publicly about this event on social media until after the event has been polluted to think of that hashtag is for over 50. We also asked to Please wear your masks during the main portion of the programming. Today's conversation between firstly Jill Biden and Mika Brzezinski Regency will enter tomorrow morning on Morning Joe. Now, please welcome Maggie McGrath and her or his women
welcome on behalf of Forbes and now your value to the first ever gathring of the 50 over 50/
Me I'm Maggie McGrath, the editor of Forbes women and one of the very lucky steward of this project. On behalf of towards a Know your value. I have to say that working on this project has truly been a highlight of this year. So it's a real thrill and 2021 with this test of event. As our partner in this initiative make it Brzezinski has gone on Morning Joe. He's outpouring of support from readers and viewers for the 50 over 50 cents is nothing short of astounding. I want to remind you, we received 10,000 nominations from people who wish to be on this list
you were chosen out of those 10,000 names the women in this room are founders and investors, creators and innovators, performers, activists. You are changing the world. You are taking companies public. You are fighting for causes and you are dismantling age and gender norms. Many of you also happen to be the first. The first woman in your position, the first person in your family who embarked on your career journey, or maybe the first to identify systemic inequity and raise your voice for change.
Our guest of honor also happens to be someone who is very well acquainted with the word “first” and is not very old. Dr. Jill Biden is a community (applause) — you know Dr. Biden already but I’ll just remind you she is a community college educator, a military mother and grandmother and the spouse of President Joe Biden. As our nation's second lady from 2009 to 2017. She was the first in her position to hold a paying job outside of the White House and now as our nation's first lady she is the first First Lady to hold a paying job outside of the White House. You will hear much insight and inspiration from Dr. Biden and Mika your shortly but first, I want to leave you with this. I often tell people that my favorite part of editing this list was reading those initial nominations. You were nominated by your sisters, your brothers, one of you was nominated by father in law world Medal of Honor. We were nominated by her friends and admirers mentors and mentees. Your stories are so often stories of women supporting other women. And above all, I hope that's what today is for you today and I don't want to spoil anything but we as far as I know your value do want to continue that trend of women supporting women so there's a special announcement later today and stay tuned for that. But above all, I hope you find joy in meeting each other today. I hope you forge connections that are personally and professionally fulfilling. And above all, please, please please keep doing the work you are doing in that dismantling of age and gender stereotypes. Your work is needed now more than ever. And now I'd like to turn it over to Dr Dem Whitman. She is an EVP. And AARP chief Public Policy Officer.
Great audience we have today just how to think there's 10,000 standing behind who is really really impressive. I am so honored to be anonymous 70 successful and powerful women. We have artists, designers, entrepreneurs, scientist, activist doctors nurses, and community college professors here today. I'm sure you're as excited as I am to have Dr. Jill Biden present because she does her role with such grace whether it's in the White House or in front of the white board. I have a particularly soft spot for educators because our own hander Dr. Ethel Christie Andrus was a retired teacher when she started AARP at age 74. Apple in her day would have been on the top of the 50 over 50 list because she dedicated her entire life to standing up for injustice. Her drive, compassion and entrepreneurial spirit inspires everything we still do at AARP today. At therapy we celebrate age and experience, which is why we partner with Forbes to prevent today's events. Now I'm proud to say I recently joined the club of over
50 years of experience 50 years of bumps and bruises. And while there are so many impressive women in this room today
I want to talk about somebody who hasn't been able to make it. Our centenarian award winner Iris Apfel. Iris is an interior designer and fashion icon and she has decorated the White House through nine presidents and maybe Dr Biden can make that an even 10. When she signed a modeling contract at age 97, she showed us anything but the key lessons that we should take from iris and her rich and accomplished life is that our second 50 can be just as powerful as our first
we celebrate people when they reach their milestone of 50 and every year after that, we know that aging is changing and the old rules do not apply anymore. The new reality of aging requires bold vision and an innovative approach to shape the future. We need to break down the barriers of ageism, sexism, racism ableism, which can be combined to limit the possibilities that can pull through after the others have been worse for the women on the list and today and demonstrate the power of changing the status quo and improving the world. So if you're not already, we'd love to be part of your membership.
As I close I just want to thank magma grass as well. As the entire forest team and Stacy Alexander who's with me for AARP has
a word what's it called? The powerful in your over 50 Be proud in you're over 50 and let's bring out those 10,000 other applicants. You all deserve to be here as well. Thank you
Please welcome the First Lady of the United States please welcome to the stage interviewer Mika emergency. Know your value co host of Morning Joe and Dr. Jill Biden First Lady of the United States
Hi everybody! (Took off masks).
