The Greater Dallas Chamber's Athena Award nominations are due April 27. The award will be presented at the 2007 Women's Business Conference on Sept. 27.

The Athena Award national program recognizes the accomplishments of a Dallas businesswoman. Nomination forms are located on www.dallaschamber.org/womens.  Attendance at last year’s Women’s Business Conference exceeded 2,000. Chase sponsors the local Athena Award program.

The Athena Award is open to individuals who strive toward the highest levels of professional accomplishment, excel in their chosen field, devote time and energy to their community in a meaningful way, and forge new paths encouraging others to follow. 

Launched in 1982, the program spotlights outstanding women in the community who espouse leadership opportunities for other professional women.  Administered today through the non-profit Athena Foundation, more than 5000 awards have been presented in over 500 communities in the United States, Canada, China, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. By honoring exceptional leaders, the Athena Award seeks to inspire others to achieve excellence in their professional and personal lives.

The Greater Dallas Chamber has previously bestowed twelve Athena awards:

2006 – Wendy Lopez, LOPEZGARCIAGROUP
2005 – Becky Sykes, Dallas Women’s Foundation
2004 – Camille Keith, Southwest Airlines
2003 – Retta Miller, Jackson Walker L.L.P.
2002 – Valerie Freeman, Imprimis Group
2001 – Liz Minyard, Minyard Food Stores
2000 – Grace McDermott, US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce
1999 – Brenda Jackson, TXU Electric Delivery
1998 – Gale Duff-Bloom, JCPenney Company, Inc.
1997 – Norma Lea Beasley, SAFECO Texas
1996 – Jinger Heath, BeautiControl Cosmetics
1995 – Tegwin Pulley, Texas Instruments

 “The Athena Award Program has been making a positive impact in the Dallas region and around the world,” said Rebecca Szelc, chair for the 2007 Athena Award  and regional leader of the Women’s Initiative for Deloitte & Touche USA LLP. “By shining the spotlight on the exceptional women in our region, we honor their commitments to service, leadership, and the community, and their ability to inspire others to achieve excellence."