During her introductory speech at a recent award ceremony dedicated to Sandra Day O’Connor held by Arizona State University, Cathy McKee of the Morrison Institute for Public Policy Research asked all the women in the audience to give a standing ovation as a tribute to the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court.

As I carefully rose from my table, for a split second my attention diverted from our honorable guest and focused on all of the other women in the room. Like me, the vast majority of them were self-conscious college students trying to rise without letting the linen napkins fall to the floor and to appear as graceful and mature as the occasion called for. Watching the sea of sun dresses paired with thick soled pumps and glitter eye shadow raise to their feet, I thought to myself, “Which one of us will be a First?”

Over the past fifty years ground-breaking women around the world have set an admirable precedent for my generation to match. They served as presidents, climbed Mt. Everest, explored space, became CEO’s of Fortune 500 companies, served as Secretaries of State and bombed enemy targets.

And they’re not about to rest on their laurels.

The resignation of Justice O’Connor marked the end of one gender transcending journey. The almost simultaneous rise of Angela Merkel, the first German Chancellor marked the beginning of another. As the head of the world’s third largest economy struggling with massive unemployment, she has received much criticism over her support of the US invasion of Iraq and her commitment to prevent Turkey from gaining EU membership.

While Europe is buzzing with the news of Merkel’s ascent to power, there is also plenty of talk about “first ladies” on our side of the Atlantic. The top story in the October 24^th issue of Newsweek was written about and by the 20 most powerful women in America, and a recent issue of The Wall Street Journal featured a special report on the Top 50 Women to Watch in 2005.

Among those named by the Wall Street Journal was Linda Chatman Thomsen, the first female Director of Enforcement of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Thomsen, who joined the Commission in 1995 as a trial lawyer, was crucial in the investigations of high profile litigation cases like that of the Enron Corp. and is now trying to manage SEC’s potential loss of control to increasingly aggressive companies.

The successes of these women are both inspiring and intimidating to watch. On one hand, they have set an example and opened the doors for up-and-coming female leaders. They have faced and overcome plenty of gender centered obstacles to be able to take their rightful place in the public spotlight. The Wall Street Journal reported that in her rise to the top, Ms.Merkel had her share of negative experiences, including being patronized by Chancellor Helmut Kohl who called her “my girl”. (Kohl ended up eating his words when Merkel successfully ran a campaign to end his career in the late 1990’s).

On the other hand, the persistence and achievements of these women set a high bar for those who are to follow. The glass ceiling is far from being broken. It is my sincere hope that my generation of women is not only full of those who are ready to shatter it, but that it is free from the likes of Monica Lewinsky, whose actions have reinforced negative stereotypes of females in politics, breaking the glass basement instead.

At a time when more than fifty percent of the people entering college and almost as many entering graduate programs are women, it seems that the world of politics has only had a taste of what the women are bringing to the table. Our goal should be to take the concept of the female first and have it to encompass not just the token individual, but women in general. To collectively become the first ladies - the first to get equal pay for equal work for example.

It is our duty to always push ahead, using our “firsts” as only stepping stones to more progress. As Justice O’Connor said at the Arizona State University ceremony, “You want to be the first; you don’t want to be the first and also the last.”

Looking at the ambitious and promising women surrounding me that day, I am confident that we will not be.