First Lady Dr. Jill it is such an honor. So Dr. Biden was so quick to support 50 over 50 when we picked qup the phone and called her it was an immediate Yes. And she was like I want to support the women on the list. I want to be a part of this but I want to be part of shining a light. So here she is celebrating women over 50 The inaugural list here
when I was writing combat careers, which was advice for women trying to get back in and there's a there's a lot of issues, a lot of conversations to be had. But what I noticed was I was going for advice to so many women over 50 Over 60% of the over at doing amazing things. And I'm like Am I missing a big story I think I am because something has happened. Something has changed for us and it's great news not just for us, but for our next generation
and our granddaughters
and our granddaughters their mother is much longer than we think. So I have great news. For you. I was talking to Tracy Chappell yesterday. She's on one of our honorees here today. At the time of a women's hydration or high that they took time off. There's some good news reports that women lined up to be. Back right so let's let's get going here. I know you're headed to off the shelf Wisconsin, around here jumping on a plane,
you've been a mentor on COVID traveling to over 35, 36 states already going into states and counties that maybe aren't so conducive to getting the vaccine, maybe didn’t even vote for your husband. But you’ve taken on this job, for the health, to spread information about health, how has it been going and what drives you? Because you've been doing a lot of work on this.
You know, it's been going really well I mean today one of the things I'll deal with this conflict is clinically reactive vaccines. And I've been traveling to as many states as I can get to, to go into clinics and children's hospitals to get our little ones who apply that are vaccinated and that's really important to Joe is an eight. And it doesn't matter to me, it doesn't matter to Joe whether we go into red states or blue states. I mean, we are all Americans. So when Joe was elected, he said I will be a president for all Americans. And I said and I will be First Lady for all Americans so.
Some of this is, people are hurting. And I feel that right now our nation is hurting and it means appealing. And that's one of the things that I feel that I'm doing. And we'll reach out today Joe is talking in a field and I'm heading to Walker shop. As we just said to meet with the families who have lost someone in that tragic accident and and you know, with the grains, you know, who likely need healing so, I see that as really part of my role. So it doesn't matter to me, whether they're Republicans or Democrats or whether they you know, whether they voted for Joe or not, you know, sometimes sick. You don't ask whether they're Republican or Democrat, you just have them writing.
Exactly. That is America's first language. And you you know, you've been exposed to politics. And a lot of people leave Washington in the car. And I actually I have said when moved when your husband was running in newer I think we met up and I went for an interview on
the back. Thank you for wanting to go back and wanting to serve.
I just wonder I noticed recently who said that being First Lady is a little further than you expected in the first year. Explain what the challenges have been. Is it just been going on with the COVID and the pandemic?
Well, first of all, let me say it has been my honor the honor to be your first lady.
So you, online work to be done. I love every moment just visiting Americans across this country, hearing the challenges you're facing what they want, and then take it back to the White House. I mean, I do feel as though I am a messenger from the White House. And so that's, that's why it's a little bit harder. It is constant but I'm not complaining again. I'm saying it's just everyday
and just from my tiny perspective watching my dad sir When I was a little girl was out at 5am Back at 11. So yeah, it's what I love about Dr. Gentle but a lot of us here who have read about burnout. She she's a community college professor, and when she was serving as secondary, even three years the second way she taught and she taught Community College and often through the incoming students wouldn't even know she was she was their teacher, because that's a part of her identity, which I respect so much. I think everybody in this room and can really connect with that and having your own and perhaps wise mother but also something else that you're passionate about. You were able to be incognito as the secondary. How's it going as
well you know I think really the beauty of being where I teach I you know, my students the first day that we went in of course, they had to go through security so like he said, you know your body's been teaching there since 2009. Teaching English teaching this course and she also happens to be first lady. So while she's here at Nova, she trains her teacher and I can promise you that no one has said to me except for the last day said the words Whitehouse from First Lady. And I know love. I just love that they saw me as their English teacher. That's how they treated me. And I felt that that was a gift that they gave to
you, I guess while you rotating virtualized Correct. I did last
spring I taught her how to diagnose what's really hard. So it was hard. You know, I had to go through training ever to learn how to do it. And if any of you in here teachers, you know one of the first things that you do is try to create community within your class. I mean, it's so important, especially as I'm writing the software, people are pouring out their hearts and souls on the page. So why did I do that? I accomplish that and I've talked to a lot of my boys who were another class of women, mostly women who were going back. Of course, during the time that we were on Zoom, there would be like all these kids running across Yeah, they were like pushing their kids to screen but it works but this semester I really wanted to be in the classroom, especially live students are developmental learners. So I teach that class I think they need hands on help they need that one on one. And so I love I love
I understand that I wasn't really distracted while
I did it. This way. Right? So my second shift,
yeah. That would be so proud of you. But I think it's a wonderful I'd love to your to your identity in the White House. And I am curious the Virtual Teaching which is challenging. I also think your virtual working is challenging. And I never work with a guy like that. How many of you work in personally? Wow, yes, I guess I'll tell you why. I'll answer for him
that's not the room I love it. At times. Oh, my boss is here it she's so she's so wonderful. Liza. She was getting me my coffee and she had run with it and she was sweating and I was like you need to count using people. She got out she's 22 years old. She had people were sharing our show was never so I do worry where mentoring goes in the workplace when we're also remote. You know,
it's a challenge. Well, you're gonna have to tell me because I've met her in person. I mean, I have my studio shot now. Meet up in my office.
