The 2023 Mentorship Program application period has closed.
At She Shares, we believe strongly in nurturing the next generation of women leaders. That is why She Shares is also a mentoring and networking opportunity for young women. She Shares highly values our mentorship program as a way to cultivate successful and meaningful professional experiences for the next generation.
This year long mentorship program pairs young women with professional Sacramento women at the top of their careers. Or, if you are not located in Sacramento, we do have virtual pairings, so you can be located anywhere.
Throughout the year, pairs meet at each She Shares event and arrange for additional in person networking opportunities like lunches, attending conferences together, or asking for help with reviewing your resume. In 2020, we started virtual workshops which has provided more opportunities for professional development workshops for our mentees and mentors. We have continued these virtual workshops even though our main events are back to being in person. Topics include Zoom etiquette, taking the next step in your career, how to negotiate your salary at a new job, and networking 101. It is not required to attend all of these events, but we ask that you do your best to attend as many as you can and are relevant to you!
Mentees and mentors can arrange their meet ups as they are comfortable with. Most will do Zoom or coffee meetings to get to know each other and go from there.
Read testimonials from previous mentees and mentors here!
Applications are avaliable in December of each year for the following year. Contact Tamara at tt@tamaratorlakson.com.
Mentorship Program FAQs
What are the qualifications for a mentor?
Mentors are women that are further along in their career, approximately 7+ years of experience, although it does not have to be at the same job that whole time. They should be able to offer
mentorship and advice to women just starting out in their career and be able to meet virtually or in person at least five times during the year with their pair.
What are the qualifications for a mentee?
Mentees are women that are newer in their career, usually just starting out, approximately in the first 5 or so years of their career. Although if there has been a major career change or a delay in
starting the work force due to life circumstances, we still welcome you to apply and explain that! We ask that our mentees be graduated from college – but they can be enrolled in law school, business
school or similar programs.
Is there an age requirement?
There is no age requirement, but usually our mentees end up being in their 20’s and our mentors are in their 30’s on up to their 60’s. If you had a late start to your career and worry you are “too
old” for the program, reach out anyways and we can see if you are a good fit!
Is there a fee to participate?
No, the program is completely free to participants! In fact, when we get back to having our in person events, all mentors and mentees will be able to attend complimentary as part of our program.
Tickets to our event usually sell for $65 per person.
How does the matching process work?
We will typically match you with someone in a similar career field – or in the career field you are interested in that you described on your resume. For example, we once paired a law school student
with a local Judge! If there is a particular type of career that you would like to be paired with, please let us know on the application. For example, if you are currently working for a legislator,
but you would really like to become a lobbyist, we can try to pair you with a lobbyist.
Do you have to be located in Sacramento in order to participate?
You do not! The only disadvantage to not being in Sacramento is it would be harder to attend in-person events, but you would still be welcome! We host practical workshops on Zoom throughout the year
as well.
How often do you have to engage with your mentor/mentee pair?
We encourage each pair to work out what works best for them, but we do suggest that you meet (whether that is virtually or in person) at least five times throughout the year. This can be Zoom
meetings, socially distant coffee/walks, meeting about your resume, making a connection for a job interview, practicing interview skills with each other, starting a book club and more! You will
really get out of it what you put into it!
How long is the program?
You will officially be in the program for the entire calendar year. But after the program, many of our pairs stay in touch and continue their relationship for years! You will also be on our mailing
list moving forward so you can join our events in the future. We always offer our alumna mentees a discount for our in person events too!
2022 Mentorship Workshops
Alicia Priego, Vice President, Strategies360; paired with Hla Elkhatib, Fellow, California State Senate
Angela Blanchard, Partner, Political Solutions; paired with Rachel Alderette, Program Manager, Capitol Impact
Andrea Flores, Anchor/ Reporter, KCRA News 3; paired with Fabiola Espinoza, Producer
Arielle Julie, Lead Technical Recruiter, Pinterest; paired with Yunuen Nava, Substitute Teacher, Oxnard School District
Ashley Conrad-Saydah, Founder and Principal, Sowing Change Strategies; paired with Eileen Situ, Admin Assistant, Soluri Meserve
Caitlin McShane, Principal, EMC Communications; paired with Sofia de Melo, Intern, Bicker, Castillo & Fairbanks (BCF) Public Affairs
Carla Saporta, Regional Director, State Government Affairs, CVS Health; paired with Jennifer Louisell, Director, Insurance Services, Motion Picture & Television Fund
Catherine Stadler Borg, State Public Affairs Advisor, Southern California Edison; paired with Quincy Stivers, Fellow, California State Senate
Christina Lokke, Policy Manager, Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG); paired with Kai Cooper, Fellow, California State Senate
