CORRECTION: Arlington to Honor 2016 Women of Vision

Published on May 18, 2016

Note: A previous version misspelled the last name of the non-profit award winner. The correct spelling appears below.

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Arlington will honor three extraordinary women -- Library Director Diane Kresh, entrepreneur Rebecca Carpenter and education activist Susan Senn -- on Tuesday, June 28, when the Commission on the Status of Women hosts the 2016 Arlington County Women of Vision Awards.

Each year, the commission honors women from the fields of government, business and the nonprofit world who have shown extraordinary leadership and commitment to the community. 2016 marks the 30th anniversary of the awards. 

• GOVERNMENT: Diane Kresh has served as Arlington's Public Library Director since 2006, following her retirement from the Library of Congress. Diane has quietly but forcefully supported women across the county, and her nomination included resounding endorsements from women in multiple areas of county government. She lives out her woman-empowering philosophy in her position by offering flexible work schedules, teleworking options, and generally encouraging women to seek balanced lives, ceaselessly pushing other women to advance their own careers. Diane has her MPA from George Mason University and a Certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown.


• BUSINESS: Rebecca Carpenter is the founder and CEO of Sprout, a fast-growing organic urban agriculture company. Through Sprout, she educates and empowers Arlington residents to lead a garden-based lifestyle in order to create healthier families and communities. In addition, Rebecca has founded or co-founded three local groups to promote and support adoption and has adopted a child herself. She has volunteered as an English Second Language teacher in Arlington for the past 15 years. Rebecca received her MBA from Darden School of Business at UVA and has been selected as a 2016 Presidential Leadership Scholar.


• NON-PROFIT: Susan Senn is a former Arlington Public Schools teacher who serves on the Executive Board for the Arlington Branch of the American Association of University Women. Through her work with AAUW, Susan has focused on encouraging and supporting young women in STEM fields, where they are traditionally underrepresented. She has coordinated multiple STEM conferences for a total of over 400 school-aged young women in the area. Susan is often identified by former students as a major influence, both preparing them for academic work and instilling the self-confidence necessary to do that work.  She recently received the Gold Star award from the Arlington Free Clinic for her volunteer work there since 1999.

The public is invited to the ceremony, which begins at 7 p.m. in the offices of Arlington Economic Development at 1100 North Glebe Road.

Tickets are not required, but a $25 donation per person is requested. Sponsorship packages are available to support the work of the Commission on the Status of Women. RSVP to amaynard@arlingtonva.us.