Women’s Initiative

Interested in planning Women's History Month? Want to help with Sexual Responsibility Week? Excited to Take Back the Night? Have a great suggestion for another program you'd like to see? Come to the WI General Meeting on Sunday, January 27 at 8pm in MGC 200 and get involved in all the events we have planned for spring semester. Bring your ideas and we'll bring cookies. See you there!

There is still time to sign up for RAD classes! Rape Aggression Defense is a course for women that provides information, tactics, and considerations which RAD Systems believes may be useful to counter various types of violence perpetrated against women. The course is taught by certified RAD instructors who work for AU University Police. To sign up for a section, please e-mail RAD@american.edu.

SECTION B
February 2nd, 3rd, 9th and 10th, 2008
Day: Saturdays and Sundays
Time: 10:00AM – 1:00PM
Location: McDowell Formal Lounge

SECTION C
February 11th, 14th, 18th, and 21st, 2008

Start the new year off with a resolution to improve your health before Spring Break. This incentive program, offered by the Wellness Center, will provide you with extra motivation to hit the gym, stay healthy, and be well. This is a 6 week long program, beginning January 28 and ending March 7, 2008.

Program includes:
-Optional pre-assessment of fitness level
-A pedometer, T-shirt, and 1 free week of Yoga at Down Dog Yoga ($126 value)
-A variety of programs pertaining to all aspects of Health & Wellness
-Optional post-assessment of fitness level

Discover how women continue to blast through the glass ceiling in the scientific fields! Come hear the personal and professional experiences and challenges of seven women at the top of their disciplines on Tuesday, January 22 at 8pm in MGC 245. Refreshments will be provided. Panelists include:
- Dr. Pamela Marcum, Discipline Scientist, NASA HQ Astrophysics Division
- Debra Amato, Engineer, Goddard Space Flight Center
- Dr. Maureen Long, Post Doctorial Researcher, Carnegie Institution of Washington (GL)

Do you know a young woman on campus who should run for Student Government? This is an opportunity to tell a woman you respect that you think she's a leader and has what it takes to make a difference in Student Government.

Please join us at a reception on Friday, Jan. 18th from 2 -3 in MGC 200 for the newly created web site for the Virtual Women's Center. The exciting part about the web site is the sexual assault resource site. Laura Kovach from the Wellness Center was instrumental in developing the sexual assault resources and I'm grateful for her work in getting this important project completed. This website is hopefully only the first step toward a real Women's Resource Center here at AU! Check it out at http://www.american.edu/ocl/womenscenter/index.html.

Don’t need those bath and body products you got as a present? Donate them and help mothers living with HIV or AIDS feel beautiful too! Drop them off at our table in MGC from 11am to 3pm from Jan 15-18 or anytime that week in MGC-262. Join us as we turn ideas into action – and action into service!

Stressed out? In need of a study break? Come to the Anderson 3 Honors Lounge this Saturday, December 8 between 8PM and 12AM for Safe Night In, a relaxing and fun way to spending your last Saturday night before finals. This event will feature tasty food, warm beverages, all kinds of games, information on stress relief, bubble wrap to pop & stomp, and free chair massages! Brought to you by Women's Initiative, RHA and AU After Dark. For more information, e-mail a.v.hutchinson@gmail.com.

The Student Government Undergraduate Senate passed a bill (07-08-009) supporting our proposal for a Women's Resource Center during their last session. Make sure to contact your representative and tell him or her that we need a Women's Resource Center on our campus and that you appreciate their vote! Also, stop by our office in MGC 262 at any time to sign the petition to show your support.

You can read a copy of the bill in the "public records" section of the website (under branches, then under senate). You can also read a copy of the proposal in the "documents" section of the website.

Join the Republican Women at AU and Women's Initiative for our Professional Development Panel on Thursday, December 6 at 7:30 PM in the Butler Board Room. Listen to representatives from the Independent Women's Forum, the State Department, and our very own Career Center discuss women in the workplace, balancing family life, and what you should be doing now to advance your career! Refreshments will be provided.