Meet 5 trailblazers in the NFL, Coast Guard and more

These leaders are using their power to make male-dominated industries more equitable and welcoming for the next generation.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE CLOSING THE GAP Thursday, March 9, 2023 Morgan Smith is a Work reporter at CNBC Make It. You can follow her on Twitter @thewordsmithm.   2022 was a year of historic firsts, from the first woman to lead a branch of the U.S. armed forces to the first Black female president of an NFL team.   CNBC Make It spoke with some of these trailblazers about their paths to success, their ambitions and the legacy they want to leave behind.   Janet Yang The first Asian and fourth female president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Janet Yang, 66, is an award-winning producer whose film credits include "The Joy Luck Club" and "High Crimes."  In August 2022, she started her biggest job to date: president of the academy, whose members decide the winners of the Oscars.   But many of Yang's proudest achievements have happened off-screen. She's earned a reputation as a "godmother" to other Asian Americans working in Hollywood and is actively involved in several organizations working to amplify AAPI voices in entertainment.   "I've felt like an outsider many times throughout my life," she says. "It's wonderful to have a sense of belonging, and terrible not to … If I can help open the door for other women and people of color, I'm thrilled."   Adm. Linda Fagan The first woman to lead any branch of the U.S. armed forces   Adm. Linda Fagan did not plan for a lifetime of service in the U.S. Coast Guard — but now, she oversees tens of thousands of active-duty personnel, reserves and volunteers.   "It's not a job," she says. "It's so much more than that. It's a lifestyle. And it's a calling." Another career lesson she's learned: "You're stronger, smarter, more capable, more courageous than you believe." Sandra Douglass Morgan The first Black female president of an NFL team   Sandra Douglass Morgan, the new president of the Las Vegas Raiders, wants to be more than a statistic. She's working to make her team and the NFL more diverse, starting at the top — one of her first moves was to hire a director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Raiders.   "I've always said that there's more than enough room for everyone at the table," she says. "To me, the definition of success isn't being the first — it's to have many, many others follow behind you."   Maura Healey The first woman and openly gay governor of Massachusetts   Maura Healey credits her ambitious nature and her strong desire for success to her mom, who raised her and her five siblings by herself.   "I come from a line of strong women in my family … my great-grandmother, my grandmother, my mother," Healey, 52, says. "[They're all] really great examples of strength, grace and compassion."   Amy Schneider The first woman to win $1 million on 'Jeopardy!'   Life has been a whirlwind since Amy Schneider became the first woman to win $1 million on "Jeopardy!" last year: She ended her record-breaking 40-game hot streak with $1.4 million in earnings, quit her job and married her wife, Genevieve.  Schneider, 43, has also become a trans icon and uses her platform to advocate for LGBTQ rights.   "The nice thing about trans people is that we pop up everywhere," Schneider says. "We're in every community. And once you have gotten the message on trans people, once you have met one and realize that they're just people like anyone else, that's a one-way street. You don't go back. Everyone that changes their mind on the issue is a permanent addition on our side."   Read about more trailblazing women here.   More articles from Closing the Gap The No. 1 reason women say they would quit their jobs in 2023 While women continue to suffer from a pay gap, with working mothers seeing the largest gap, many are feeling economic and personal pressures, and actively looking for new, higher-paid opportunities, according to the latest Momentive/CNBC Women at Work Survey. Read More This millennial didn't see diverse women represented in comic books, so she wrote her own—now it's her full-time job Jazmin Truesdale has always loved reading comic books. But as she grew up, she noticed that female superheroes weren't getting the same attention that male superheroes were. So Truesdale created her own diverse, all-women superhero universe and a business, Aza Comics, to support it. Read More 64% of women say they could do their boss' job better than them, but they aren't getting the chance Even though a majority of women think they can do their manager's job better than them, they also feel undervalued and are often overlooked for management roles, according to new research from Monster — and this severe promotions gap is driving women to quit in historic numbers. Read More Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Digital Products   Feedback Terms of Service Privacy Policy   © 2021 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBC Universal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS