{"id":51161,"date":"2017-02-05T00:10:36","date_gmt":"2017-02-05T06:10:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=51161"},"modified":"2017-02-07T18:37:59","modified_gmt":"2017-02-08T00:37:59","slug":"houston-teacher-leaves-nfl-womens-summit-empowered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/houston-teacher-leaves-nfl-womens-summit-empowered\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston teacher leaves NFL Women’s Summit empowered"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Sye Bennefield<\/strong>
\nReporting from Houston<\/em><\/p>\n

One after another they stepped on stage at the NFL Women’s Summit\u00a0fully expecting to change\u00a0lives.<\/p>\n

United States Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee infused ideas of empowerment, character, and camaraderie.<\/p>\n

Disability Inclusion Leader Haben Girma spoke of the daily difficulties she faces by being both blind and deaf, but quickly reminded the audience of how she prevails\u00a0and lives her life how she sees fit.<\/p>\n

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner reminded the few men in attendance to continue to demonstrate their appreciation, respect and support for women in various fields and levels. His daughter Ashley, 30, returned the favor by talking about the role of a father and how they can breathe both encouragement and confidence in their daughters.<\/p>\n

Houston Texans Defensive End Devon Still and his daughter Leah arguably stole the show. Together, they spoke of the importance of being grateful for good health, family and most importantly, Barbies.<\/p>\n

“One time we were playing Barbies and my dad had a crazy voice,” said Leah.<\/p>\n

As the audience erupted in laughter at the thought of the 6’5″, 305-pound Devon playing Barbies, Leah quickly added, “It was kind of like a girl voice, but it was kind of not good.”<\/p>\n

Their message deeply resonated with the audience, especially Houston native Andrea Hudson, a teacher at North Forest High School.
\n<\/p>\n

\"Super<\/a><\/div>\n

It is remarkable to see that just a little while ago she was fighting for her life and now she\u2019s just in here sharing her story,\u201d said Hudson.With the help of Congresswoman Jackson Lee and North Forest Principal Richard Fernandez, Hudson and three girls had the opportunity to listen and benefit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just felt empowered by her willingness to do it. I don\u2019t even think she really realizes what she\u2019s doing for people everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t by chance that these six individuals and various other guest speakers, coaches, professional athletes and entertainers were on hand in the same location.<\/p>\n

For the second year in a row, the NFL hosted the NFL Women\u2019s Summit, an interactive event for both teen girls and adults alike to draw inspiration and learn from others.<\/p>\n

250 Houston-area teen girls and their chaperones were in attendance during the two-day event on Feb. 3 and 4.<\/p>\n

Hudson took this opportunity to further her bond with her students, personally instructing them on the benefit of a mentor.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me as a teacher I sat here with my girls and while we were doing the break I just kind of talked to them about mentorship,\u201d said Hudson.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ask them, do you have mentor? Is there anybody in your life that you can go to and talk to about anything, they don\u2019t judge you, [or] you can trust them with your most treasured secrets or deepest fears?\u201d<\/p>\n

The majority of her students answered yes,\u00a0but one girl answered no. This brought Hudson to share her own personal story about mentorship with the girls.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just shared that I do have mentor,\u201d said Hudson. \u201cNow that I think about it, there are people in my life that are like that. So, I just kind of encourage them to find a mentor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many of the teenage girls, along with the adults\u00a0who accompanied them, said The NFL Women\u2019s Summit left them with a sense of empowerment and belief in themselves. This included Hudson.<\/p>\n

The only thing Hudson said she’d regrets about the two-day event was not bringing her own daughter, she now sees the benefit it could have brought her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really wish my daughter could have been here,\u201d said Hudson.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe just recently graduated from college and when you take that big step and you\u2019re getting ready to jump into the world and do whatever it is you\u2019re going to do you just need somebody pushing you upward.”<\/p>\n

Photo at top: Women’s Summit participants celebrate as they receive free T-shirts. (Sye Bennefield\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sye Bennefield Reporting from Houston One after another they stepped on stage at the NFL Women’s Summit\u00a0fully expecting to change\u00a0lives. United States Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee infused ideas of empowerment, character, and camaraderie. Disability Inclusion Leader Haben Girma spoke of the daily difficulties she faces by being both blind and deaf, but quickly reminded […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":382,"featured_media":51165,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,3673,3516],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51161","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","category-superbowlli","category-winter-2017"],"yoast_head":"\nHouston teacher leaves NFL Women's Summit empowered - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/houston-teacher-leaves-nfl-womens-summit-empowered\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Houston teacher leaves NFL Women's Summit empowered - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Sye Bennefield Reporting from Houston One after another they stepped on stage at the NFL Women’s Summit\u00a0fully expecting to change\u00a0lives. 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