On Feb. 9, the University Women’s Council met via zoom for their monthly discussion. Led by Dr. Dong Isbister, the meeting began with member introductions. After the minutes from the previous meetings were approved, the council started reviewing updates from various committees on campus.

The Academic Staff was the first to announce updates, noting the arrival of various new staff on campus such as John Dunning, the new associate Vice Chancellor of Institutional Research. There is also a new environmental health and safety manager as well as a new Humans Resource Coordinator. Following this update, it was announced that the Dean of Students will send out a sexual violence survey to a random sample of 3500 students on March 1. Those who complete the survey will be eligible for prizes. The survey is titled “Your Voice Matters – Tell UW-P What You Think” and it will help in determining which resources to provide to students.

The Awards Committee followed with their updates regarding the upcoming Woman of the Year Celebration in March. Nominations have been completed, but they are still searching for nominees for the Woman of Color Award.

A trending topic brought up multiple times was the Midwest Culturally Inclusive Conference discussion on COVID-19 Burnouts in Women. This discussion will be a public event held on March 23.

MCIC provides workshops, presentations and more activities that focus on pertinent issues related to the community. Those interested in attending can register for the MCIC for free.

Another event mentioned among updates was the fifth anniversary of Women and Gender Studies at UW-Platteville, which will take place on Mar. 3 and will include a keynote speaker alongside a panel discussion.

The meeting ended with a note of Black History Month events on campus hosted by the BSU throughout February. There will be an array of events for students to attend all February long.

The next University Women’s Council meeting will be Mar. 9 via Zoom.