PENN MUTUAL SETS ITS SIGHTS ON
GENDER EQUALITY WITH VISION 2020

Ratified in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteed women the right to vote, but as we look forward to the centennial anniversary of this breakthrough, there is still work to be done. Launched in 2010 by Drexel University College of Medicine’s Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership, Vision 2020 aims to advance gender equality by energizing the dialogue about women and leadership and engaging a new generation of women to address gender issues. The decade-long effort is set to culminate with the celebration of 100 years of women’s suffrage.

As the presenting sponsor of this initiative, The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company is a recognized advocate for the financial security of women, which is a foundation for equality. Penn Mutual’s commitment to the principles of Vision 2020 are evidenced in the company’s WORTH initiative for women. WORTH helps to educate women on the significant value of their contributions to home and family, and encourages them to take charge of their financial futures.

"Through our WORTH initiative, Penn Mutual’s advocacy for the financial future of women—a foundation of equality—is very strong. This is why we are especially proud to be the presenting sponsor of Vision 2020 and applaud the work the organization has set in motion today to advance the goals of women," says Eileen McDonnell, president and soon-to-be CEO of Penn Mutual. "We are excited and energized as Vision 2020 completes what the suffragists began nine decades ago to enable future generations of women to realize their dreams and build a stronger future for everyone."

The Vision 2020 Conversation, held October 21—22, 2010, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, included two delegates from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The group engaged in interactive dialogue with nationally renowned experts to develop ways to inspire and engage new generations of women and men to finish the work of the suffragists, who pursued women’s right to vote as fundamental to social and economic justice. The centennial of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution will be celebrated in 2020.

The co-chairs of Vision 2020 are Lynn Yeakel, director of the Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership at the College of Medicine and former Mid-Atlantic regional director, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Rosemarie Greco, senior advisor, Health Care Reform, to the Governor of Pennsylvania, and chair of the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania.

"Securing the vote was not the primary goal of the suffragists," Ms. Yeakel says. "Rather, it was a means to an end. At the heart of what suffragists believed is that participation in democracy is essential to causing important social, economic, educational and political change—change emanating from inalienable rights of every person. Vision 2020 will take on the unfinished business of the suffragists with the goal of inspiring new generations of women to have a role in shaping what we value as a country by dramatically increasing women’s participation in leadership roles throughout society within the next decade."