Igniting Brighter Futures for Young Mothers

In the Business of Change Podcast | Feb 14, 2022

On this episode of SEE Change’s “In the Business of Change” podcast, New Moms’ President and CEO, Laura Zumdahl, recounts the history of New Moms and what prompted us to add a social enterprise candle-making company, Bright Endeavors, to our already robust Job Training program. She discusses the impact this addition has had on young moms in Chicagoland and shares the challenges of balancing an inspired social mission with financial sustainability – and the lessons she’s learned along the way.

Click above to listen to the podcast or you can listen on SEE Change’s website.

Stepping Back to Light the Way

Shift the Power Podcast | April 2021

New Moms was recently featured on Global Learning Partners’ Shift the Power: A Learning-Centered Podcast. The episode highlights the impact of a case study we did together to document our amazing science-informed social enterprise, Bright Endeavors. Join Director of Workforce Development Gabrielle Caverl-McNeal and Director of Learning and Innovation Dana Emanuel as they share the impact of the case study one year later – within New Moms and in the broader field. 

Click above to listen to the podcast, and you can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or virtually anywhere podcasts are found! And click here to read the full transcript in our blog post.

Designing for Behavior Change

The Behavioral Design Podcast | September 2020

Stephen Wendel, Head of Behavioral Science at Morningstar, writs extensively about incorporating behavioral design into programs and products. Wendel cites New Moms as a case study in the latest edition of his book, Designing for Behavior Change, and discusses the book on this podcast. Click above to listen to the full episode!

Crisis Conversations: Working pregnant in the time of COVID

Better Life Lab Podcast | July 2020

New Moms brought our knowledge of workforce development and job training to this conversations with Brigid Schulte, Director of Better Life Lab at New America. Pregnant workers already face discrimination on the job, Before the pandemic struck, the United States was the only advanced nation without a national paid maternity or parental leave policy. Now, pregnant workers have to navigate workplaces that pose real infection risks — often without recourse. Delivering a child in the pandemic has become fraught and isolating. And for many new moms whose low-wage jobs are considered “essential,” the emergency paid leave law Congress passed doesn’t even apply. So what can we learn from the pandemic about how to better protect pregnant workers? How can we ensure healthy outcomes for new mothers and children, and, in particular, for new African American mothers and children, whose rates of infant and maternal mortality are alarmingly high?

Click above to listen to the podcast or you can listen on Apple Podcasts.

How One Nonprofit Is Breaking The Cycle of Intergenerational Poverty

Nonprofit Leadership Podcast | September 29, 2019

How can we as individuals and a society help break down the systemic barriers that keep different economic and social groups in a cycle of stress and poverty? New Moms’ President & CEO, Laura Zumdahl, discusses her experience in leadership at New Moms and how our mission impacts young families throughout Chicagoland. Click here to listen to the podcast.