The first meeting of UISG’s Lean In Circle, a group meant to provide a support space for women, took place Monday night.
By Elianna Novitch
A new organization on campus encourages women to “lean in” to the opportunities presented to them.
On Monday night, some women at the University of Iowa came together to gain peer support, learn how to advocate for themselves, and to celebrate one another’s accomplishments in the first Lean In Circle meeting of the year.
The organization is a UI Student Government-supported organization created to provide women of all backgrounds with a supportive network where they can learn to “lean in.”
The idea behind “lean in” is based on author Sheryl Sandberg’s national bestselling book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead.
The book looks at why women continue to hold fewer leadership positions than men and offers advice on how women can be empowered and achieve their full potential.
“I had read the book last winter break, and it was an eye-opening experience reading through it and understanding the different experiences that women have had all across the nation,” said UI junior Lindsey Rayner, who attended the Lean In Circle meeting. “It really showed me that we are a community that experiences similar things.”
The meeting was led by UISG President Rachel Zuckerman and Vice President Lauren Freeman.
“Really what’s driving these lean-in circles is that we wanted to help other female students on campus achieve their own leadership aspirations,” Freeman said. “We wanted to create a space in which women can talk about the issues that they face day-to-day as leaders and as students. This will be a space of mentorship and support so that we can all be successful.”
Zuckerman and Freeman are the second female pair in UI history to lead UISG as president and vice president.
“I just want to normalize having two women in leadership roles of the UI student body,” Freeman said. “We want to make sure that is isn’t a rarity, that this it something continued after we have served.”
Those at the meeting discussed what it means to lean in, how it can be applied in the organizations they are involved in, and future hopes for the group as they continue to meet in the future.
“I came tonight because I wanted to meet other girls who are on campus actively involved,” UI freshman Abby Simon said. “Lean In is a great way to open up your perspective on the world and talk about things that affect you as a woman with others.”
This Lean In Circle is the first circle to be open to all female-identifying UI students.
“I hope this circle will give me a network and community of other women leaders on campus to bounce ideas off of and to hear about different challenges that women on campus are experiencing that can push me to become better,” Rayner said.
The next few meetings for the circle will take place on Oct. 24 and Nov. 28 at the Women’s Resource and Action Center.
“Bringing these big issues that people like Sheryl Sandberg are talking about to the University of Iowa campus and recognizing that they do exist here is very important,” Zuckerman said. “While we are making progress as women, there is still more to come, and we have to continue fighting for these issues and helping each other be successful.”