Claire Conlon, Chief of Staff, Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris; paired with Kelsey McCauley, Senior Account Executive, Bicker, Castillo & Fairbanks (BCF) Public Affairs
Colleen Spitz, Executive Vice President, Bicker, Castillo & Fairbanks; paired with Paige Haskin, Senior Director, Miller Public Affairs Group
Connie Delgado, CEO, Delgado Government Affairs; paired with Stephanie Tapia Jimenez, Fellow, California State Senate
Connie Emerson, Principal, Sanders Emerson Consulting; paired with Hannah Penner, Sustainability Coordinator, AmeriCorps VISTA
Deanna Johnston, Associate Director, State Affairs, Organon; paired with Maria Morales, Legislative Aide, California State Assembly
Debbie Manning, Chief Sergeant at Arms (ret), California State Senate; paired with Priya Sah, Intern, Dewey Square Group
Donna Cullinan, California State Deputy Director, Council for a Strong America; paired with Maggie Kathleen White, Legislative Advocate, California State University, Chancellor's Office
Elizabeth Tunquist, Operations Director, Professional BusinessWomen of California (PBWC); paired with Linh Ngo, Program Manager, California Association of Nonprofits
Erin Baum, Chief of Staff, Assemblymember Mark Stone; paired with Rhiannon Ripley, Office Assistant, California State Senate
Heidi W. Steinecker, Sr. Manager Health and Human Services Consultant, Ernst & Young; paired with Taylor Beckwith, Tobacco Control Programs Manager, Smoke-free Sacramento Project Breathe California Sacramento Region
Jennifer Roe, Lobbyist, Capitol Advocacy; paired with Emily Jones, Associate, Dewey Square Group
Jennifer Troia, Chief Deputy Director, California Department of Social Services; paired with Dora Monterroza, Direct Services Regional Program Manager, American Red Cross
Jessica Ng, Principal, Abacus Public Affairs; paired with Monika Lee, Senior Communications Manager, California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
Jessica Pearson, Executive Officer, Delta Stewardship Council; paired with Madeline Grigsby, Executive Assistant/District Representative, Office of Sacramento City Councilman Eric Guerra
Karen Zamarripa, President, Karen Zamarripa Consulting; paired with Irma Castaneda, Policy Specialist, Success Center, Foundation for California Community Colleges
Karina Talamantes, Chief of Staff, Mayor Pro Tem Angelique Ashby, City of Sacramento; paired with Jessica Rocha, Legislative Assistant, California State Assembly
Katie Hansen, Senior Legislative Director, California Restaurant Association; paired with Emily Miller, Fellow, California State Senate
Keetha Mills, CEO, Foundation for California Community Colleges; paired with Erika Valle, , Fellow, California State Assemly
Kelly Boyd, Golden Grid Technologies; paired with Bri-Ann Hernandez, Fellow, California State Assembly
Kim Stone, Lobbyist, Stone Advocacy; paired with Chloe Bowman, Scheduler/ Legislative Aide, California State Assembly
Kristina Bas Hamilton, Principal, KBH Advocacy; paired with Ja'nice Wisdom, Union Partnership Representative
Kristy Wiese, Partner, Capitol Advocacy LLC; paired with Kimaya Gokhale, Associate, Dewey Square Group
Lauren Babb, Vice President of Public Affairs, Planned Parenthood Mar Monte; paired with Adrianna Jackson, Fellow, California State Senate
Lauren Greenwood, Government Partnerships Manager - West, Spin; paired with Cynthia Yepez, Fellow, California State Senate
Linda White, Government Affairs Manager, BMW North America; paired with Kailen Aldridge, Fellow, California State Assembly
Lindsey Nitta, Executive Director, California Women Lead; paired with Allie Umemoto, Fellow, California State Assembly
Marcie Shelton, Founder, The Leaders Partner; paired with Sarah Heffron, Senior Publications Manager, Magellan Health
Mareva Brown, Human Services Policy Consultant, Senate Pro Tem Atkins; paired with Genesis Gonzalez, Policy Analyst, Office of the Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis
Margaret Gladstein, Partner, Capitol Advocacy; paired with Julia Bayless, Account Coordinator, Lucas Public Affairs
Maricela Rodriguez, Director of Civic Engagement and Strategic Partnerships, Office of Governor Gavin Newsom; paired with Marisol Ibarra, Legislative Director, California State Senate
Mary Meuel, Senior Legislative Advocate, California State University; paired with Cassandra Mar, Fellow, California State Senate
Maya Wallace, Manager, Strategic Initiatives, CalTrans; paired with Alison Kostusak, Office Assistant, Office of Senator Susan Eggman
Melanie Cuevas, Vice President of Government Affairs, California Bankers Association; paired with Erica Lucia, District Representative and Communications Aide, California State Senate
Nicole Soluri, CEO, Professional BusinessWomen of CA (PBWC); paired with Eileen Situ, Admin Assistant, Soluri Meserve
Rachel Linn Gish, Director of Communications, Health Access California; paired with Julia Diaz, Digital Coordinator, Unearth Campaigns
Rebecca Nicholas, Vice President, Fiona Hutton & Associates; paired with Emma Manoukian, Account Executive, Bicker, Castillo & Fairbanks Public Affairs
Sara Schulte Pallas, Founder, Sara Pallas Consulting; paired with Julia Lindbloom, Intern, NKE Strategies
Shashwati Roy, Senior Consultant, Public Consulting Group and Gloria De Leon, Solutions Consultant, Humu; paired with Karen Melendez, Digital Liaison, California Volunteers
Susan Wheeler, Regional Workforce Development - Sustainable Communities, SMUD; paired with Cathy Doan, Business Engagement Consultant, Workforce Development Section, California Department of Rehabilitation
Tiffani Harter, Investment Officer II, California Public Employees' Retirement System; paired with Kim Eisenberg, CEO, Speak Your Brilliance + Conversations for Change
Past Mentorship Workshops from 2021