Our expert panel is up to the task
Choosing our Women of the Century was not easy. There were hundreds of worthy candidates, many of whom spent their careers working out of the spotlight. In the end, USA TODAY put together a diverse panel of experts to help trim the list to 100.
Anthea Hartig
Hartig is the Elizabeth MacMillan director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History and the first woman to hold the position since the museum opened in 1964. She oversees a budget of more than $40 million and a collection of 1.8 million objects and more than 3 shelf-miles of archives.
Jane Hyun
Hyun is a leadership strategist and author of the bestseller “Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling: Career Strategies for Asians.” Often called “the interpreter,” she advises organizations that seek to leverage diversity to create innovation and employee engagement.
Nikki Lane
Lane is an interdisciplinary scholar trained as a cultural and linguistic anthropologist. Her work explores American popular culture, urban spatial politics and sexual cultures throughout the African diaspora. This fall, she will join Spelman College as an assistant professor of women’s studies/Black queer studies.
Elizabeth Clark-Lewis
Clark-Lewis is a professor of history at Howard University and since 1990 has directed its Public History Program. She has served on the executive board of the Organization of American Historians and as national director of the Association of Black Women Historians. She is one of the founders of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Association and has written or edited seven books.
Jill Tietjen
Tietjen is an author, national speaker and electrical engineer. After more than 40 years in the utility industry,
her focus is now on woms en’s advocacy. She has published 10 books, including “Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America” and “Hollywood: Her Story, An Illustrated History of Women and the Movies."
Maribel Perez Wadsworth
Wadsworth, president of news at Gannett and publisher of USA TODAY, runs the news division of Gannett Media, overseean ing more than 5,000 journalists across 260 local news organizations and the flagship USA TODAY. She serves on the board of directors of the News Media Alliance and the International News Media Association.
Hilary Weaver
Weaver is a professor and associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion in the University at Buffalo School of Social Work. She is Lakota and has lived much of her adult life in Haudenosaunee territory in western New York.
Cid Wilson
Wilson is president and CEO of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility. He works closely with corporate board members, Hispanic organizations and corporate partners around the country to increase the representation of Hispanics at all levels in corporate America.