Mistress of Ceremonies — Holly A Mitchell
As Executive Director of the California Black Women's Health Project (CBWHP), Holly is leading the effort to help educate and mobilize Black women to take control and become active participants in their health. The California Black Women's Health Project is a women's health advocacy organization that is committed to improving the health of Black women in California.
Holly got her start in the world of public policy back in 1987 while participating in a post-graduate fellowship with the Coro Foundation. Upon completing the Coro program, Holly went to work for State Senator Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles), first as a field deputy in her district office and finally as a Senior Consultant to the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services. In that capacity, Holly drafted and analyzed legislation and advised members of the Senate on issues relating to maternal and child health, reproductive health and child welfare services.
Prior to joining CBWHP, Holly was the Project Director for the California Women's Health Project, a program of the California Elected Women's Association for Education and Research. (CEWAER). While with CEWAER, Holly worked to develop a comprehensive public policy agenda aimed at improving the status of women's health across the state.
A local activist and staunch supporter of women's rights, Holly volunteers with numerous community-based organizations and serves on several boards of directors including: Planned Parenthood of Sacramento Valley; The Center for Community Health and Well Being (home of the nationally recognized Birthing Project); Save Ourselves, a breast cancer advocacy, education and peer support organization; and the Dangerfield Institute, a foster care agency for medically fragile infants and toddlers in Los Angeles County.
Holly has received several honors for her leadership and public service. In the summer of 1994, Holly was invited to serve as a faculty member at Rutgers University's Center for the American Woman in Politics. Holly was also featured in the August 1990 issue of Ebony Magazine as one of the nation's “50 Future Leaders of America.”
