On Tuesday, March 19, 2024 - HUD Great Plains Regional Administrator Ulysses Clayborn welcomed over 300 people from across the region to a hybrid event celebrating the personal stories of women that have achieved high levels of success despite the many barriers they have faced over the years. The program was organized by the regional Women’s History Month committee, led by chairperson, Dr. Annalise Fonza of the Office of Affordable Housing Programs within Community Planning and Development (outstationed). The program provided HUD and external stakeholders the opportunity to hear from four women who shared stories about their roles in advocating for equity, diversity and inclusion in today’s modern workplace. The panel included:

• Kitty A. Amaya, Nebraska Field Office Director, HUD Great Plains Region
• Melissa Robinson, 3rd District Councilwoman, City of Kansas City, Missouri
• Kymberly Daniels, former manager of MBE/WBE certification, City of Kansas City, Missouri
• Jennifer Tidwell, former HUD Great Plains Regional Administrator and current Principal Impact Strategist, Health Forward Foundation

The panel was moderated by Alberta Walker, Financial Analyst with the Financial Management Center in Kansas City, who led the panelists through a set of questions exploring how each started in their respective careers and what sacrifices and proudest moments they experienced along the way to their present-day success. While all shared vivid and incredibly memorable stories, one of the more poignant points was made by HUD’s Amaya. In reflecting upon her many years of experience in both the Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) office and currently, leading a state for the Office of Field Policy and Management (FPM), Amaya shared that while she was certainly most proud of becoming a director within FPM, that it wasn’t her pride that she felt emotionally connected to but the personal accountability she felt in this new role to make sure that other women could see her success and feel emboldened to do the same.

Amaya acknowledged that as a woman, being modest about the source of her success, might risk leaving other women to believe that her achievements were the result of luck and not the result of hard work and excellence. The legacy and responsibility of women who have successfully maneuvered today’s still unequal workplace, is a legacy of hope, girded by the truth that with hard work, vigilance and most importantly helping one another, all things are possible.

Asked about the day’s event and the month-long celebration of women overall, Regional Administrator Clayborn stated, “I am glad that we have such committed staff volunteers willing to develop these virtual and in-person events that provoke a better understanding of the struggles and triumphs women have faced and continue to face daily. I would like to publicly thank Dr. Fonza and her team for their hard work and determination this month and truly reflecting the spirit of Women’s History Month.”

In addition to Dr. Fonza, the Great Plains Women’s History Month committee consisted of Cindy Sullivan (Office of Multifamily Housing), Natalie Simms-Patton (Office of Community Planning and Development) and Alberta Walker (Financial Management Center).

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