equipoise news volume 23
| equipoise news volume 23 | spring 2014 |
As I look out my window, change is all around me: catkins on bare aspen branches; tender waves of fresh water where ice had been; green haze across the valley floor. Happy Spring!
With this edition of our newsletter, we embrace change. We’re “noodling” (our fancy phrase for “thinkin’ about”) a new format for this news piece, one that is richer in content, with topics supported by points/counterpoints/middle points of view as we shine a light on the state of Wyoming for women and girls. We’re not quite sure what this looks like yet, but we’re “on the trampoline” (our version of tossing ideas around). Stay tuned!
In the meantime, please enjoy and celebrate the good news from our programs and partners, all doing great things in Wyoming!
Onward!
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Raising Girls
Gender Issues Explored with Expert
Raising Girls was pleased to partner with Journeys School of Teton Science Schools and Teton County Library in hosting gender differences expert Leonard Sax, MD, PhD, in Jackson in mid-February. Dr. Sax was indefatigable, delivering six 1-2.5 hour presentations in a 24-hour time span! His talks revolved around themes discussed in his three bestsellers: Why Gender Matters, Girls on the Edge and Boys Adrift.
Dr. Sax addressed such topics as how to cultivate resilience in your child; the transfer of authority from parents to kids; the disintegration of parent-teacher alliances; risk factors associated with growing up white and affluent; and the impacts of social media and video games on youngsters. Most of his presentations were open to the public, though one was geared specifically toward educators and the role of gender in the classroom.
Handouts from Dr. Sax’s six presentations are available here. Videos of certain presentations are available at this site, as well.
Raising Girls is grateful to The Equipoise Fund, the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole and St. John’s Medical Center for helping underwrite Dr. Sax’s visit!
Thrive
Girls Yoga Retreat
Thrive is co-hosting an “awesome” yoga retreat for young girls. In concert with Shine Om Retreats, the June 14 – 16 event in Alpine, Wyoming will include crafts, dancing and possible pillow fights for girls aged 12 to 15. Additional breakout sessions on body image, nutrition, self-confidence and managing stress will round out the schedule.
Registration is underway, and a minimum of six and a maximum of ten participants is necessary for the event to occur.
More information is available here.
Womentum
Womentoring Continues to Make Strides
Womentum is currently seeking mentees and mentors for the 2015 Womentoring program. Women who have lived or worked in Jackson Hole for at least two years can apply to be mentees or mentors. Priority consideration will be given to applicants whose goals are in alignment with Womentoring’s objective to inspire its graduates to increase community engagement and leadership as well as self-awareness. You can also nominate potential mentors. An ideal Womentoring mentor recognizes and is able to articulate her strengths, and she exercises her voice and seeks opportunities to create change.
If you’d like more information on Womentoring, the online application and nomination form are available on the Womentum Web site.
Wyoming Women’s Legislative Caucus
Events Encourage Women to “Leap into Leadership”
“Nellie Tayloe Ross was the nation’s first female governor but she was Wyoming’s last,” says WWLC chair, Representative Mary Throne. “I believe the participation of women in elected office elevates the quality of political debate and decision-making, and the Wyoming Women’s Legislative Caucus encourages women to run for elected office and expand their influence.”
On May 8th in Rawlins, Wyoming and May 9th in Jackson, WYWF and WWLC hope to have encouraged more women to take on professional and civic leadership positions at local Leap into Leadership workshops. These events give the state’s women the tools to take on larger leadership roles, including information about local boards and elected positions. Trainer Shannon M. Garrett uses a nationally proven curriculum developed by VoteRunLead that empowers participants to network, seek local women mentors and build coalitions. More than half of the graduates of local Leap into Leadership workshops held around the state since 2011 said they were contemplating a run for political office afterwards, and 100% said they would consider serving on a volunteer board in the future.
Event sponsors include The Equipoise Fund, Brimmer Communications, Community Foundation of Jackson Hole, Joe Albright & Marcia Kunstel, Town Square Inns, Altitude, Flitner Strategies, High Country Linen Services, Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce, m.e.t. solutions, Silver Star Communications, Snake River Roasting, Teton County Democratic Party, Teton County Republican Party and the Wyoming Community Foundation. The nonpartisan Wyoming Women’s Legislative Caucus promotes women in the Wyoming legislature through support and leadership development.
Wyoming Council for Women’s Issues
A Year of Action for the WCWI
The Wyoming Council for Women’s Issues participated in a strategic planning retreat on March 29 in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Mary Randolph, coordinator of the Wyoming Main Street program and director of the Wyoming Rural Development Council, facilitated the meeting. Future quarterly meetings are scheduled June 28th in Casper, October 4th in Riverton, December 13th via videoconference, and March 7th, 2015 in Cheyenne.
WCWI will also partner with Governor Matt Mead and the Wyoming Women’s Foundation to issue a Wyoming Equal Pay Day Proclamation on June 24th; send three members to the 44th annual National Association of Commissions for Women Conference, July 23rd – 26th in Sarasota, Florida; host its ninth annual Young Women’s Career Fair in partnership with Casper College on September 19th; and help sponsor the Wyoming Latina Youth Conference, October 17th – 18th in Cheyenne. Dates have not yet been set for the Council’s annual Woman of Distinction and Employer of Choice award presentations, and a 2015 statewide women’s conference to celebrate its 50th anniversary is in the planning stages. In late February, WCWI helped sponsor the statewide Legislative Caucus’s Leap Into Leadership.
You can keep up with this ambitious group through their Web site.
Wyoming Women’s Foundation
Busy Spring for the Foundation
The Wyoming Women’s Foundation and the Wyoming Women’s Legislative Caucus are wrapping up the local Leap into Leadership workshops held in two communities in Wyoming each year. As noted in the news from the Caucus, the workshops were held in Rawlins and Jackson this May. Partnering with VoteRunLead.org, the workshops offered training in how to run a campaign, communication and messaging, and leadership development. Local women leaders were also featured in panel discussions. Generous sponsors like the Equipoise Foundation helped keep the cost of the workshops affordable and offer scholarships to be sure everyone who wanted was able to attend.
During the legislative session, WYWF monitored legislative activity affecting women and girls through its weekly Legislative Watch. If you wish to be included in this weekly email in the future, please email info@wywf.org.