UC's Advancement Program for Women Reaches Out to Five Other Institutions

Starting in January 2004, a program that was initiated at the University of Cincinnati to move women into advanced positions in higher education will branch out to other campuses in Greater Cincinnati. In all, 36 women from the UC and five other Cincinnati campuses will participate in the program that was started by UC's Women’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD).

Cincinnati State, Miami University, the College of Mount St. Joseph, Northern Kentucky University and Xavier University will join UC in selecting participants for the 2004 WILD program. Each will send six women to this year’s sessions.

Since WILD’s inception in 1999, 64 UC women have completed the program. Nine of them have received promotions, and many others have gained new leadership experiences as a result of their participation. Liberal Education  magazine, published by the American Association of Colleges and Universities, featured the successful program in its winter 2003 issue.

Branching out to other campuses seemed like the next logical step in the institute’s growth, says Phyllis Eveleigh, WILD’s director. “A good part of the reason was to increase the network for women. We have always gotten good feedback from the women who participate about how great it is to learn about parts of the University of Cincinnati outside their own areas. We’re aware that there are other universities out there that have a totally different culture from us – the small religious institution like the Mount, the private university like Xavier. There is so much to be learned about how these other institutions operate. Participants will now be able to increase their awareness of higher education at a variety of venues.”

WILD was founded under the name Women’s Leadership Program, with financial support from UC’s Office of the President, two vice presidential offices and the two provostal offices. It grew out of the UC Women’s Leadership Conference when a steering committee formed to pursue it.

The 2004 session begins Jan. 12 with separate orientations for each institution’s own participants. Then on Jan. 26, the program takes off with the first combined session, which meets at Northern Kentucky University and involves all 36 participants from the six campuses. The rest of the schedule brings the participants together every other Monday evening through April 26 to learn about institutional mission and vision, career mapping and development, leadership styles, team building, fund raising and advancement, and legal and national issues. The program location will rotate among the participating institutions.

Another feature of WILD at UC has been internships, which pair participants with mentors. Details about whether internships will be part of the multi-campus WILD are still being discussed.

At UC, 20 WILD participants have been approved for internships. The 17 who have already completed their internships have given back nearly 3,000 hours of service to UC in special projects. Karen Sullivan, managing director for Finance and Budget at UC, is completing one of those internships this quarter. She has been paired with Kristi Nelson, vice provost for academic planning, and served on a committee to recommend new policies for UC’s summer session.

“What a chance!” Sullivan sums up her experiences. “It’s one thing to go to the seminars, but the internship is what makes it worth it. We’re all so busy, you’re afraid to commit because of time constraints. But it’s been a great way for me to work on the academic side, which I had never done before. I got to meet a lot of new people, it gave me a lot of confidence, and it gave me some new exposure.”

Applicants for the UC program must be grade 18 or higher and have a master’s degree or equivalent professional certification. Selected participants for 2004 will be announced shortly.

Perhaps the most telling evidence of WILD’s impact is the nine promotions received by its previous participants. Those promotions include:

• Dorothy H. Air, Associate Senior Vice President for Entrepreneurial Affairs
• Susan M. Bacon, Associate Director, Institute for Global Studies & Affairs
• Gisela M. Escoe, Associate Dean, McMicken College of Arts & Sciences
• Linda Graviss, Associate Treasurer
• Karen Monzel, Associate Dean, DAAP
• Marisue Naber, Chair, Raymond Walters College-Nursing
• Jean Neils-Strunjas, Interim Associate Dean, College of Allied Health Sciences
• Palavi Patel, Director, Campus Service Operations
• Mary R. Stagaman, Assistant Vice President, Community Relations and Marketing

For more information or to apply, conact: Phyllis Eveleigh, 513-556-4157
Past program participants: http://www.uc.edu/wild/classparticipants.htm