In 2000, Nora de Hoyos Comstock, herself an owner of a successful consulting ﬁrm, sought to increase Latina
representation in corporate ______ founded Las Comadres para las Americas, an international community that for over two
decades has served as a resource and information network for Latina business professionals.
settings she
settings, she
settings and she
settings. She
Choice D is the best answer. It appropriately uses a period to mark the end of one independent clause ("In 2000…settings")
and the start of another ("She founded…professionals").
Choice A is incorrect. This choice results in a run-on sentence error. Both the clause before the blank ("In 2000…settings")
and the clause after the blank ("she…professionals") are independent clauses, so they need to be separated by punctuation.
Choice B is incorrect. This choice results in a comma splice error. It incorrectly joins two independent clauses with just a
comma. Linking two independent clauses with a comma also requires the use of a coordinating conjunction (like for, and,
nor, but, or, yet, or so). Choice C is incorrect. This choice results in a run-on sentence, an error caused when two independent
clauses are joined without punctuation or appropriate conjunctions. Since both the clause before the blank ("In 2000…
settings") and the clause after the blank ("she…professionals") are independent, a comma would be required in addition to
the coordinating conjunction "and."