“You can't be afraid to speak up," keynote speaker Sabrina Parsons told the audience at the ninth annual Women in Business Club Gala this February.

Addressing an audience of students, professionals, and faculty, the Palo Alto Software CEO and Forbes blogger shared her approach to blending family and career and offered a candid examination of the challenges faced by young women seeking to lead in the business world.

The premier event of the Lundquist College's Women in Business club, the gala matches undergraduate women with female professionals for an evening of networking and mentorship.

This year's theme—“Spread Your Wings"—was particularly apt because the club has experienced tremendous growth in the past year.

Club membership has grown by 33 percent and—with 161 attendees—the recent gala was the largest in club history.

Site visits have always been a key component of the club's offerings and in December, the group sponsored its largest yet, sending seventeen members to California for six days of company visits in San Francisco and Palo Alto.

The club's leadership team is also expanding, adding at least five new positions—the first time this has happened since the club's inception ten years ago.

See gala photos on the Women in Business club Facebook page.