to get some career tips from four very successful Iranian-American women—an engineer, a journalist, a banker and an actress.
The conference was held in Costa Mesa in Orange County, near the center of gravity of the Iranian-American population.
It was the second such conference organized this year by Mariam Khosravani, who has long dreamed of organizing and motivating Iranian-American women to greater accomplishments.
The speakers she brought together were:
• Soheila Karimi Motamed, an engineer who survived an accident that left a bullet lodged in her brain.
• Parisa Khosravi, the senior vice president of international news gathering for CNN Worldwide.
• Nadereh Chamlou, the World Bank senior advisor to the chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa region.
• Shohreh Aghdashloo, an Academy Award nominee and Emmy-winning actress.
The conference, presented by the Coastline Community College, showcased the successes, strengths and bravery of Iranian-American women who overcame obstacles and stereotypes, and inspired many in their communities shortly after moving to the United States.
Khosravani told the Huntington Beach Independent, “This room is filled with so many strong, educated, motivated and amazingly accomplished Iranian-American women who work hard every day and give back to their community that has given them so much.”
The conference offered sessions on leadership, career options and on how to lead like a woman. Attendees also learned about women and philanthropy, the different life paths the women took and the common trait behind them all: overcoming obstacles.
While busy with their careers and lives, there’s one thing they haven’t forgotten: the women in their country, Aghdashloo told the newspaper. Women in Iran are also brave and inspiring, but they have to pay for it with prison sentences, humiliation and sometimes their life, Aghdashloo said.
Community colleges are in the business of educating people, Khosravani said, and the conference, like others held to showcase other groups’ successes, is another way of educating and inspiring the community.
Shahla Sarokhani, 67, was bursting with pride to see accomplished women from her birthplace. “I’m very proud,” she said. “And it’s not just about my people. When I see someone achieve that success with all those difficulties around the world, it really inspires me and it gives me hope that the world is changing in a better way.”
