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The conversation about pay inequality is as heated today as it was in 2003 when Rowland Hall alumna Susan Sparrow '04 inspired 22 other like-minded Rowland Hall students to champion The Compensation Study Act. The efforts of this group of organized students, who spent vacations and weekends collecting research and lobbying the Utah legislature, resulted in an overwhelming thumbs up on House Bill 81 in both the Utah House and Senate.

Pay Equality Day signals the calendar date at which the wages of the average woman catches up to her male counterpart's earnings in the previous calendar year. This year on that day, Susan reflected on the past decade saying she is "concerned, but not surprised" that wage parody is still a hotly debated topic.

What did surprise Susan was finding her name on The New York Time's list of the 11 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE in the fight for equal pay for equal work. The Salt Lake Tribune announced the honor as well. "I don't feel like I belong on a list with [Supreme Court Justice] Ruth Bader Ginsburg," she said, "some contributions are large and others are small and I welcome any attention I can bring to this issue."

Susan, a history teacher at Charles Wright Academy, in Tacoma, Washington, said the 2003 lobbying effort impacted her long after it was over and apparently the story continues to pop up unexpectedly. It figured in when she attended Mount Holyoke's Take the Lead summer program and won an Action Project award. It landed her a spot as one of "The 20 Coolest Girls in America" in teen publication YM Magazine. And her combined experiences added up to Susan's successful 2008 run for senior class president at Pomona College.

Her participation in the youth leadership program, Take the Lead, was one of the reasons Susan became involved in student government at Pomona College, and why she still encourages girls to become active in the political process.

"Because, at Rowland Hall, we were encouraged to develop confidence and use our persuasive skills in challenging discussions," Susan said. "I felt prepared to take on the Utah legislature."

An important side benefit of the 2003 project for Susan was that it broadened her high school experience; bringing a new group of friends together through a common cause. "I became the face of the movement in 2003, but it took all of us coming together with a common purpose to make it a success," Susan emphasized.

Social injustice over wage inequity continues to ignite a fire in Susan's conversation, citing actuarial tables, philosophical beliefs, and legal case to make her point. But the summer she spent in Washington, D.C., made her think twice about pursuing law or politics. Susan turned to education where she could "make a difference," and she says, "I feel like I do that in the classroom every day."

Susan says the only casualty of the movement was a fender-bender that occurred as she took a last look back at the Capitol Building on a day otherwise filled with success and excitement. "My parents were extremely supportive and encouraging of my activism, and weren't even upset about the car," Susan said of her father Head of School Alan Sparrow and mother Nancy Sparrow.

Over the past two years Susan wrote a history book for teenaged students titled "World History: No One Gets Out Alive." It was published in 2014 through Amazon's Create Space.

"It has been nearly impossible to find a good textbook for non-Western focused world history at a developmentally appropriate level," Susan said. "I think there are a lot of lessons of equity and the role of government to be learned from history, particularly outside of our own country."

Susan says she thinks it's much harder to take a firm stand as a teenager in today's world of anonymous cyber tormenters. Even the best intentions and great ideas, such as the It Gets Better campaign and The Ice Bucket Challenge have had their critics.

"What advice would I give young activists today," Susan said contemplating the question. "I'd tell them to stay strong and never read online comments.'"