New university center may include women's center

by Mike Jones
Staff Writer

The new university center project might find a new women's center within its walls if Ohio University student senators and faculty members get their way.

Both faculty members and students are pushing to include a women's center in the new university center, but no numbers have yet become official.

"It will deal in a substantial way with many women's issues including women's health, career opportunities for women, social and family issues, et cetera. It's something we needed for years," OU President Robert Glidden said in an e-mail message.

Faculty members and students are looking into other plans to open a temporary women's center at another location before it is permanently housed in the university center. That information is still being planned. OU administrators have not yet finalized any funding plans for the project.

Student Senate President Katherine Smith spearheaded the idea. She said she feels OU administrators are not meeting women's needs and interests adequately in any other area of OU, and a center is of crucial importance to the women on campus. Women need a relaxed environment where they can work, learn and live as they attempt to realize their personal, academic and professional aspirations on campus, she said. "The idea of a women's center will primarily be to educate Ohio University students about women's issues and concerns," Smith said.

The center also will include a resource center to supply a number of health and safety programs for women that are spread throughout campus and the Athens community.

Officials working for the center will bring female speakers or performers to campus to discuss topics from women's health and wellness to women in the workplace, Smith said.

Students also could produce ••The Awakening••, a newsletter concentrating on women's issues at OU and in Athens, in the women's center.

"With the support from the center staff and access to center resources, the newsletter could reach its full potential," Smith said.

Organizations offering leadership training might be coordinated at the center. Smith said this would ensure that strong, innovated female leaders have a presence on campus.

Other reasons for this push include the focus on other Mid-American Conference schools that have women's centers. Bowling Green State University, with one of the largest university centers in the MAC, established its women's center in 1995 and has created six staff positions, plus student workers and volunteers.

"We strive to identify and respond to student-driven concerns and are committed to action which benefits women," Mary Krueger, Director of the Women's Center at BGSU.