Otterbein University Hosts Regional Summit Opportunity Nation Summit at Otterbein focuses on Women and the New American Dream

Otterbein University will bring regional and national leaders together with students, educators and community partners on Friday and Saturday, March 9 and 10, at Otterbein’s Westerville campus to discuss the role of higher education in ensuring future opportunities for women.

As one of 12 universities across the nation selected to host an Opportunity Nation summit, Otterbein will create an open collaborative space in which participants will share, imagine and build innovative new pathways for women’s social, political and economic mobility. These discussions will culminate in a strategic regional action plan for higher education and community partners to prepare women to succeed in the 21st century. The plan will be presented at a Town Hall meeting hosted by MSNBC anchor Chris Jansing, an Otterbein alumna.

Participants can choose among five tracks, including conversations about raising awareness of the institutional and structural obstacles facing women; developing new strategies in higher education that support the flourishing of women and girls; cultivating meaningful and sustainable community partnerships that help create more communities of opportunity; training a new generation to become social change agents in their own communities; and unleashing resources to transform the everyday experiences of women and girls.

Highlights of the events currently include a Student Leadership Institute for college students and an Ask Legal Series, addressing key legal issues in social change work. At the IN/vent Tents, people can drop by and vent about obstacles facing women or share strategies to create new pathways for women. A Community Action Poverty Simulation will allow participants to roleplay as members of a family living in poverty or as community service providers. The World Café will engage participants in conversations about the powerful questions that matter to those committed to cultivating more opportunities for women and girls. And participants at the Hunger Banquet will share both the story and the average meal of a low, middle or upper class person as they join others at lunch.

Speakers at the two-day event include regional and national women leaders, including keynote speaker Jo Luck, former president and CEO of Heifer International; national service expert Shirley Sagawa; American Association of Colleges and Universities Senior Vice President Caryn McTighe Musil; and MSNBC anchor Chris Jansing. Kerrii Anderson, former chief executive officer and president of Wendy’s International, serves as honorary chairwoman of the event.

Participants can register at www.otterbein.edu/opportunitynation. Fees for participation are $25 for students, $75 for nonstudents and $10 for Otterbein students and employees. Registration includes attendance to a keynote event on Friday, March 9, and participation in workshops, lectures, lunch, a Hunger Banquet, a World Café, a poverty simulation and a Town Hall meeting on Saturday, March 10.

For more information, visit www.bethechangeinc.org and www.opportunitynation.org.