I think that's the big challenge. We'll take on we'll be talking about a lot of our future plans about how we started to capture that younger generation, especially given that you know, we're working from so many different corners now. But I do understand we love it. So now you're part of a mentoring program. Where do you work as well as community college? So you have like a million things you could be doing and and yet, you've also chosen that tell us why I'm so important.
Yeah, when I started in 2009, one thing they did not have was a women's mentoring program. So he first started it for women who were over 30 were coming back to school who probably didn't know how to use technology. Maybe they didn't know if they want to take that class. So we were trying to help them, you know, to graduation to to get that degree. But then so many women came to me and said, talk to me, you know, the young women needed to and so then I opened it up to everybody. So now we have a waiting list of people still want to be mentored and they are finally stepped up and I think they have almost 5050 women to mentor other women so I I love
that. Yeah, that's really, really cool. And 50 over 50 Though less, which is become for less than the United States of America. We're going global we have a lot of challenges. If the data submissions are open, your submissions are open because when we have so much to offer the next generation and I think this list is a gift, as we pointed out to the next generation of women in our in our grandchildren as well. And I'm wondering what was it that had that gut feeling when we called you and I asked us It could just be on the list. Can you support it and you were actually
entering in supporting other pain right? So
you have such a long runway, I don't know about you, but I was always in a rush and I think it cost me problems in my life. Being in a rush is you're always stressed. And I do think this says to younger women and your sister in law now she has changed. I interviewed her for one of the lifts and she said like interrupt work. Work interrupts life. Let it happen. You have time and I thought
let's do everything. So it's such a it's almost perfect. Really? Yeah,
it is. And we do have to I mean, look, I mean look at look around the room. We do have time. And but you know, I know that failing because I think all my life I mean gosh and Mary Jo I continued grad school I was raising children and was working full time and God knows how many campaigns were there every day. We have to, we have to, we have to make it work and and it's different for each one of us. But we do it and we do it.
And I know before you go as we pass out some tools you have a call to action for for this work because this is very special. This is women that made it very clear in their they've come back and they're reaching great success at odds in their lives over 50 Over 60 Over 70 And it's an incredible message. What is the maximum number
of steps? You're gonna take. I'm gonna say that in your life but not so, if you're even if you're not in their workplace, I want you to offer scholarships for women to go back to school or
work on childcare. I mean we are working on that the federal government is Yes, sir. It's not just a women's issue. It isn't the issue. So that's another thing I would love to see you do. We need to create more diversity in the workplace. So if you can work on that we need to
buy a new health plan for the future and we want to do different things. And lastly, I do want to say that I'm not political, but I have to say this. We have to teach younger women, how important it is to be involved in the in public service because you know, we have to get more women elected to Congress. We need more maybe as far as US Supreme Court
We can't just sit back and think Oh, so many women take it for granted. We can add this on the campaign trail. You cannot take it for granted that things aren't going to change. You have to continue to work as hard as you can. I know you're doing a million things. But my god this is so worthwhile to just get new book everywhere that was birthed our girls, even our daughters or granddaughters are sending hundreds and so I want to thank you all I want to thank you for what you're doing and how hard you're working and that you will continue to mentor because it's so important that we reach back and letting another woman along. And finally, I wish I put three by five cards on the table together to get a list of the books you're reading. So I feel like call to action to that show. stuff in the Message log is not getting. For you