
women in the organization.”
• “I worked really hard to overcome ste-
reotypical views of women as leaders.”
• “I changed organizations and found
leaders who supported equitable and inclu-
sive hiring practices.”
This article is written by three women
who are experienced educational leaders; it’s
about multi-generational, multi-cultural,
multi-racial women’s experiences; and it’s
written on behalf of women who can sup-
port, model, mentor, coach, and guide other
women to become their authentic selves as
women leaders. This article is also written
for men who can change the oppressive, in-
equitable, and sometimes invisible systems
of oppression and privilege.
Our purpose in writing this article is to
share these extraordinary stories of sincere,
well-prepared, everyday women educational
leaders. As women educational leaders, we
intend to bring to surface the barriers that
many women seeking educational leadership
positions face, offer a counter-narrative and
strategies to overcome these barriers. Over-
coming these barriers is one of the tools of
Cultural Proficiency, a Framework for Equi-
By Trudy Arriaga, Stacie Stanley and
Delores Lindsey