More women than ever were elected to U.S. Congress in 2012, yet Michigan lost three seats held by women in the state House of Representatives.
To help boost the number of women serving in local, state, and national politics, Grand Valley State University’s Women’s Center will again host "Ready to Run Michigan," a bipartisan campaign training program designed to encourage women to run for office.
The workshop is set for April 20 on Grand Valley’s Allendale Campus. Cost to attend is $125. To register or for more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/women_cen and click on the "Ready to Run Michigan" button. Call the center at 616-331-2748 with questions.
The workshop will include sessions on campaign planning, fundraising, media training, and messaging. Campaign professionals will lead trainings, and elected and appointed female politicians are scheduled to speak and provide insight.
The keynote speaker is Rebecca Sive, author of Every Day is Election Day: A Woman’s Guide to Winning Any Office, From the PTA to the White House. The book recounts success stories, strategies, and suggestions of women in politics and public affairs leadership positions. Sive, a public affairs strategist, is a regular Huffington Post contributor on women, politics, culture and race.
Shannon M. Garrett, president of SMG Strategies, is also among the presenters. A leading political trainer and campaign strategist, Garrett said Michigan politics needs women’s voices "now more than ever."
"Research shows that female leaders tend to bring greater inclusiveness to decision making, have more empathy for those their decisions impact, and collaborate across party lines to find workable solutions," Garrett said. "These are exactly the traits we could use more of in Lansing, Washington, and in county and municipal bodies in Michigan."
Michigan ranks thirty-sixth in the nation in the number of women serving in state legislatures. There are four women senators (out of thirty-eight seats) and twenty-four representatives (out of 110 seats).
Ready to Run Michigan is supported with funding from Rutgers University Center for American Women and Politics, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, SMG Strategies, Meijer, ITC Holdings Corp., Michigan Democratic Party, Republican Women’s Federation of Michigan, and the Michigan ACE Women's Network.
Source: GVSU News and Information Services
