YWCA Announces 2017 Women of Achievement Honorees

LeeAnn Byrne

Byrne is the Legislative Director at the office of General Treasurer Seth Magaziner. 

Prior to that, she was the policy director at the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless where. There she lead the Coalition's government relations and lobbying efforts. 

PHOTO: Linkedin

Alison Eichler

Eichler is the Co-President of Eichler Realty Company Inc. 

She also serves as secretary on the Board of Directors for FirstWorks and the President of the Board of Directors at Sophia Academy.

PHOTO: Linkedin

Anne Grant 

Grant is a writer for the Parenting Project and Union Theological Seminary. 

She previously served as Vice President of CommunityWorks RI. 

Deloris Davis Grant

Grant is an English and drama teacher at Central Falls High School and is the co-founder of the Upward Bound Alumni Scholarship Fund.

She graduated from Rhode Island College as part of the class of 1988. 

Marta Martinez

Martínez is the founder and project director of Rhode Island Latino Arts. 

She has taught elementary and middle school and has lectured at local libraries, schools and museums (including the Providence Children’s Museum and the RISD Museum). 

In 2015, she published a book entitled Rhode Island Latino History and is available for book talks or lectures on the book.
 

Pilar McCloud

McCloud helped leads the NAACP Providence Youth Council. 

In 2015, she was awarded the Providence NAACP Rosa Parks Award. She received the National Association of Secretaries of State Medalion Award given to recognize outstanding public service and civic engagement.

PHOTO: Lincoln School

Julie Nora

Nora is Director of the International Charter School (ICS) in Pawtucket.

Prior to leading ICS, she worked as a teacher of ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) in K-12 settings and as an applied researcher at the Education Alliance at Brown University. 

Elin Torrell

Torell is the director of International Coastal Programs, Evaluation, Livelihoods, and Gender at the University of Rhode Island Coastal Resource Center. 

She has over 15 years of experience providing technical assistance and leading complex and interdisciplinary projects in East Africa and South East Asia.

PHOTO: URI

 Vanessa Volz

Volz serves as the Executive Director of Sojourner House, which is a comprehensive domestic violence agency that serves Providence and northern Rhode Island.

She is also President of the Women's Health and Education Fund (WHEF). 

Henrietta Tonia White-Holder

White-Holder is the founder and CEO of Higher Ground International, which works to improve lives in the rural villages of West Africa and the West African community in Providence.

In 2015, White-Holder opened the Rukiya (the swahili word for “rising up/progress”) center on the south side of Providence. The Rukiya center was the first venue of its kind in Providence to offer intergenerational programs, women, and youth empowerment programs. 

PHOTO: Higher Ground International

Chanda Womack

Womack is the founder and executive director of the Alliance of Rhode Island Southeast Asians for Education. 

The organization's mission is to prepare, promote, and empower Rhode Island’s Southeast Asian students for educational and career success. 

She previously was a supervisor for the College Crusade of Rhode Island.