University of Dayton Women's Center

For the fourth consecutive year UD President Dan Curran is committed to sponsoring one UD faculty or staff woman for the HERS Summer Institute at Bryn Mawr College. Now in its thirty-fourth year, HERS brings together a diverse group of 75 women faculty, managers, directors, deans, vice presidents, and others for an intensive, residential experience designed to prepare women to advance professionally within higher education institutions. HERS' curriculum for the 2009 Summer Institute (6/20/09 - 7/15/09) will equip participants with:

knowledge and skills in management and governance of institutions of higher education, especially accounting and budgeting, long range planning, IT, decision making processes, and policy implementation;
institutional perspective on the pressing issues and problems in higher education today, giving special attention to the growing diversity of the student body and the workforce;
strategies for professional development with special emphasis on leadership, self-presentation, institutional change, and career planning; and
a continuing, supportive network of peers and mentors.

The internal (UD) application deadline for the HERS Summer Institute is February 9, 2009. Interested UD women should read the attached FAQ and UD Application Process documents to learn more about this extraordinary opportunity. For answers to more specific questions about HERS, contact any member of the UD HERS Advisory Committee (see attached roster) or visit the HERS website at: http://www.hersnet.org/HERSHigherEducationResourceServices.htmsisihtm.asp

FAQ | UD Application Process | 09 Advisory Committee

Complete descriptions for all these positions can viewed / printed from the links below:

Mentoring Program Coordinator | Newsletter Editor / Communications Manager
On-Site Night Manager | Student Programming Assistant

Co-located and Collaborative: Women's & Gender Studies within a Women's Center
Presentation at the National Women's Studies Association (NWSA) Annual Conference
June 28 - July 1, 2007

The poster displayed during this presentation explores the challenges and possibilities for collaboration between women's studies programs and campus women's centers. Drawing from research and observation of other campuses, it gives an overview of the history and dynamics of such relationships. Lisa Rismiller and Sheila Hassell Hughes direct, respectively, the Women's Center and the Women's and Gender Studies Program at the University of Dayton, where they have formed a close and successful working relationship. They present the history of their two entities, provide examples of their most successful collaborative programs, and discuss the pros and cons of physical co-location.
Co-Located & Collaborative - Newsflash version.ppt

Lee Denim Day at UD was a success!

To date, this year’s Lee Denim Day at UD has collected $1,855 in support of breast cancer research, education, treatment,

and screening programs! The goal was to surpass last year’s donation total of $1,510, and it did so by nearly 25%! Judy Caruso

and Kate Henry would like to thank everyone for their help and participation, and are looking forward to collecting even more

donations next year!

Breaking Silence....In the UD Community
October 4, 2005

Breaking Silence....In the UD Community is a compelling collage of the on-campus experiences of

lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning UD students, faculty, staff, alumni and their allies.

The collage conveys the sorrow and pain that comes of isolation and fear, but also the joy people experience when they feel free to be their authentic selves. Interspersed with the personal stories are excerpts from UD and Catholic Church documents which bolster both our commitment to and responsibility for being an community that is truly inclusive and respectful of the inherent dignity of all people.

The display will remain in the Kennedy Union main lobby through at least Saturday, October 8, 2005.

On the importance of "allies", from a letter to the editor of the Yellow
Springs News by Solidarity Ohio, a group dedicated to making Ohio welcoming
to people of all sexual orientations:

"Tuesday, October 11, is the observation of National Coming Out Day. For someone who is Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender (GLBT), "coming out" is working towards having a whole, open life. It is ideally an intentional interaction with selected individuals and groups at different times, and is an ongoing and never-ending process. Did you know that straight allies need to come out, too? Becoming an ally means that "straight" individuals, who already have full civil rights, accept responsibility for speaking out so that others can obtain those same rights.

Straight allies can be powerful advocates for the GLBT community. You don’t have to personally know someone who is GLBT to become an activist--although you probably do know someone who is not yet comfortable enough with you to be open about this most important aspect of their life. Wouldn’t you want your friend to feel that you would accept this knowledge about them? You can become a straight ally by proclaiming your desire for social justice with the confidence to speak for equal rights and against hate speech and crime.

As an oppressed minority, GLBT individuals often do not feel safe speaking out against an anti-gay joke or diatribe, or insisting that they be given the same civil rights as their straight brothers and sisters. And, they aren’t safe, since too often it has led to loss of employment or being physically and emotionally harmed. GLBTs may be one of the only minority groups in which individuals might not even have the love and support of their own family.

On National Coming Out Day, open your hearts, minds, ears, and mouths in solidarity with the GLBT community. Be prepared to listen and accept someone’s coming out story–it may be one of the most important stories they will ever tell. Tell your own story about being ready to be a straight ally–it may be one of the most important decisions you ever make for yourself, and for others. For more information, take a look at the Human Rights Campaign website"

Beijing Platform for Action Appraisal

Posted: February 7, 2005

In 1995 in Beijing, China, 40,000 women gathered at the UN Fourth World Conference to negotiate and advance a comprehensive agenda for promoting and protecting their human rights worldwide. Through the work of civil society women and government representatives, alike, the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA) emerged as a wide-reaching and ground-breaking blueprint for women's global empowerment. By signing on to the BPFA, 189 countries made commitments to gender equality and the advancement of women.

From February 28 to March 11, 2005, the UN Commission on the Status of Women will conduct the ten-year review and appraisal of the Beijing Platform for Action (Beijing +10) and, commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the First UN World Conference on Women held in Mexico in 1975. During 2004, regional meetings took place to prepare for this review but there is no World Conference scheduled as part of it.

So now....

UN members must collectively prioritize the promotion of women's rights and gender equality. One of the emerging barriers to collective resolve is the United States government's refusal to 'reaffirm' the BPFA, according to the US government, on the basis of sexual and reproductive rights issues. This refusal to reaffirm not only signals the breakdown of the collective obligation to the advancement of women, but also opens the political space for other governments to take positions that ensure that they, too, are not accountable to the commitments made in the BPFA.

If you would like to learn more about the Beijing +10 platform, including background on the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action, and/or you're interested in signing (electronically) the "NON-PARTISAN call to our government to keep its 1995 promise to support international efforts to end world wide oppression of women", visit, http://ase.tufts.edu/womenstudies/newsa/beijing%2010%20petition/background.html.

UD Implements New Maternity Leave Policy

Posted: November 29, 2004

The Faculty Maternity Leave Policy is now official. Following the tireless efforts of several members of the UD community, the Academic Senate passed the new policy in their most recent meeting.

Dr. Sheila Hughes, Beth Schwartz, and Professor Joseph Untener have worked especially hard to make this new policy a reality.

To read the full policy, click here.

Women's Studies Info Fair

Thurs., March 31st - 11am to 1pm

in the Women's Center

(Alumni Hall 211)

As registration for Fall courses approaches, students are invited to come and learn more about:

The Women's Studies Major
The Women's Studies Minor
The Women & Culture Cluster
Service Learning in Women's Studies
The Women's Leadership House (in the student neighborhood)

There will be plenty of information and opportunity for conversation. We will also be serving pizza!