The Board of Directors of ATHENA Orlando Women’s Leadership, Inc. is pleased to announce Kristen Skinner has been selected as the recipient of the 2023 ATHENA Orlando Emerging Leader Award. Skinner received the award at the Orlando Business Journal Women Who Mean Business awards luncheon on March 30, 2023.
“We’re thrilled to partner with the Orlando Business Journal and the Women Who Mean Business awards to recognize this year’s outstanding ATHENA NextGen alumna, Kristen Skinner. This partnership demonstrates that OBJ and ATHENA Orlando are closely aligned in our mission to support, honor, and empower women leaders,” said Karen Keene, ATHENA Founder and Chief Strategic Advisor.
The 2023 ATHENA Orlando Emerging Leader Award honors an alumna who exemplifies a leadership style closely aligned with the guiding principles that lie at the heart of ATHENA’s Leadership Model. Recipients of this award embrace and encourage others, give back to their community, and lift up others around them.
Skinner participated in the NextGen program in 2017 and has been actively involved in ATHENA’s Recruitment and Alumnae committees and events over the past six years. As a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and a Financial Advisor, Associate Vice President with Ameriprise Financial Services, she prides herself on education and making service her differentiator within a complex industry. A Florida native, Skinner was born and raised in Tampa before moving to Orlando to attend the University of Central Florida. She worked within the Central Florida hospitality industry in various leadership roles, including working with The Ritz-Carlton and Lowes Hotels, before transitioning to the financial services industry in 2015.
Skinner currently serves as the Board President for Family Promise of Greater Orlando, a nonprofit organization focused on helping homeless families achieve sustainable housing and self-sufficiency as quickly as possible. Her drive to give back, advocate for those without a voice, and constantly learn and grow separates her from the rest.
Keene noted: “Kristen is an exemplary young leader in her profession and the community. She credits her participation in the NextGen program for helping to advance in her career. She joined a new firm while also going back to school to become a specialist in her field. Last year, she earned her certification as a financial planner. In addition, she broadened her leadership journey by volunteering for ATHENA committees and giving back through community service.”
Founded in 2012, ATHENA Orlando Women’s Leadership, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) that provides dynamic programing around the ATHENA Leadership Model® and ATHENA’s Eight Leadership Principles: Live Authentically, Learn Constantly, Advocate Fiercely, Act Courageously, Foster Collaboration, Build Relationships, Give Back, and Celebrate.
One of its core programs is the ATHENA NextGen Thought Leadership Series, the only leadership program of its kind empowering women to level up. Nearly 400 women have graduated from the program and they’re rising to the top of Orlando’s business organizations. Through a masterclass series of eight monthly sessions, participants collaborate and connect with their peers in a variety of industries. It’s changing the course for how women lead.
For questions about ATHENA Orlando Women’s Leadership, Inc., please visit athenaleadershiporlando.org.
ABOUT ATHENA INTERNATIONAL
ATHENA International is a catalyst for developing diverse, transformative leaders who create a balance in leadership voices worldwide. We ignite, amplify, and celebrate girls, women and allies through experiential programs that empower them to discover and activate the authentic leader within. The established ATHENA Leadership Model is at the heart of everything we do and is driven by the Eight Principles of Enlightened Leadership: Live Authentically, Learn Constantly, Build Relationships, Foster Collaboration, Act Courageously, Advocate Fiercely, Give Back and Celebrate. Our gold-standard ATHENA Leadership Programs give individuals and organizations the tools and knowledge needed to sustain and grow a global community of allied leaders. We support women entrepreneurs in reaching new levels of success through ATHENAPowerLink®, an innovative mentorship program that connects selected women entrepreneurs with an advisory board tailored to fit their needs and grow their businesses. For more than 40 years, we have recognized outstanding women and pioneering leaders with global, national and community ATHENA Leadership Awards. With nearly 8,000 recipients we celebrate the changemakers and trailblazers who open doors of leadership and opportunity for women in communities across the globe.