Celebrating Women鈥檚 Impact Symposium
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
Yorba Linda, CA
The Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum and the Richard Nixon Foundation will host Celebrating Women鈥檚 Impact, a symposium of historians, authors, and Nixon Administration officials, on Friday, March 15, 2024, from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm. This unique gathering will explore post-war 20th-century advancements in the role of women in government. The symposium is a part of the respective Women鈥檚 History Month programming of the 威尼斯人娱乐场 and Records Administration and the Richard Nixon Foundation. It will be live-streamed for a national audience in conjunction with First Lady Pat Nixon鈥檚 112th birthday celebrations.
The day will include four panels covering the following subjects:
- Telling Women鈥檚 History through Historical Records
- Nixon Administration Programs, Initiatives, and Legislation
- Recruiting and Appointing Women in Presidential Administrations
- The Impact of Pat Nixon and other First Ladies and First Families
鈥淲hile so much has changed since the Nixon Administration,鈥 said Nixon Library Director Tamara Martin, 鈥渢here remains valuable lessons to be learned from the significant influence the Administration and the First Lady had on women in government and business today."
"The Nixon Administration embarked on groundbreaking efforts to expand the role of women in senior positions in the federal government, leaving a profound legacy that opened up opportunities in the American workplace," said Jim Byron, President and CEO of the Richard Nixon Foundation. "During this time, Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment and President Nixon signed Title IX into law. These milestones offer invaluable lessons from which we can learn today."
Confirmed participants include:
- Carl Sferraza Anthony, historian of First Ladies and author of Camera Girl: The Coming of Age of Jackie Bouvier Kennedy
- Robert Bostock, Curator, Pat Nixon Centennial Exhibit
- P. Dee Boersma, Member, U.S. Presidential Task Force of Women's Rights and Responsibilities, 1969
- Mary Brennan, author of Pat Nixon: Embattled First Lady
- Barbara Franklin, 29th U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Director Emerita of the Richard Nixon Foundation
- Sarah Fling, Historian, The White House Historical Association
- Dr. Linda Hobgood, Director of The Speech Center at the University of Richmond in Virginia and Staff Assistant in the Office of First Lady Pat Nixon
- Dr. Dean Kotlowski, author of Nixon鈥檚 Civil Rights: Politics, Principle, and Policy
- Heath Hardage Lee, author of the forthcoming The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington鈥檚 Most Private First Lady (St. Martin鈥檚 Press, 2024)
- Anita McBride, Director of the First Ladies Initiative at American University, School of Public Affairs and former Chief of Staff to First Lady Laura Bush
- Maureen Nunn, Member of the Board of Directors of the Richard Nixon Foundation
This event is free and open to the public and will be held in the East Room, but space will be limited.

All events listed in the calendar are free unless noted.