Five students from the Catt Center for Women and Politics had a chance to listen to women’s leadership experiences at Iowa Women’s Leadership Conference.

The conference, “Connect. Inspire. Deliver. Advancing Women Leaders,” was at the Meadows Events and Conference Center on Wednesday in Altoona, Iowa.

This year, the conference included a special programming track for undergraduate students. Programming included Tina Brown, former Newsweek editor; Cy Wakeman, consultant, author and trainer; and Sylvia Ann Hewlett, economist and CEO, all as speakers.

“The aim of the conference was essentially to shift focus from women’s weaknesses to their strengths and giving young women the skills, knowledge and encouragement they need to rise to the top,” Madeline Becker, senior in political science, who attended the conference, said.

The conference also included a networking session for students. Becker said some of the key points included how women have made their way to middle-management but still comprise a small number of CEOs and high-income individuals.

Other speakers included Kim Reynolds, Iowa’s lieutenant governor; Joanna Barsh, director emeritus at Mckinsey & Company; Linda Kuster, research strategist at Vernon Research Group; Deborah Dagit, president of Deb Dagit Diversity LLC; and Jann Freed, consultant with the Genysys Group.

The conference is a women’s leadership group in Iowa. According to its website, the organization aims to advance women’s leadership. Conferences in the past have included speakers from various professions.

“We bring in women who have expertise in their chosen professions. The reason we developed the student track is that we believe it’s critically important to provide access to accomplished women speakers and provide tips and ideas directed towards them,” said Diane Ramsey, executive director of the conference.

Ramsey said the conference tries to have speakers who can inspire existing and upcoming leaders. The group chose Tina Brown this year for her global perspective and her work in women’s education, Cy Wakeman for her experience in women’s leadership and Sylvia Ann Hewlett for understanding the role of advocacy in success.

She added that the conference sees 600 women from the workforce and 50 to 75 students who attend the special track. The conference is known to draw women from Iowa, other states and Canada.

The event was sponsored by DuPont Pioneer, Prairie Meadows, Hy-Vee, the Business Record and John Deere.