Girl Scouts of Greater New York to Recognize Six Remarkable Leaders at 30th Annual Women of Distinction Breakfast
October 31, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Linnea Mumma, linnea@anatgerstein.com, 347-861-4167
– Women Recognized for being Role Models for Girl Scouts include : Adrienne Adams, Speaker of the New York City Council; Grace Ann-Baker, Principal, Head of Human Capital, 26North; Rhonda Boston, Distinguished volunteer and longtime GSGNY Board member; Ross Ellis, Founder and CEO, STOMP Out Bullying; Minerva Phifer, Senior Delivery Director, Workday; and Kelly Rouba-Boyd, Disability Rights Advocate–
–Girl Scout Hana Prokop to be honored with the Future Woman of Distinction Award–
(New York, N.Y.) — The Girl Scouts of Greater New York (GSGNY) will honor six women leaders at the 30th annual Women of Distinction Breakfast on Wednesday, November 1, 2023 from 8-9:30 a.m. at Gotham Hall, 1356 Broadway, New York, NY.
"Celebrating exceptional women leaders at our Women of Distinction Breakfast is an opportunity to inspire our Girl Scouts to think about the boundless potential of their own leadership opportunities. These remarkable diverse role models who lead across various industries and sectors, show girls there are many ways to drive positive change in the world," said Meridith Maskara, CEO, Girl Scouts of Greater New York.
Held each year in celebration of Girl Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low’s birthday, the Women of Distinction breakfast recognizes the work of women who, through their distinguished careers and commitment to community service, exemplify core Girl Scout values embodied in the Girl Scouts law. These leaders have careers in a wide range of fields and have committed themselves to supporting the next generation of leaders and activists.
By honoring well-rounded innovators and decision makers, the Women of Distinction breakfast encourages young Girl Scouts to explore limitless career opportunities, and to be open in their self-exploration and growth.
GSGNY will also honor Hana Prokop with the 2023 Future Woman of Distinction Award. Hana is a senior at Hunter College High School and has been a Girl Scout for nine years, earning her Silver Award through creating a cybersecurity website. She is on track to complete her Gold Award, where she will create an informational website with educational lessons on all things finance for middle and high-school aged girls.
This year’s Women of Distinction honorees will include:
- Adrienne Adams, Speaker of the New York City Council
- Grace Ann-Baker, Principal, Head of Human Capital at 26North
- Rhonda Boston, Retired senior court officer
- Ross Ellis, Founder and CEO of STOMP Out Bullying
- Minerva Phifer, Senior Delivery Director at Workday
- Kelly Rouba-Boyd, Emergency Management Professional, Writer, Disability Rights Advocate & Public Speaker
About the honorees:
Adrienne Adams is the Speaker of the New York City Council. Elected in January 2022 by her colleagues, she leads the most diverse and the first women-majority Council in New York City history as the first-ever African American Speaker. Elected to the City Council in November 2017, she is also the first woman to represent District 28, which encompasses the Queens neighborhoods of Jamaica, Richmond Hill, Rochdale Village, and South Ozone Park.
Under the leadership of Speaker Adams, the Council has been tackling long-standing inequities. Speaker Adams has expanded support for crime victims in communities that experience high levels of violence but are underserved by traditional victim services. She created a new $5.1 million budget initiative to fund community safety and victim services at the neighborhood level, and secured funding to establish New York State’s first four Trauma Recovery Centers.
Speaker Adams’ leadership led the Council to approve over 40 land use projects in 2022, which will produce more than 12,000 units of housing, over 63% of which are affordable. During her first term in the Council, Speaker Adams secured a record level of funding for her district, which had endured years of disparity and disinvestment, including investments in schools, parks, libraries, housing, and sanitation services. As a member of the Budget Negotiating Team, she championed funding for cultural institutions, health care, digital access, child and adult literacy, community-based food pantries, small business assistance, as well as Fair Futures, an initiative providing mentorship and services for foster care youth.
Grace-Ann Baker is Principal, Head of Human Capital at 26North, where she is responsible for leading and executing the firm’s human capital strategy. Prior to joining 26North, Grace held talent and HR roles at Blue Owl Capital, Annaly Capital Management, AllianceBernstein, and Morgan Stanley.
Grace serves as a mentor to students and early-career professionals of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) and has served as a volunteer teacher with Cents Ability, a non-profit focused on empowering underserved New York City high school students through access to financial literacy training. In addition, Grace was a 2021 Fellow of the Council of Urban Professionals, an organization whose mission is to inspire, elevate and empower the next generation of diverse business and civic leaders and women.
Grace holds a B.S. from Baruch College in Mathematics, Actuarial Science and an M.S. from New York University in Organizational Behavior, Change Management.
Kelly Boyd, who was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 2, is a tireless disability rights advocate, a writer and emergency management professional. The former Ms. Wheelchair New Jersey has been featured in many publications, television programs, and campaigns for her advocacy work and has appeared numerous times as a model.
Ms. Boyd has also spent over 20 years in journalism, starting as a freelance writer for the Trenton Times and writing for numerous magazines, newspapers, and websites. In 2006, she was honored by New Jersey’s Department of Labor for her outstanding work ethic and success in the workplace as a local journalist and woman with a disability. She is also the author of Juvenile Arthritis: The Ultimate Teen Guide.
In 2007, Ms. Boyd began working in the emergency management field. She currently works for IEM and serves as the Access; Functional Needs Planner at the NJ Office of Emergency Management. In 2019, she testified before Congress about the model work she is doing in New Jersey on behalf of vulnerable populations. In 2023, she received the Excellence in Service Award from the NJ Attorney General.
Previously, Ms. Boyd worked at the New Jersey Governor’s Office on Volunteerism as the AmeriCorps Program Officer and as the Disaster Services Coordinator/Disabilities Coordinator. She also worked at the NJ Division of Developmental Disabilities, where she served as a Communications and Emergency Management Specialist & Ethics Coordinator. Ms. Boyd was also a reservist with the Dept. of Homeland Security/FEMA Region II for several years.
Minerva Phifer is a Senior Delivery Director at Workday, where she has held several leadership positions over the past 12 years. Currently, she leads the engagement management team for North America. The team is responsible for implementing human capital and financial management software and business process solutions for customers in the financial services and insurance industry. She is responsible for ensuring the successful delivery of Workday’s solutions based on best practices, with leading industry experts, managing over a $25 million annual project portfolio, and building long-term customer relationships. Prior to Workday, she spent 16 years as a management consultant, helping customers implement human capital and financial management ERP solutions.
Minerva has served as a volunteer on various committees, including Workday’s Giving/Doing program, Women Transforming Technology (WT2), and the Apollo Theater of Harlem’s EmpowHer. She has also held key positions supporting her alma mater, Mount Holyoke College, which includes the Board Nominating Committee, Class Officer, and Black Alumnae Conference Committee. She has also spoken on several panels including Sistas in Sales, New York Women Leaders and Uptown Magazine’s discussion on “The Legacy Continues: Generational Wealth Land Ownership”
Throughout her career, she has mentored, reflecting her legacy of advocacy and support of others. She continues to divide her time among her family, business interests, community service and philanthropy.
Rhonda Boston is a retired senior court officer with over 30 years of combined experience in the New York State and Kings County Supreme Courts. Her last assignment was serving as the court tours representative at Kings County Supreme Court. In that capacity, she provided student and community groups with an inside perspective of the court system. Among her accomplishments, Rhonda was the recipient of the Law Enforcement Appreciation Award, given by former Kings County District Attorney Charles Hynes; the Justice Ruth Moskowitz Award, given by the Kings County Supreme Court Gender Fairness Committee; and the Meritorious Service Award, given by the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association for outstanding professionalism in the performance of duty.
Rhonda Boston is a devoted Girl Scout leader and lifetime member of Girl Scouts of the USA. She has spent almost three decades at the helm of Brownie Troop #2243, which is based in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Clinton Hill, at Emmanuel Baptist Church. Having been a Junior and Cadette Girl Scout at that same church during her childhood, she takes great pride in being able to teach the time-honored traditions of Girl Scouting to girls and young women in her community. In recognition of her work with Girl Scouts and the local community, Emmanuel Baptist Church awarded Rhonda with the Pharaoh’s Daughter Award for Mother Figure of the Year. In addition to her work as a troop leader and board member, Rhonda has held several positions within GSGNY. She is currently the Chair for the Volunteer Recognition Committee; a Delegate for the 2023 GSUSA National Convention and a former Service Unit Manager and Brooklyn Association Chair. In these capacities, she has worked to develop and maintain Girl Scouting in Brooklyn by organizing and supporting local troops, adult volunteers, families, and community partners, and by providing them with leadership and programs. In recognition of Rhonda’s strong commitment to Girl Scouting, she has received several awards, including the GSGNY Thanks Badge II and the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award, a national recognition given to citizens who have contributed 4,000 or more hours of community service in their lifetime.
Ross Ellis is the founder and CEO of STOMP Out Bullying®, the leading anti-bullying nonprofit in the U.S. Ross is nationally recognized as an expert for her work in bullying and cyberbullying prevention, social advocacy for youth, violence against children, and online safety.
With over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit, P.R. and corporate sector, Ross has been a child advocate, educating the public on reducing and preventing bullying, cyberbullying, other digital abuse, educating against homophobia, LGBTQ+ discrimination, racism and hatred, and deterring violence in schools, online and in communities across the U.S.
She spearheaded a social health initiative to avoid the negative effects social media can have on teens which can distract them, disrupt their lives, and expose them to cyberbullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people’s lives and peer pressure.
Recently, she created the Wellness Room program for schools. whereby kids and teens who have been bullied and who have mental health issues will have a place to decompress during the school day.
Ross is a noted speaker. Her speaking engagements have included: – Black Congressional Caucus; Speaker – Children Uniting Nations “Bullying in America” to Members of Congress; Speaker – “Delete Digital Drama” at The White House Bullying Summit; Featured Speaker – U.S. Embassy (Korea) “Bullying and Cyberbullying What Works in the U.S”; Featured Speaker –National Women’s Educational Conference, “Bullying; Cyberbullying Prevention. She is also a Girl Scout who is proud of the many badges she earned.
About Girl Scouts of Greater New York: Girl Scouts of Greater New York is New York City’s oldest and largest girls’ leadership organization, reaching tens of thousands of girls ages 5 to 18 in every zip code of the five boroughs. Through Girl Scouts, girls explore STEM, business and entrepreneurship, environmental leadership, and outdoor adventure, advocacy, and so much more. Girl Scouting is ‘by girls, for girls,’ and today’s Girl Scouts learn to lead with courage, confidence, and character, to make the world a better place. Visit www.girlscoutsnyc.org to learn more.
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