UW-Green Bay launches Institute for Women’s Leadership

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - Friday, a virtual event hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay launched the Institute for Women’s Leadership ahead of International Women’s Day next week. The institute will serve as a leadership resource for women in Northeast Wsiconsin.

“When women rise, so do our communities,” Bridget O’Connor said.

The co-founders of the Institute for Women’s Leadership say it’s designed to recognize Northeast Wisconsin’s need for more women in leadership roles.

“As we came together to develop the institute, it was really important for us to create comprehensive leadership resources, to eliminate some of the barriers and in effort for individuals to realize their career and life goal,” UWGB Assistant Vice Chancellor Joy Ruzek said.

“We believe that this institute will be the catalyst to inspire more women to enhance their leadership skills and will put more women in positions of influence to drive change in the organizations they serve,” Cheryl Van Gruensven, UWGB’s senior vice chancellor of institutional strategy, added.

Officials say some of the institute’s goals are to educate, enlighten and empower all individuals.

As we celebrate International Women’s Day on Monday, March 8, the campaign theme is “Choose to Challenge.”

“It’s about laying it out there and saying, ‘Stop, let’s talk about this. Let’s challenge the old ideas,’” Executive Director Teri Zuege-Halvorsen of the institute said.

UW-Green Bay Chancellor Michael Alexander says almost 70% of students are women, so to provide an institute to help raise the voices of women leaders across the region is crucial.

“It means a lot to me that this is able to be realized, and I’m very excited to see where it’s going to go,” Alexander said. “We’re going to do everything we can to support it and make sure that it reaches its full potential.”

Women at every stage in their career are welcome to join the institute, from students to CEOs.

Programming at the institute will start in April. You can find details at the Institute for Women’s Leadership website.

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