Empowering and Inspiring Kentucky Women to Public Service ON THE COVER Left to Right Lucy Stone Pioneer in the movement Justice Lisabeth for women’s rights Abramson Katherine Gudger Kentucky Supreme Langley Court Justice Kentucky’s first female Mira Ball United States Congress- First female chair of the woman University of Kentucky Josephine Henry Board of Trustees First woman in Kentucky and the South to hold a Justice Mary Noble statewide office Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Mary Elliot Flannery Kentucky’s first female legislator Emma Guy Cromwell first woman in Kentucky to hold a statewide office Amelia Tucker First African American female elected to the state House of Representatives Thelma Stovall Kentucky’s first female Lieutenant Governor Martha Layne Collins Kentucky’s first female Governor Sara Combs First female member of the Kentucky Supreme Court O PENING DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY 1 O PENING DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY Table of Contents Spotlight on Crit Luallen, Kentucky State Auditor 3-4 Supreme Court 29 Court of Appeals 29 Government Service 5-6 Circuit Court 29-30 Political Involvement Statistics 5 District Court 30-31 Voting Statistics 6 Circuit Clerks 31-33 Commonwealth Attorneys 33-34 Spotlight on Katie Stine, County Attorneys 34 Kentucky State Representative 7-8 County Clerks 34-36 Community Service 9-11 County Commissioners and Magistrates 36 Guidelines to Getting Involved 9 County Jailers 36 Overview of Leadership Kentucky 10 County Judge Executives 36-37 Starting a Business 11 County PVAs 37-38 County Sheriffs 38 Spotlight on Martha Layne Collins, School Board Members 38-45 Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky 12-13 Mayors 45-47 Kentucky Women in the Armed Forces 14-19 Councilmembers and Commissioners 47-61 Spotlight on Mary C. Noble, Nonelected Positions Justice, Kentucky Supreme Court 20-21 Gubernatorial Appointees to Boards and Organizations 22-28 Commissions since 12/03 61-83 College Presidents 83 Directory of Female Officials 29-61 Leadership Kentucky 83-91 Elected Positions State Constitutional Officers 29 State Senators 29 State Representatives 29 Acknowledgments In particular, we are thankful for the guidance from Mrs. was realized. Thank you to Sarah Billiter, Anna Bland, Glenda Woods, the Kentucky Commission on Women, Samantha Carroll, James Conner, Allen Eskridge, Sylvia Lovely and the Kentucky League of Cities. Angela Evans, Les Fugate, Hugh Derek Hall, Nathan Parsons, Thomas Roberts, Travis Shrout, Kyle For providing a new dimension to the project, which Slagley, Drew Trimble, Lillian Troop and especially, highlights the remarkable contributions military women Kristin Bradley, the project coordinator, for an have provided to our Commonwealth, we are indebted outstanding job. You should all be very proud of the to Pam Luce, Women Veterans Coordinator of the impact this guide will have on future generations of Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs and John Kentucky women. Trowbridge of the Kentucky Historical Society. Finally, we would like to thank all of the women listed We are also grateful to former Secretary of State Bob in this book who have given of themselves to affect Babbage and his staff for beginning this journey. We the cities, counties, and state in which we live. It is hope that future Secretaries will follow the important because of their dedication and hard work that path that he laid. opportunities for women are increasing throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky. A special thanks to the Office of the Secretary of State staff who worked so diligently to ensure this project 2 O PENING DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY Crit Luallen You have had a long and that I was not ready, I would successful career in say absolutely I can do that. public service. Where did I think that woman cannot be your career begin, and how timid about opportunities they were you able to reach the receive. There were times position that you are in when opportunities were today? presented to me that, frankly, That whole first year out of I wasn’t sure that I was ready college for me, I was involved for, but I decided that I just Spotlight on in the U.S. Senate race and had to charge ahead and governors race. I was at the work as hard as I could work Crit Luallen very bottom. I was literally in Born: July 21 to learn and grow every time the mail room. I thought it was Hometown: Frankfort, KY an opportunity came about. • College: Centre College, B.A. a big deal when they gave me So every time I’ve had the Party Affiliation: Democrat Kentucky the keys to the station wagon Term: 2004-present opportunity, I’ve walked to go to the post office because Spouse: Lynn through the door. State Auditor I was really at the bottom