Bringing women policymakers together across party lines to advance
issues of importance to women and their families.
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2019 began with the swearing-in of the largest number of women ever elected to Congress – 106 (including four Delegates) in the House of Representatives and 25 in the Senate. Through several events so far this year, WCPI has welcomed these women leaders and continued its efforts to bring women policymakers together across party lines to advance issues of importance to women and their families.
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In January, WCPI hosted a reception to welcome the new women Members of Congress and new leadership of the
Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues. Thirty-six women were elected to the House of Representatives during the 2018 election cycle; many of them attended the event, designed to build and strengthen bipartisan relationships.
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Congresswomen Susan Brooks (R-IN) and Lois Frankel (D-FL) passed the Women’s Caucus leadership gavel to Congresswomen Brenda Lawrence (D-MI) and Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), Women’s Caucus Co-Chairs for the 116
th Congress, and Congresswomen Madeleine Dean (D-PA) and Jenniffer González-Colón (R-PR), Women’s Caucus Vice Chairs for the 116
th Congress.
WCPI has held smaller meetings with the new women Members and the Women’s Caucus, and will continue those efforts throughout this Congress.
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The 2019 Congressional Gala followed on the heels of the gavel-passing ceremony, continuing the celebration of the record number of women serving in Congress. The speakers included Speaker of the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi; Women’s Caucus Co-Chairs, Congresswomen Brenda Lawrence and Debbie Lesko, and a number of new women Members. It was an inspirational event, attended by 440 guests, including current and former women Members of Congress, federal agency officials, corporate and labor supporters, senior congressional staff, and representatives of women’s organizations.
Click
here to see photos and a video from the 2019 annual gala.
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The WCPI STEAM Fair and Reception, now in its seventh year, continues to bring together exciting private and public sector efforts to encourage girls and women to choose STEAM fields and careers. More than 250 attendees, including Members of Congress, congressional staff, federal agency officials, and a number of DC, Maryland, and Virginia school-aged girls, visited the 15 interactive exhibits.
We are grateful to our corporate, labor, nonprofit, and federal partners for their continued support of this inspirational event.
Click
here to see more photos from the event.
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100 Years of Women’s Suffrage
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As part of the celebrations commemorating women’s suffrage, WCPI participated in congressional events recognizing the 100
th anniversary of the House and Senate passage of the 19
th Amendment in May and June, respectively. We also followed the path toward ratification with a special series of social media posts marking the dates of each state’s ratification. Click here to follow the story on
Facebook.
Stay tuned for additional events honoring this historic anniversary in 2020!
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Strengthening Women's Leadership
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Women Chiefs of Staff Program
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WCPI hosted several events and meetings as part of its
Joint Session program, administered in partnership with Democracy Fund. The program’s mission is to foster bicameral personal relationships across party lines, build a support network for women chiefs of staff, committee staff directors, and senior leadership staff, and develop bipartisan women’s leadership.
We are looking forward to hosting additional programs later this year.
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Congressional Fellowships on Women and Public Policy
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The sixth class of WCPI Fellows started in January. Hillary Davis, Christina LeBlanc, Mia Mazer, and Courtney Rogers were placed in congressional offices through July, working on a wide range of issues while learning the public policy process.
In June, we celebrated the
2019 Class of Fellows at our annual reception. Members of Congress, congressional staff, family, friends, and fellowship sponsors congratulated the Fellows as they neared completion of the program.
Click
here to learn more about the WCPI Fellowship program.
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Take Our Daughters to Congress Day
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WCPI and Girls Inc. teamed up once again to host our annual
Take Our Daughters to Congress Day. Twenty-one girls from Georgia, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, and Tennessee came to Capitol Hill to shadow women Members of Congress to learn about Congress and women’s leadership. The day gave the girls – ages 12-17 – the chance to see themselves as leaders in their communities and to consider possibly running for office in the future.
Click
here to see more from this year’s event!
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This year, the WCPI internship program grew to include a Communications/Development intern. Launched in early 2019, the new internship focuses on implementing WCPI’s fundraising and communications strategies. Along with the existing General Internship, which provides critical support for our programmatic and policy work, the two paid internships remain focused on encouraging young women who aspire to careers in public policy and service.
We are grateful to Zaria Guignard (American University, Communications/Development Intern, Spring 2019) and Erin Kleinschmidt (Loyola University Chicago, General Intern, Spring 2019), Asha Talia Chadha (University of Virginia, General Intern, Summer 2019), and Melody Magly (George Washington University, Communications/Development Intern, Summer 2019) for their hard work. We look forward to welcoming two more talented young women for the Fall 2019 internship cycle and beyond!
Click
here for more information about our internship program.
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In April, WCPI launched its new, streamlined website that focuses on our key programs and signature events. Designed to better engage our key audiences, the site also maintains its function as a resource for bipartisan information on women’s issues in Congress.
Click
here to visit our homepage and learn more about who we are and what we do!
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WCPI welcomed new leadership and board members in June. Former Vice Chair Anna Schneider (Volkswagen) was elected Chair. Board members also elected Ambassador and former Rep. Connie Morella as Vice Chair, and Kenny Thompson (PepsiCo) as Secretary-Treasurer. LaQuita Honeysucker (United Food and Commercial Workers International) was elected to the Board of Directors.
Amy Plaster (CMS Energy) and Amy Overton Hunt (Goldman Sachs) stepped down from their roles as Chair and Secretary-Treasurer, respectively, after several years of service. Bevin Albertani (LIUNA) was elected unanimously to Board Emeritus status after four years of dedicated service.
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