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Councilwoman Anna Kaplan Traces Journey into Government at Iranian-American Women’s Symposium

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 14, 2013
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Councilwoman Anna Kaplan Traces Journey into Government at Iranian-American Women’s Symposium

Manhasset, NY
– An advocate for expanding the participation of Iranian-Americans in the democratic process, North Hempstead Town Councilwoman Anna M. Kaplan recently joined a host of fellow Iranian professionals from a broad spectrum of disciplines at the Iranian-American Women Foundation’s Leadership Conference in New York.

The day-long, October 27 conference at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in mid-town Manhattan was hosted by the Iranian-American Women Foundation, in partnership with the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian-Americans and the Persian Gender Network.

Councilwoman Kaplan, the first Iranian-American elected to municipal office in New York State, was among a celebrated list of 40 guest speakers from wide-ranging sectors including business, government, education, entertainment and medicine.

Her presentation traced her “journey” from a youngster in Iran to the seat of North Hempstead Town government in a discussion titled “Moving up the Career Ladder in Law, Medicine, and Politics.”

“The path to success is not always easy, especially when growing accustomed to a new environment and culture is involved,” said Councilwoman Kaplan who fled Iran for the United States as a 13-year old back in 1979. “But I would tell any youngster that no matter what your background, you can achieve success in government or any industry by working hard, and staying focused on your goal.”

The conference featured a series of workshops focusing on topics such as Overcoming Obstacles, Moving up the Career Ladder, the Essentials of Women’s Health & Wellness and Entrepreneurship Do’s & Don’ts.

The conference was emceed by Negin Farsad, who has written for and appeared on a number of shows for Comedy Central, MTV and PBS, to name a few.

For more information on the Iranian-American Women Foundation, log on to www.IAWfoundation.org.



A portrait of Councilwoman Anna Kaplan at the Iranian-American Women’s Symposium.
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