Pamplin’s seventh annual Women in Business event was held Tuesday, September 13 in New York City. The event was hosted by Tracy Castle-Newman of Morgan Stanley and was attended by over 60 women, both students and alumni, looking to connect with each other. Highlights of the evening included keynote speaker Dr. Menah Pratt-Clarke and the presentation of Pamplin’s Rising Star award. “Power, Passion, and Purpose,” was the theme of the evening.  Dr. Pratt-Clarke’s dynamic keynote speech highlighted the beauty of change, the importance of doing what’s right for you, and the role of gender in the workforce. Her rich background in education, sociology and women’s studies lent well to her presentation, titled “Lessons Learned from One Woman’s Career Journey.” She ended her portion of the evening with  positive remarks regarding her current position, Vice President for Strategic Affairs and Vice Provost for Inclusion and Diversity at Virginia Tech. Following the keynote, Kay Hunnings, Associate Dean for Administration in the Pamplin College of Business presented the 2016 Rising Star Award to 2009 alumna Kristy Laughlin, who currently works in Washington D.C. as an Advisory Manager at Deloitte. Kristy was honored for her continued dedication to Pamplin, as she currently serves as chairman of the ACIS Emerging Leaders board, and is an ex-officio member of the Pamplin Recent Alumni Board. The 2015 Rising Star, Charlotte Ryland, was present to congratulate Kristy on being the second woman to be honored as a Pamplin Rising Star. The evening concluded with encouragement to mingle and make connections with new women, as well as photo opportunities with Dr. Pratt-Clarke, Tracy Castle-Newman, and Kristy Laughlin.