of the ladder. But I became fascinated by the process How has the arena for women in public and began to understand that in public service you service changed over the years and what really can make a difference in people’s lives and needs to happen in the future to promote that sounds like a cliché but it’s true. I made a continued progress? decision early on that I would take every opportunity, My mother’s generation would have never dreamed and walk though every door that opened. I made that a woman could be on the Supreme Court. This the decision that I would never be limited in anyway generation will be the first generation that sees no because I was a woman and that I would push as barriers in what you can do because the trails that hard as I could. If a door opened and someone have been blazed by other women. Yet, in Kentucky, asked me if I was prepared to take on a challenge, we still have so far still to go. I talk a lot around the even if I wasn’t, and deep inside I was concerned state to young women and even if I’m in groups continued Timeline of Women’s Progress 1838 1853 1867 1870 KY is the first state to permit Lucy Stone, a The first women’s suffrage Ada Kepley graduates from women’s suffrage of any kind national pioneer for association in KY is briefly Union College of Law in Chicago, giving property-owning widows and women’s rights, established in Hardin County. becoming the first female single women the right to vote. delivers three graduate from an accredited law suffrage speeches school. at the Masonic Hall 3 in Louisville. O PENING DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY where there are young men and young women, I presidential year. Those are the women who we always single out a message to the young women: have to reach out to and convince that their voice we don’t have enough young women choosing does make a difference. Somehow many women careers in the public arena to change those in Kentucky think their voice doesn’t matter. I know numbers. We’ve got to get more young women that Secretary Grayson is very committed to civic thinking that even if they don’t run for office, they engagement and improving civic engagement and have to become more engaged in the public process. we have got to continue that initiative to get more Kentucky has so many important challenges, women to understand that their voice does matter difficult challenges, which will take ALL of our and makes a difference. people to solve. That’s not partisan. We need young republican women and young democratic women and young independent women getting engaged. And the first step Spotlight on is getting engaged in the process of voting. More than half of our registered voters Crit Luallen are women. If they were all engaged in the process could determine the future • of the commonwealth, but only about Kentucky half of them are voting in a State Auditor “Male dominated leadership assumes In 1921, a journalist named Mary Elliott women legislators Flanery became the first woman elected to will take care of the Kentucky’s state legislature. women and children issues only. It is a tremendous mistake to paint ourselves into a corner and I refuse to do so.” – Kentucky Representative Susan Westrom 1871 18721876 1879 Frances Elizabeth Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a leader Sara Spencer becomes the first Susan B. Anthony speaks in Richmond, Willard becomes the in the women’s rights movement, woman to address a U.S. inspiring the state’s first permanent first female college visits Louisville, KY. presidential convention. women’s rights association, the Madison President (Evanston County Equal Rights Association. College). Victoria Claflin Woodhull 4 becomes the first female presidential candidate. O PENING DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY Political Leadership Women in State Legislatures Women comprise 16% of the U.S. Congress, Currently there are 12 female State holding 16 Senate seats and 70 seats in the House Representatives and 5 female State Senators, of Representatives (16.1%). The Nordic nations comprising about 12% of the Kentucky General have the highest with over 40% of its Assembly. The National Average is 23.5%. representation coming from women. (Source: The number of women serving in the state The White House Project) legislatures in the United States has increased fivefold since 1971. Three of the most populated states (California, New York, and Texas) are currently represented Kentucky ranks 49th in the nation for number of by a female Senator. (The White House Project) women holding elected offices. Out of over 180 directly electing countries, the Women Position Stats United States ranks only 68th in terms of women’s representation in national legislatures or KENTUCKY Number of Number Percent Women Total Occupied by Position parliaments.