HISTORY

Throughout the ages, women have been leaders in the home, in business, professions, government and non-profit areas. The idea of bringing together Tarrant County women originated in the 1980s. The endeavors of Women's Policy Forum co-founders Karen Perkins and Peg Knapp were initially sponsored by The Women's Center of Tarrant County. The first general membership meeting of the Women's Policy Forum was held in January of 1987. The first membership directory was published in July 1988.

Sandy Kautz, Betty Rowland, Sally Burt, and Kerry Neuhardt

Sandy Kautz, Betty Rowland, Sally Burt, and Kerry Neuhardt

Emerging Issues Symposia

2015 Roadmap to the Future: Health, Education, Policy and Business in 2030
2016 Future Smart: What does the Future Expect of Us?
2017 In the Driver's Seat: Fueling Economic Security and Opportunity for Women
2018 Closing the Gender Gap: Its Effects on Women, Families and the Economy
2019 Glass Ceilings |Glass Floors: Breaking Through for Gender Equity
2020 The Changing Face of Health Care
2022 The Journey to Mental Health Wellness in Tarrant County

Past Celebrity Breakfast Speakers

1995 Liz Carpenter, journalist
1998 Jane Bryant Quinn, author, finance
1999 Hazael O'Leary, former Secretary of Energy
2000 Lynn Sherr, ABC News
2001 Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, human rights advocate
2002 Diane Rehm, NPR talk show host
2003 Sally Ride, PhD, NASA astronaut
2004 Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Olympic athlete
2005 No event
2006 Mavis Nicholison Leno, activist for Afghan women
2007 Sonia Nazario, Pulitzer-prize winning journalist
2008 Lynn Brewer, author/CEO Integrity Institute
2009 Jane Elliott, author, discrimination
2010 Terry Savage, author, commentator, personal finance
2011 Erma Johnson Hadley, Tarrant County College Chancellor

Past Chairs

Karen Perkins 1988
Peg Knapp 1989
Jayne Lipe 1990
Loralee Pohl 1991
Louise Carvey 1992
Elaine Klos 1993
Anne Diveley 1994
Harriet Harral 1995
Carolyn Robertson 1996
Jane W. Hardwick 1997
Sandra Gonzales 1998
Judith Harman 1999
Susan Wilcox 2000
Judy Stempel 2001
Cheryl Ford-Mente 2002
Libby Lanzara 2003
E. Kim Dignum 2004
Victoria Powell 2005-2006
Kathryn Bryan 2007
Sally Burt 2008
Monica Prather 2009
Nancy MItchell 2010
Mary Lee Hafley 2011
Barbara Williams 2012
Sheryl Harris 2013
Rachel Malone 2014
Tracy Marshall 2015
Margaret DeMoss 2016
Pat Cheong 2017
Karen Myers 2018
Cathy Neece Brown 2019
Linda Garcia 2020
Cathy Holt 2021
Karmen Rubin 2022
Rebecca Montgomery 2023

Outstanding Service Awards

2018 - Tarrant County College Foundation
2017 - Tarrant County College Foundation
2016 - Tarrant County College Foundation
2015 - Young Women's Leadership Academy
2014 - Girl's, Inc.of Tarrant County
2013 - Alzheimer's Association
2012 - Girl Scouts-Oklahoma Plains
2011 - Women’s Center of Tarrant County
2010 - SafeHaven of Tarrant County
2009 - YWCA of Fort Worth & Tarrant County
2008 - Girl's Inc. of Tarrant County
2007 - Refugee Services Catholic Charities
2006 - Hispanic Women's Network, AAUW, Feminist Majority
2005- No event
2004- Texas Special Olympics
2003 - Tarrant County Family Pathfinders
2002 - Girl Scouts Circle T
2001 - Amnesty International, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial
2000 - Planned Parenthood of North Texas
1999 - Women's Shelter of Arlington
1998 - Women's Center

A special Thank you to the Fort Worth Public Library for housing the Women's Policy Forum archives.

WOMEN’S POLICY FORUM | P.O. Box 11246 • Fort Worth, Texas 76110 | info@womenspolicyforum.org

Women's Policy Forum is a non-partisan educational and networking organization.
Views expressed in presentations are those of the speaker and do not imply endorsement by WPF.