begun by Adolphine Fletcher Terry, Sara Murphy, and Vivion Brewer in the Women's Emergency Committee to Open Our Schools (WEC), an advocacy group. After the WEC dissolved in 1963, Ledbetter went on to work with the Little Rock Panel of American Women which had been founded by Sarah Alderman Murphy. The panel provided a structured forum for open discussion about racial, religious and cultural difference. Moderated by Ledbetter, the participants shared their personal experiences in a bridge building exercise with the communities they visited in an effort to broaden the discussion and reduce opposition to desegregation. Later, the panel would also develop programs enabling students in fighting discrimination, and provide human-relations training for teachers. In 1981, the panel evolved into the Arkansas Public Policy Panel and Ledbetter served as its executive director until her retirement in 1999. Under her leadership, the panel served the interests of agriculture, civil rights, economic justice and development, education, environment, and government and corporate accountability. The panel also expanded the local voice in matters of public policy by training grassroots organizations, community leaders, and city lobbyists, sixty of which were personally trained by Ledbetter. Women’s movement and ERA In addition to her work on economic and cultural justice, Ledbetter was an outspoken feminist and a vocal participant in the women's movement. She was a strong supporter of the ERA and was an organizing member of the ERA/Arkansas Coalition. She was called to be part of President Jimmy Carter's National Commission on Women and served as an executive board member of the Women's Environmental Development Organization (WEDO), a group that lobbies the United Nation on women's issues. She was organizer of the first Planned Parenthood Affiliate and clinic in Arkansas, and she led the campaign to defeat the first ballot effort to prohibit abortion rights for women. She was also involved in several non-governmental international organizations: Grassroots Organizations Operating Together in Sisterhood, WEDO, and US Women Connect. Other career highlights Arkansas State Central Democratic Committee (1968–1974) Arkansas Women's Political Caucus (founding member) National Women's Political Caucus (Political Action Chair, 1973) Arkansas State Democratic Party (Affirmative Action Committee Coordinator, 1973–1974) ERA/Arkansas Coalition (organizing member, 1973–1978), Southern Coalition for Educational Equity (state director, 1982–1985) Arkansas Fairness Council (founder & president, 1983–1998) Arkansas Career Resources, Inc. (founder and executive director, 1985–1990) Arkansas State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas (board