Hometown: Schaumburg, IL

Fearless, feisty and makes her own candles (she calls them Weedwax), Erin Weed graduated from Eastern Illinois University with a major in Speech Communications. She is likely the only living EIU alum who actually used her speech degree to actually become a professional speaker. Her calling to the field of violence prevention and self-defense began in 2001 as a direct response to the murder of her friend and sorority sister, Shannon McNamara. (Read more about Erin's journey here.) In the unlikely event you find yourself trapped in an awkward silence with Erin, just rattle off quotes from Happy Gilmore or discuss roller derby strategy. Or if it's getting really dicey, throw 3 tennis balls at her and she'll juggle 'em.

Hometown: Nashville, TN

Michaela Jackson (Whose name is NOT a joke - just imagine what her dad's name is - yeah, Michael. Again, not kidding.) graduated with a double major in Journalism and English from Middle Tennessee State University. After a close friend was raped, Michaela became very interested in the field of personal safety and violence prevention. She worked for the State of Tennessee in the Department of Economic and Community Development, as well as teaching and tutoring for the Princeton Review.  Apparently she fancies herself to be quite the smarty pants and is currently pursuing a law degree at one of the nation's most prestigious law schools. Michaela is by far, the most skilled speaker at "doing the deer." (If you've seen the program, you get this and you think it's funny. If you haven't, clearly you're missing out and need to watch.)

Hometown: Spokane, WA

Jaime Langton holds a degree in Public Communication from Eastern Washington University, and is a graduate of Willamette University College of Law. Jaime prefers you always address her as Jaime Langon Esquire, FYI. As a member of Alpha Phi International’s Eta Psi Chapter she acted as Chapter President, Vice President of Recruitment, Director of New Member Education, and Director of Music. She was also active in Phi Alpha Delta (Legal Fraternity) during her time at Willamette University College of Law, and was Class of 2009 President. While in school, Jaime had a personal experience with a stalker and hopes to help teach others how to handle situations like hers. Jaime's self-defense moves are what we might call "fierce" or "spicy." PS - Don't ever sue Girls Fight Back. We'll win.

Hometown: Lewisville, NC

Heather Maggs plays a lot of roles - literally. A loving mom and successful actress, in any given week she'll do a GFB program, work a child's birthday party as Cinderella and play one of the lead roles in plays about life in the trailer park. Eclectic, no?  Heather has brought some much needed Southern Charm to an otherwise spitfire group of she-fighters. Heather studied Child and Adolescent Development at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She was Education Director and Director of Music of the Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority and presented numerous programs to students as a peer educator. After seeing Girls Fight Back at a Bacchus and GAMMA conference, she started working on developing a self-defense program for her campus. Heather is the "mama bear" of the GFBs, and is a firm believer in the pole dancing workout.

Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA

Go ahead and ask Megan Ellis about her day job - you won't get very far. She studied Criminal Justice at West Chester University, and currently works for a well-known violence prevention firm. (So in other words, she may or may not be a mall cop.) Megan also works with armed service members and their families, helping with their transition from military to civilian life, as well as volunteering her time to help formerly homeless women re-enter the work force. As a child, Megan’s neighbor was murdered by her husband, which opened her eyes to the harsh realities of violence at an early age. Every news story she hears about violence against women or people who deny their own ability to predict and prevent violence motivates her. Megan believes that our intuition is one of our greatest tools, and while Michaela takes the award for best deer - Megan plays the role of Scary Bad Guy quite spectacularly in a pinch. (With the help of some creepy aviator sunglasses.)