With ten years of classroom experience, elementary teacher Lauren Beck knows a thing or two about children and the compassion they need to thrive as learners and leaders. In addition to serving as a hard-working second grade teacher in Buncombe County Schools (Asheville, NC), Lauren is a busy mom whose home is filled with the delightful squeals of laughter and love from her nine-year-old twin girls, Ryleigh and Braelyn, and four-year-old son, Liam.

Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College is committed to providing meaningful, valuable, and equitable educational opportunities for its students and the communities in which they serve. Currently, all of A-B Tech’s health and nursing programs are led by women, including newly named Dean of Allied Health Angie Goodwin and Nursing Chair Christy Andrews.

Western North Carolina native and CEO of Bettini Financial Brittany Bettini has made it her life’s mission to help people and small businesses learn how to repair their credit and manage their finances for long-term financial success.

Every fly fisher has a story of how they discovered the sport. Some were introduced to fly fishing by a family member. Others were taught by a generous friend willing to share their knowledge and gear with a newbie.

Jennie Harpold has been the director of Lee-McRae College’s New Opportunity School for Women (NOSW) for over ten years, yet she has been helping women achieve their professional goals for her entire career.

Buncombe County Schools Teacher Caroline Clark has been teaching fourth and fifth grade for the past ten years, and she loves creating long-lasting relationships with her students. Having come from generations of educators, one might say that she was always meant to be a teacher.