Ferranto Calls for Men to Help WTS Advance Women at COMTO Awards
Marcia Ferranto, president and CEO of WTS International, accepted a Women Who Move the Nation award this morning at an annual awards ceremony presented by COMTO, the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials. In her acceptance remarks, Ferranto called for men to take an active role in the mission to bring more women to the industry and be integral in getting them to the highest levels of leadership.
At the podium, Ferranto emphasized that she was accepting the award on behalf of the leadership and staff at WTS International, the organization she leads whose mission is to attract, retain, and advance women in transportation. She then called on the men of the industry to action. “Each day I wake up and realize that the WTS mission is having an impact on closing transportation’s workforce gap through the advancement of women,” said Ferranto, “and who better to help us accomplish this than men? Men currently make up 15 percent of WTS International’s membership; when we reach 50 percent, we will move the needle.”
COMTO created the Women Who Move the Nation awards in 2012, starting a new tradition of recognizing the accomplishments and influence of today's outstanding women in transportation. This year's list of 12 recipients, including several who are also active supporters and leaders within WTS International, brings the total number of honorees to 46. As in years past, these leaders represent a broad cross section of the industry.
WTS has been an active voice in the transportation industry since 1977, when its founders realized that professional development and recognition were needed to create industry and government advancement of women in the transportation field. In the 38 years since that time, the association has grown to an international member network of more than 6,000 transportation professionals, including both women and men, who take part in networking, professional development, and industry collaboration. WTS Foundation, the charitable arm of WTS also led by Ferranto, has provided more than $1 million in scholarships to women throughout the transportation industry and has created educational and awareness programs such as Transportation YOU (www.transportationYOU.org).
