What We Do

The Women in Leadership Series consists of a series of programming that emphasizes the role of women in leadership positions. One format of the series features two components: a lecture and a dinner. The first component of the program is an hour long open lecture with a question and answer period. The speaker should address the barriers she encountered and what mechanisms or strategies she used to overcome those obstacles to achieve her success.The second component, a dinner held at La Terrasse, will include ten undergraduate females selected on the basis of their diverse interests. The dinner will provide a personal and informal environment where open discussion can occur between the students and the invited speaker.

The WILS Freshman Women's Dinner is an annual event that gathers female student leaders from a variety of campus activities to discuss their various areas of interest, and encourage freshman women to become involved in campus events from the outset of their college career. By having each student leader speak, followed by an informal dinner where freshman can ask questions and meet upperclasswomen with similar interests, a comfortable environment of learning is created.

Another annual event, the Penn Firsts Dinner, recognizes the impressive advancements of Penn female faculty members in their careers. By interacting with the women pioneers of the Penn community, undergraduate women can better understand the opportunities and challenges women have faced in academia.