Executive Women of New Jersey to Honor Women Leaders at Annual Policymakers Gala

As women leaders from across New Jersey took the stage at The Legacy Castle on Oct. 21, the applause recognized more than their professional titles. Their accomplishments represented years of navigating challenges, making decisions and creating opportunities in fields where women continue to seek greater representation.

The Executive Women of New Jersey (EWNJ), a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing women in leadership, honored 48 women from business, government, education, health care, law, finance, nonprofit organizations and the arts during its 2026 Salute to the Policy Makers Gala.

The biennial celebration drew nearly 500 guests to the elaborate venue, where a grand staircase, chandeliers and multiple reception rooms provided a backdrop for networking, photographs, dinner and recognition of the honorees.

Beyond the awards, the evening highlighted an ongoing challenge: how women who have reached influential positions can use their experience and authority to help others advance.

That message came from keynote speaker Mikki Taylor, a published author, cultural storyteller and editor-at-large of Essence magazine, who encouraged women to measure their influence not only by the positions they hold but by the changes they make possible.

“A woman holding a position of power matters, don’t get me wrong. But what changes because she holds that position matters just as much,” Taylor told the audience.

Celebrating Women Across New Jersey

Founded in 1980, EWNJ works to increase women’s representation on corporate boards and in senior executive positions throughout the state.

Its Salute to the Policy Makers Gala recognizes accomplished women from the public and private sectors while raising funds for the organization’s advocacy, networking, leadership development and mentoring initiatives, including its Graduate Merit Award Program, which provides tuition assistance to women returning to graduate school, changing careers or pursuing higher education through nontraditional paths.

The 2026 honorees represented a range of professional backgrounds and communities.

Among them were Newark’s First Lady Linda J. Baraka, Newark Arts Council representative Regina F. Barboza, Newark Board of Education General Counsel Brenda C. Liss and Children’s Aid and Family Services President and CEO Shavonda E. Sumter.

Other honorees included Middlesex Water Co. Chair, President and CEO Nadine Leslie, New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants CEO and Executive Director Aiysha “AJ” Johnson, New Jersey Resources Senior Vice President of Human Resources Lori DelGiudice and Two River Theater Managing Director Nora DeVeau-Rosen.

A complete list of the honorees and their professional backgrounds is available in EWNJ’s 2026 digital gala program.

EWNJ President Susan K. Dromsky-Reed, a member and co-chair of the Trusts & Estates Practice at Brach Eichler, a law firm, described EWNJ’s work as extending beyond professional networking to include advocacy, leadership development and support for women balancing career and personal responsibilities.

Dromsky-Reed also reflected on the history of women’s advancement, connecting the organization’s mission to the nation’s approaching 250th anniversary and the generations of trailblazing women who have challenged barriers to opportunity throughout it.

“There is no greater testament to America’s forward movement than tonight’s honorees, a diverse group of women who earned their seat at the table, built their own tables, and created more seats at the table for both women and men,” Dromsky-Reed said.

EWNJ President-Elect Onome N. Adejemilua, a partner at McCarter & English, a law firm, and chair of the 2026 gala committee, emphasized the importance of women’s participation in organizational decision-making.

“Inclusion and equal access to opportunity are at the heart of EWNJ’s work,” Adejemilua said. “They matter because women’s leadership moves organizations and communities forward.”

The organization also tracks women’s advancement through its biennial A Seat at the Table reports, which examine representation on corporate boards and in senior leadership at publicly traded NJ companies.

According to EWNJ’s 2025 A Seat at the Table report, women held 29% of board seats at NJ public companies, unchanged from 2023. Among Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the state, women held 35% of board seats, down two percentage points from 37% in 2023.

The report also found that women accounted for 22% of top earners at NJ public companies, an increase of two percentage points from 2023.

The findings illustrate the uneven progress women continue to face in reaching the highest levels of corporate leadership.

From Newark to a National Platform

For keynote speaker Mikki Taylor, the evening’s message carried a personal connection to Newark, where she grew up and first learned the importance of affirming Black women’s identities.

Taylor recalled how her mother worked as a hairstylist, makeup artist and wardrobe stylist for the late jazz singer Sarah Vaughan before opening a beauty salon in Newark.

