iSchool Alumna TaRhonda Harvey Takes Part in Girls Chat 2.0 Conference

Posted by Jana Polsky on

College of Communication and Information (CCI) Alumna TaRhonda Harvey (IT ’02) served on the Steering Committee and worked as the Event Brand Designer for the Girls Chat 2.0 Conference. The conference is one of the programs within Rhonda Rogers’s (Harvey’s client) nonprofit organization that she founded in 2021, Rhonda’s Promise. Harvey was responsible for the website, marketing materials, swag and banners for this event. This was the second year of the Girls Chat Conference.

Participation in the Girls Chat 2.0 Conference

The Girls Chat Conference encourages young girls to build confidence in respect to advocating for themselves and other young women. The conference welcomes middle and high school girls, and this year there were 120 that attended.

“The Girls Chat Conference was designed to help young girls identify, understand, and flex their leadership muscles within their respective spaces and beyond,” Harvey says. The conference focused on self-awareness, social skills, and academic success for the attendees. The goal is for young female participants to become a leader, thinker, and advocate for the female community.

This year, the conference focused on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) related topics. The Workshops included The Art of Effective Communication, Get Involved, Goal Setting, Fun Careers in Science and Technology and Circuit Science. The attendees had an opportunity to meet and hear from inspiring female community leaders and speakers coming from all different career fields.

TaRhonda Harvey and Rhonda Rogers at the Girls Chat 2.0 Conference

“During one of the workshops, I met a young girl who aspires to own her own business one day,” Harvey says. “Since I am a business owner, it felt good to be able to give her some pointers that can help her now.” Harvey feels that it is important for these girls to be able to hear from female leaders who have walked the path that they desire.

During her time with CCI, Harvey gained not only programming skills, but social skills as well to help her succeed in her career today. “Good social skills are crucial for a business owner as it helps build strong relationships with customers, employees, and other stakeholders,” Harvey says. The skills she has now helps to establish trust, negotiate deals, and resolve conflicts in a business perspective.

To learn more about Rhonda’s Promise or how to support the 2024 Girls Chat Conference, visit rhondaspromise.org.