Annual leadership program for undergraduate women to be held June 1–6
The Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center at the University of Maine will host an annual six-day undergraduate student leadership program for women that aims to educate, engage and empower young leaders.
Maine NEW (National Education for Women) Leadership will run Thursday through Tuesday, June 1–6 at the Orono campus with trips to Augusta and Skowhegan.
A group of 28 college students with a variety of majors from 14 institutions around the state, including UMaine, will take part in the ninth residential conference that aims to strengthen political skills and build civic engagement.
Danielle Conway, dean and professor of law at the University of Maine School of Law, is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the networking and reception dinner Friday, June 2 at Wells Conference Center.
Throughout the program, students will participate in workshops hosted by women leaders from politics, business and education. The students will learn skills including public speaking, networking and how to advocate for a cause and run for public office.
Scheduled speakers include Meredith Strang Burgess and Jane Knapp Sexton, former legislators and UMaine alumnae; Maulian Dana Smith, a member of the Penobscot Nation Tribal Council and former Margaret Chase Smith Policy Scholar at UMaine; Jeanne Hulit, former acting administrator and regional administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration; and Emily Haddad, dean of the UMaine College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
As part of the conference, students develop a political action project surrounding topics presented before the Maine Legislature. Every year, participants are given a bill to research before holding mock opposing press conferences and a legislative committee hearing. This year’s project will focus on LD 49, An Act to Improve Science and Engineering Education for Maine Students.
Maine graduate students and former Maine NEW Leadership participants Marie-Laurence Georges and Abby Roche will serve as interns during the conference.
On Monday, June 5, participants will travel to the State House in Augusta, where they will observe the Senate and House in session, as well as meet State Treasurer Terry Hayes and legislative leaders.
That evening, they will visit the Margaret Chase Smith Library in Skowhegan for a tour of Smith’s home and an informal dinner with higher education leaders from their campuses.
Maine NEW Leadership is offered by the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center, which fundraises to support the program and provide it free of charge to participants. Maine NEW Leadership was developed to address the underrepresentation of women in politics and is designed to provide students with skills to help them become the next generation of effective civic and political leaders. It is Maine’s only statewide leadership program for undergraduate women.
More information about Maine NEW Leadership is available online or by contacting Mary Cathcart at 581.1539, mary.cathcart@maine.edu; or Susan D’Angelo at 581.1648, susan.dangelo@maine.edu.