The salon became more than a place for beauty services. Taylor remembered women gathering there for encouragement, advice and conversations about their families and everyday challenges.

“That’s where I saw Black women coming in and not only getting a hairstyle, if you will, but getting therapy, getting affirmation, getting empowerment tips,” Taylor said.

Those experiences helped shape her understanding of beauty as something connected to confidence, representation and how women see themselves.

Taylor later spent more than three decades at Essence, where she served as beauty and cover director before becoming editor-at-large. Her work contributed to more than 400 magazine covers and helped broaden how Black women were represented in media, fashion and advertising.

She said the beauty industry has made progress but should continue developing products and advertising that reflect women of different skin tones, body types and hair textures.

“I want to see us, our beauty, represented in its authenticity,” Taylor said.

She also encouraged companies to engage Black women through meaningful conversations rather than treating them solely as consumers.

During her keynote, Taylor outlined seven principles of consequential leadership, encouraging attendees to question established practices, challenge institutional barriers, mobilize collective influence and take responsibility for future generations.

Her remarks emphasized the difference between holding a leadership position and using that position to change the systems that determine who receives opportunities.

“It’s important for us to not only pass through these doors, but to swing them wide open for others,” she said.

Creating Opportunities Closer to Home

For Newark First Lady Linda J. Baraka, one of the evening’s honorees, leadership also means helping women access resources and professional connections within their own communities.

Baraka was recognized onstage during the awards presentation, accompanied by Newark Council Member-at-Large Louise Scott-Rountree.

Baraka discussed Newark Women Moving Forward, a financial empowerment initiative she launched in partnership with the DFREE Financial Freedom Movement to help Newark women reduce debt, build savings and strengthen their financial independence. The initiative grew out of the city’s monthly Newark Women’s Meeting, which connects women with developers, designers, entrepreneurs, small business owners and health care executives to discuss local concerns and explore personal and professional opportunities.

Baraka emphasized the importance of seeing women from Newark succeed in different professions and leadership positions.

“It’s important for women to see more people like themselves wherever they are,” she said.

She pointed to Taylor’s career as an example of how someone raised in Newark can build a national platform while remaining connected to the community.

“If there’s something that you want in your community and you don’t see it, it’s up to you to bring it,” she said.

Her comments connected the gala’s broader discussion of leadership to efforts underway in Newark to strengthen professional networks and community participation.

Investing in the Next Generation

While the gala recognized established professionals, EWNJ also highlighted the impact of its Graduate Merit Award Program.

Since its founding, EWNJ has awarded more than $1.4 million in scholarships to nearly 350 women, according to the organization.

Among the recipients is Talin Medzadourian Araian, a doctoral candidate in counseling psychology at Felician University, a private university in NJ. Araian received EWNJ scholarship recognition in 2024 and again in 2025. She spoke at the gala about pursuing a new career after two decades in the workforce.

Araian previously worked in pharmaceutical sales and hospital-based roles before deciding to pursue a new professional direction.

She described the challenges of returning to school later in life while balancing personal responsibilities, financial considerations and the demands of graduate education.

“Receiving the EWNJ President’s Award Scholarship has meant so much more to me than financial assistance,” Araian said. “It’s been a reminder that our experiences, our sacrifices, and our perseverance have value.”

Araian expects to complete her doctorate in 2027 and plans to continue working in mental health care, with an emphasis on trauma-informed and culturally responsive treatment.

Her research examines intimate partner violence, coercive control and post-separation abuse, including the financial, legal and emotional challenges that survivors may experience after leaving relationships.

She hopes her work will help professionals better understand these experiences and improve support for women navigating difficult transitions.

With her mother and daughter present at the gala, Araian also reflected on the importance of women supporting one another across generations.

“Supporting other women adds to who we are, and to me, there is nothing more beautiful than women who use the strength they have gained from their own struggles to help pave the way for another,” she said.

Her experience illustrated how financial assistance and professional encouragement can help women pursue new opportunities at different stages of life.

As the evening concluded, the recognition of 48 accomplished women was also a reminder that progress in leadership depends on the opportunities made available to those who follow.

Taylor closed her keynote with a challenge to the honorees and other attendees to consider the lasting impact of their decisions.

“Know that the future is being written on your watch,” she told the audience. “Make certain your leadership makes the next chapter extraordinary.”