Clemson Women’s Studies Program to host women’s leadership conference

Published: October 2, 2012

By Molly Collins

CLEMSON — Clemson University’s Women Studies Program will launch W.E. Lead: Women Empowered to Lead with a series of events to take place on and off campus Oct. 25-26. The events mark the 25^th anniversary of women’s studies at Clemson and will focus on leadership and mentoring the next generation of women.

Guest speaker Nell Merlino will present “Leadership Lessons from the Queen,” the inaugural W.E. Lead event from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 25 at the Poinsett Club on East Washington Street in downtown Greenville. Merlino is founder and president of Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence, a not-for-profit provider of resources for women to grow microbusinesses into million-dollar enterprises. Merlino also is the founder of Take Our Daughters to Work Day and several other projects focused on the involvement of women in business.

Diane Perpich, associate professor of philosophy and director of women’s studies at Clemson, hopes that the event will inspire networking among businesswomen in Greenville that will lead to an ongoing relationship with Clemson University.

“We want to connect business women in Greenville and Clemson students in ways that are productive for both groups,” she said.

On Oct. 26, W.E. Lead on Campus: Mentoring the Next Generation will take place in the Self Auditorium at Clemson’s Strom Thurmond Institute. The program will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will conclude with lunch on the Strom Thurmond Institute Plaza at 1 p.m. The event will celebrate the anniversary as well as launch the new leadership initiatives on campus.

“We are celebrating by looking to the future and mentoring the next generation,” said Perpich.

Aimed at undergraduate and graduate students, the on-campus event will feature a plenary address by Merlino, as well as guest speakers from SistahDoctahs and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) field mentors from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association and the Society of Women Engineers.

Both events are free and open to the public. To register, send an email to womenlead@clemson.edu with the subject line “Event Registration.”

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