INDIANAPOLIS – When the Indiana Fever host Inspiring Women Night presented by Merrill Lynch on Tuesday night, July 19, high-achieving women in business and education will take center stage prior to the Fever battling the Los Angeles Sparks.
Tipoff for the nationally televised game (ESPN2) is 8:00 p.m. A pregame reception and panel discussion with Inspiring Women Night honorees begins at 6:30 p.m. Honorees, who will also be recognized at halftime, include Karen Hough, an Amazon best-selling author and international keynote speaker who founded the first business training company to use improvisation as the training catalyst; and eight recent African-American women who made history together as graduates from the Indiana University School of Education.
Individual tickets to attend the Inspiring Women Night game and reception are $60 and a table of ten is $550. Inspiring Women Night tickets include a game ticket, with all-inclusive food and beverage and an opportunity to network with other participants. Inspiring Women Night guests receive an Indiana Fever gift, and for every ticket purchased, a ticket is donated to send an IPS student to a future Fever game. Tickets for this event may be obtained by calling (317) 917-2528.
The panel discussion includes five of the “Great Eight” – Jasmine Haywood, Demetrees Hutchins, Tiffany Kyser, Shannon McCullough and Johari Shuck – followed by a Q&A and improv presentation with Hough.
The “Great Eight” are all women, all African-American, and all history makers. They all received Ph.D. degrees from the IU School of Education, and that’s a big deal, says interim executive associate dean Robin Hughes: “To graduate eight African-American females from one school is a big doggone deal. And not just for IU, but across the country, that just doesn’t happen.”
Hough, founder and CEO of Columbus, Ohio-based ImprovEdge, is an innovative leader in business. Her award-winning firm was rated in the top 2% of woman-owned businesses in the U.S. ImprovEdge uses improv to drive results for Fortune 100 clients, teaching business professionals how to use improv technique to think on their feet, be their best and advance their careers and businesses.
The Fever, just past the midway point of their 2016 season, are bidding to extend their WNBA-record 11 consecutive WNBA playoff appearances. The Sparks, currently 17-1, are challenging the best start in WNBA history.