The Women’s Symposium is a powerful opportunity to learn, connect, and grow alongside inspiring women leaders in our community. This year’s event features engaging speakers, expert panels, and valuable networking designed to empower attendees both personally and professionally. You’ll gain insights on rest and recovery for work-life balance, learning how prioritizing rest can enhance productivity and well-being. Experts will share strategies for navigating career transitions, offering advice on making strategic career moves and embracing new opportunities. Attendees will also explore ways to manage stress and avoid burnout, reframing stress to regain control over their energy. A financial management and wealth-building panel will provide practical tips on managing finances, investing, and building long-term financial success.
Featured Speakers:
Back in the Driver’s Seat: Reframing Stress & Burnout to Reclaim Your Energy
Barbara Gustavson is a certified executive coach, author and mental and brain health advocate who promotes community resilience, wellness, professional and personal development trainings. She uses a holistic, neuro and strengths-based approach to equip health and wellness workers and socially minded leaders in the areas of stress management and burnout prevention so they can be more effective in their roles.
Barbara owns Discover Next Step, a consulting and coaching practice, where she provides one-on-one and group coaching, keynote speaking, workshops, and retreats. She helps organizations create a culture of wellness, work/life alignment to foster improved connection, communication, emotional intelligence, decision-making, and leadership.
As the Program Director for Brain Health Certification programs for clinicians and coaches, Barbara collaborates with Dr. Daniel Amen to give communities tools and strategies to support their mental health and wellness. She has facilitated leadership trainings internationally for physicians, micro-village farmers and government officials in Paraguay.
Barbara holds a BS in Business Management and is pursuing an MS in Psychology at Arizona State University. She is a Certified Health Coach-in-Training, a Certified Brain Health Trainer, and holds various leadership and coaching certifications. Additionally, she is trauma-informed through the Community Resilience Initiative in Washington State. She has served as President of the Chamber Advisory Board with the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce (FRCC) and was Class President and a graduate of the 2020 Leadership Fredericksburg program. She has participated in several leadership, mental health, and resilience conferences and summits and has received multiple awards, including the 2023 Laurie A. Wideman Award and the 2023 SWaMmy Honors with the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity.
Barbara is the author of the “Permission to be Bold: A Guide to Loving Yourself, Living Fully, and Leaving Your Mark in the World.” Learn more about her work at DiscoverNextStep.com.
Next Chapter: Navigating Career Growth & Transitions with Confidence
Kimberly Young is the Associate Provost for Career and Workforce at the University of Mary Washington where she is responsible for providing vision and oversight of the university’s regional workforce strategy.
Kimberly is a senior fellow at the Institute for Learning Innovation. She serves on the Board of Trustees of the Mary Washington Healthcare System, is a council member for the Virginia State Region 6 Growth Opportunity Council, co-chairs the UMW Women’s Leadership Colloquium and she is a member of Board of Trustees of the Community Foundation of the Rappahannock Region. Kimberly is a graduate of Leadership Fredericksburg and serves on the program’s Leadership Advisory Committee. Before joining the LF faculty Kimberly served as a program speaker.
Kimberly has worked with leaders in classroom-based and experiential learning in the United States, Canada, China, and Malaysia. She was the founding director of the Bloch Executive Education Center at the University of Missouri—Kansas City where she oversaw the Executive MBA, international programs and customized corporate education. She has more than 20 years of experience in leadership development and consulting. Through her work with Ernst & Young and Aramark Corporation, her client list includes several recognizable companies such as Coca Cola Company, Garmin, Sprint, Eli Lily, and H&R Block, among others.
Kimberly earned her B.A. in Public Policy Studies from Duke University, and earned both an MBA and a Master of Management in Hospitality from Cornell University. She is currently completing her dissertation to earn a Doctorate of Educational Leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2024. Kimberly believes in the phrase, “to whom much is given, much is required” and is dedicated to service, mentorship, and creating connections that improve communities.
The Power of Rest & Recovery in Achieving Balance
Dr. Sarah Calveric began her career in Hanover County PS’s as a special education teacher and then transitioned into principalship at the elementary school level. In 2013 she was named Director of Human Resources for Spotsylvania County Public Schools. She joined Caroline County PS’s in 2016 as the Assistant Superintendent of Instruction and was named the Superintendent in 2018 of the school district. Dr. Calveric has operationalized the school division’s core values, mission, and vision. Her commitment to shared leadership has resulted in the measurable advancement of teaching and learning, school and community relations, health and safety, and organizational effectiveness. She was recognized in April of this year as region 3 Superintendent of the Year by the Virginia Association of School Superintendents.
Meet the Financial Management & Wealth Building Panel:
Jessica Marschall is a practicing CPA with 25 years of experience and the President of MAS LLC, a tax advisory practice, The Green Mission Inc, a deconstruction appraisal firm, and Probity Appraisal Group, a personal property appraisal firm. She is dedicated to integrating environmentally sustainable decisions with financial prudence in her roles as a fractional CFO, tax advisor, personal property appraiser, and business management advisor. Jessica has served on the Board of Stafford Education Foundation for four years and the Rethos Board of Directors for two years, recently joined the Board of Revolvs Salvage Inc., and began a term on the Finance Committee for the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce. A mother of five, she is also actively involved in environmental and educational community initiatives.
Lisa Cox joined C&F Bank in August 2022 as Branch Manager. A Florida native, she grew up in Indiana and attended Indiana State University (Go Sycamores!). With over 20 years of experience in the banking industry, she has a passion for helping her customers reach their financial goals and strives to make a difference for each customer she serves. In her free time, she loves exploring the Fredericksburg region and spending time with her children and grandchildren.
Driven by a passion for promoting financial well-being, Brittany specializes in crafting comprehensive financial plans tailored to each client’s individual goals and unique circumstances. She joined Cary Street Partners in 2018 as a Client Service Associate and advanced to the role of Financial Advisor in 2020. In 2021, Brittany earned the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® designation, underscoring her commitment to professional excellence. Brittany holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a minor in Economics from the University of Mary Washington. She remains actively engaged with her alma mater, serving on the University of Mary Washington’s Women’s Leadership Colloquium Advisory Board, educating students on personal finance as an adjunct professor, and contributing as a member of the Young Professionals Committee for the UMW College of Business Advisory Board. Dedicated to her community, Brittany currently serves as president of the Rappahannock Rotary Satellite Club and as public relations chair for the Financial Planning Association of Central Virginia. She is also a proud graduate of the 2024 Leadership Fredericksburg program. Outside of her professional and community commitments, Brittany enjoys playing tennis, spending as much time outdoors as possible—preferably near the water—and making memories with her husband, Theo, and their golden retriever, Bubbles.