For a printed copy, please contact or stop by the Center.
For a summary calendar, please visit our Calendar at a Glance.

Getting Around: Most Women's Center events take place on the UVa Grounds.
>> Click here for full maps of the UVa Grounds
>> The Women's Center is #8 (square E-2) on this UVa web map

National Girls and Women in Sports Day: Virginia WinS
Sunday, February 10
Women’s Basketball: U.Va. vs. FSU
2:00 p.m.
John Paul Jones Arena

This year, the University will honor the founders of the Women in Sports organization for their support and recognition of the athletic accomplishments of girls in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area during a special ceremony at halftime of the FSU basketball game. Tickets for the game may be purchased at the gate or at the U.Va. ticket office in Bryant Hall.

Cosponsored with the Department of Athletics.

Women’s Sexual Assault Recovery Group
Thursday, February 21
4:30–6:00 p.m.
Women’s Center

Sexual assault is a traumatic event that impacts women physically, emotionally, spiritually, and socially. For the second year, this group will offer an opportunity for women who have experienced a recent sexual assault to meet in a safe environment to support one another in the recovery process. We will meet every Thursday at the Women’s Center starting February 21. An individual appointment needs to be scheduled at least two weeks prior to the start of the group. Contact Leize Gaillard (leize@virginia.edu) or Katherine Keller (khkeller@virginia.edu) or call 982-2252.

Black Women’s Leadership Dinner
Wednesday, February 27
6:00–8:00 p.m.
Auditorium of the Harrison Institute/Small Special
Collections Library

This year the Black Women’s Leadership Dinner brings students and faculty together to dine, converse and hear guest speaker, Susan Y. “Syd” Dorsey. Ms. Dorsey earned an undergraduate degree from the University in 1982 and a master’s degree from the University’s Darden School of Business Administration in 1987. She is one of three women currently serving on U.Va.’s Board of Visitors. Additionally, Dorsey has served on the Alumni Association’s Board of Managers as a director of the Walter N. Ridley Scholarship Fund, and on the selection committees for the Jefferson Scholars and Jerome Holland Scholarships. Also a director of the University Alumni Association, Dorsey serves on the Board of Directors for the Virginia High-Tech Partnership, which seeks to link Virginia high-tech employers with students from the Commonwealth’s historically black colleges.

Please RSVP to Elizabeth Bollwerk (eab7f@virginia.edu), or 434-982-2911, by February 20.

Cosponsored with the Office for Diversity and Equity.

New Women Faculty Spring Event–Women in Science
Thursday, March 13
3:00–5:00 p.m.
Commonwealth Room, Newcomb Hall

This year, the New Women Faculty Spring Event will focus on women faculty in the STEM fields (Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).  Dr. Donna Nelson, Associate Professor of Chemistry at Oklahoma University, will speak about her scientific workforce development research, which entailed surveys of faculty gender, race/ethnicity, and rank in "top 50" departments in each of 15 science and engineering disciplines. Dr. Nelson’s presentation will be followed by "roundtable" discussion by University faculty and a reception. Please RSVP to Jordy Rodakis (jnr5b@virginia.edu), or 424-982-2911, by March 6.

Cosponsored by the U.Va. Women’s Center, the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement, and the Women’s Leadership Council.

Women’s Leadership in Spain:
Resistance to Violence in International Perspective
Application deadline: Friday, March 21
Course: July 1–17
3 credits (EDLF 589/SPTR 428)

This course will coincide with the 10th International Interdisciplinary Congress on Women in Madrid, offering students an extraordinary opportunity to learn about the topic of the course in several ways. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to learning about women’s leadership in Spain on issues of violence. Readings will explore gendered resistance to violence and the aftermath of violence, including the process of remaking the self as well as society.

At the conference, presentations, panels, and roundtables will provide direct access to groundbreaking work by scholars and activists, and diverse perspectives from women leaders from across the world. This year the Congress has two themes: Women and Violence and Women and Migration. After the conference, the class will spend a week in Madrid meeting with various
grassroots feminist and activist organizations.

For more information about the program, including cost, syllabus, and itinerary, please visit ISO’s website at www.studyabroad.virginia.edu and look for U.Va. in Spain, or e-mail Erin Conroy (ebconroy@gmail.com).

Very Small Justice—How Family Courts Fail to Protect Abused Children and Their Non-Offending Mothers
A Virginia Festival of the Book event
Thursday, March 27
12 noon
Charlottesville City
Council Chambers

Our courts are mandated to protect the rights of children, but do they? Rarely, say authors Michael Lesher, Esq. and Amy Neustein, Ph.D., (From Madness to Mutiny: Why Mothers are Running From the Family Courts—and What Can Be Done About It); Wendy Murphy, J.D., (And Justice for Some); and filmmaker and author Angela Shelton, (Searching for Angela Shelton, Finding Angela Shelton), who will discuss the systematic failure of family courts to honor “the best interests of the children.”

Moderator: Camille Cooper of Justice for Children.

Cosponsored with the Rape Crisis Advocacy Project of the U.Va. Law School.

Virginia Festival of the Book, Poetry Reading—Heather McHugh
Friday, March 28
2:00–4:00 p.m.
Auditorium of the Harrison Institute/Small Special
Collections Library

This year the Women’s Center and the Virginia Festival of the Book are pleased to present a reading by poet Heather McHugh. Ms. McHugh is the author of numerous books of poetry, including Eyeshot and Hinge & Sign, which have been short listed for the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award respectively. She has served as a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets. Editor of Best American Poetry 2007 and recipient of Guggenheim and NEA fellowships, she teaches at the University of Washington in Seattle and at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina.

Cosponsored with the U.Va. Creative Writing Program.

