She was the first woman governor of Vermont and helped bring teacher salaries in the state from a rank of 49th in the nation to 26th. Fortune magazine named her as one of the 10 best education governors in the nation. She explored the link between women's education and their movement into leadership positions in politics and business. The reason for this deficit may lie in the way women are taught throughout their schooling. Historically, teachers have favored boys over girls, consciously or unconsciously, at all levels of education, Kunin asserted.
Silence is safe.
Kunin joked of her own struggle balancing her family and career. She said she once showed up late for an important political event in Vermont because, after leaving her house for the event, she realized that she had forgotten to give her young son his favorite blanket so he could fall asleep. After much debate, she returned home to give her son the blanket. Questioning the real need for women in leadership positions, Kunin said she believes that women are not greatly different from men, that there is a definite advantage to bringing additional women into the national spotlight. Among Kunin's suggestions for improving the leadership potential of women was having young women attend single-sex schools.