THE NEXT CHAPTER: Mother-authors on ambition, leadership, and reinvention

Join Dr. Laura Marie Rivera at Armoire for a conversation with authors Keeonna Harris, Cassie Leonard, and Sharmin Banu—three Mothers whose work spans memoir, engineering, executive leadership, career reinvention, systemic change, and the lived realities of caregiving.

Together, they’ll explore how Motherhood shapes leadership, how caregiving influences professional identity and ambition, whose experiences are treated as expertise, and what changes when Mothers claim authority over their own stories and careers.

The evening will include a moderated conversation, audience Q&A, light snacks, community connection, book signing, and a Dress for Your Next Chapter shopping experience with a curated Armoire rack. All attendees will also receive a complimentary month of Armoire membership.

About the Speakers:

Cassie Leonard is an aerospace engineer, executive coach, author, and Mother of two. After 16 years at Boeing, where she grew from structural engineer into senior engineering leadership, she founded ELMM Coaching and went on to become a bestselling author of STEM Moms and lead author/editor of Beyond the Pipeline, exploring the push and pull of women’s careers, leadership, and the realities of building ambitious lives while caregiving.

Sharmin Banu is a former Microsoft engineering leader, executive, and team coach, author, and Mother. She is the author of Mid-Career Momentum: Design Your Next Phase with Purpose and Joy, and her work helps experienced professionals navigate career reinvention, leadership, and what comes next with greater intention and sustainability.

Dr Keeonna Harris is a writer, scholar, activist, executive reinvention strategist, and Mother of five whose work centers families impacted by incarceration and the systems that shape their lives. She received her Ph.D. in Justice Studies and from 2023-2025 she was a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Washington in public health. She is the author of Mainline Mama, a memoir about young Motherhood, partnership, survival, and raising a family alongside incarceration.

Moderated by Dr. Laura Marie Rivera, researcher, writer, founder of Intuitionship, host of Motherhood Advantage, and Mom of four.

RSVP

• Community Admission - FREE
• Support the Conversation - Suggested $10 donation
• Continue the Conversation – Take home all four books with any donation of $75 or more

An optional tax-deductible donation to Intuitionship (501c) helps cover the venue and the work of bringing this community event together. Everyone is welcome, regardless of donation.

Donation Link: https://givebutter.com/the-next-chapter-swxcci

Books available for purchase and signing:

• Mainline Mama, by Keeonna Harris
• Mid-Career Momentum, by Sharmin Banu
• STEM Moms, by Cassie Leonard
• Beyond the Pipeline, lead author/editor Cassie Leonard, featuring research by Laura Marie Rivera

Feel free to bring your copy for an author signing.