Celebrate Women Writers Reception
Friday, March 28
4:00–5:30 p.m.
Solarium Room
Colonnade Club

Join us for a joyous celebration of women who have recently published books! This event is open to all and brings together local writers, university authors, participants from the Virginia Festival of the Book, and students. Poet Heather McHugh will be our special guest. Please RSVP to Erin Conroy (ebc4e@virginia.edu), or 434-982-2911, by March 19.

Cosponsored with the U.Va. Creative Writing Program.

Take Back the Night March and Rally
Thursday, April 3
6:00 p.m.
Location: TBA

Join the U.Va. and Charlottesville communities in reclaiming every woman’s right to a life free of violence. This annual event starts with an energizing rally, after which participants march through city streets, down the Lawn, to U.Va.’s Amphitheatre for a survivors’ speak-out. Wear cold-weather gear and bring a small flashlight.

Organized by the Sexual Assault Leadership Council and Feminism Is for Everyone (FIFE).

Celebrate Every Body Week
April 7 -11, 2008

This is an exciting week-long series of events on Grounds for students, parents, and faculty to raise awareness and educate the community about healthy eating, healthy exercising, and healthy body images.

Please check here for more information on the week of events.

Cosponsored with U.Va. Coalition on Eating Disorders and Exercise Concerns.

Perfect Girls and Tough Guys
How Ambition Run Amuck is Making Us Sick and What We Can Do About It
Wednesday April 9th
7:00pm 125 Minor Hall

Why do so many girls obsess about their weight and grades? Why do so many guys feel the need to appear invincible? Who are we all trying to impress anyway? Maria Pascucci, founder of Campus Calm, and Courtney E. Martin, author of Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters, will explore answers to these and other pressing questions about college students and mental health. These two experts, both young women themselves, have a fresh perspective on the reality of daily college life—the stress, the distraction, and the addiction. Come here their critique of our culture of ambition, get some practical tips on how to live successfully and well, and join the conversation to follow.
Reception to follow catered by University of Virginia Dining.

Courtney E. Martin is the author of Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters: The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body, published by Simon & Schuster’s Free Press. Courtney has an MA in writing and social change from the Gallatin School at New York University and a BA in political science and sociology from Barnard College. She is currently an adjunct professor of gender studies at Hunter College. www.courtneyemartin.com

Maria Pascucci is the founder and president of Campus Calm—the award-winning online forum for today’s stressed-out students, parents, and educators. She has a BA degree in English and history with a concentration in writing and women’s studies from Canisius College, Buffalo, New York. www.campuscalm.com.

Supported by the Aimee Boone Fund of the U.Va. Women’s Center.

School of Engineering Student/Faculty Dinner
Wednesday, April 9
6:00–8:00 p.m.
Pavilion II

The Women’s Center Student/Faculty Dinner brings together students and professors for an informal dinner in one of the beautiful pavilions on the Lawn. This semester our dinner will be especially focused on the Engineering School, allowing engineering students to meet with professors from several different fields of engineering. Please RSVP to Patricia Randolph (psr7h@virginia.edu), or 434-982-2911, by April 2.

Distinguished Alumna Day—Christine Gustafson
Friday, April 18
Public Lecture: 1:30–2:30 p.m.
Reception: 2:30–3:30 p.m.
Alumni Hall Ballroom
Please RSVP to Elizabeth Bollwerk (eab7f@virginia.edu), or 434-982-2911, by April 11—for both public lecture and reception.

Christine Gustafson’s philosophy—that it’s important to pair professional success in the for-profit world with service in the nonprofit sector—was birthed during her student years at U.Va., and is among the reasons that the U.Va. Women’s Center selected her as its 16th Distinguished Alumna.

Gustafson is a senior vice president for UBS Financial in Phoenix, Arizona. Prior to this position she worked at Morgan Stanley for thirteen years. She has twenty-two years experience in the securities industry and specializes in wealth management for high-net-worth individuals, family foundations, and charitable foundations. She received her BA in international business and finance in 1982 and has stayed active as a volunteer for the College since joining the Alumni Council in 1989. Ms. Gustafson helped found the College Foundation in 2001 and served as its first president. For the past nine years she has served as a director of the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO) overseeing the University’s $4 billion endowment. She is a member of the UVIMCO’s Executive Committee.

Ms. Gustafson works with numerous civic and charitable groups in Arizona. She has been a member of the Raven Society, the American Heart Association, Fresh Start Women’s Foundation, Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA), and Trends Charitable Foundation. She has served on the boards of the Super Bowl XLII Host Committee, U.Va. Capital Campaign’s Executive Committee, and was chair of U.Va.’s National Campaign Kickoff Gala Dinner. Please RSVP to Elizabeth Bollwerk (eab7f@virginia.edu), or 434-982-2911, by April 11—for both public lecture and reception.

Men’s Leadership Project
Closing Reception
Wednesday, April 23
6:00–8:00 p.m.
Location TBA

Join our first group of Men’s Leadership Project Big and Little Brothers in celebration of their groundbreaking accomplishments this year. Open to all community members, teachers, administrators, faculty, and students at U.Va. and Walker Upper Elementary School who are affiliated with the program.

Young Women Leaders
Program U.Va. Day
Friday, April 25
1:00-6:30 p.m.
Auditorium of the Harrison Institute/Small Special
Collections Library

Big and Little Sisters will come together on Grounds and enjoy a pizza lunch and rotate through three workshop presentations. Following the workshops, at 5:00 p.m., the Young Women Leaders Program (YWLP) invites parents and friends to celebrate a fantastic year! Enjoy refreshments and a presentation by each of the mentoring and alumnae groups. Come see what all of the Young Women Leaders have accomplished this year.