Though it’s only been around since June, the Minority Women in Leadership Commission has made quite an impact on Eastern Michigan University.
The nonprofit organization’s mission is to empower all women’s liberation movements while promoting unity in order to improve leadership capabilities. They also aim to expand the opportunities for women in their social, economic and political lives.
President Dorothea Thomas built the commission from the ground up.
“It started out as a smaller, intimate group,” director of membership Misha Byrd said. “But now there’s a long list of women interested in joining.”
While the wheels of progress are in motion for the new organization, they aren’t wasting any time. The Eastern-based group has already participated in a number of volunteer
activities on- and off-campus.
They’re very involved in the Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor communities, mentoring girls between the ages of 9 and 12.
The MWL is also partnering with the Detroit YMCA and Best Buddies and are looking into starting a charm school for elementary-age girls in the Ypsilanti area.
EMU will be catering a banquet the MWL is organizing to honor the mentors and some of the girls who were mentored in the various programs.
They are also hoping to attend the Women’s Leadership Conference in Washington D.C. in April.
A big event for the MWL on campus was the Tribute to Rosa Parks and Other Unsung Heroes talk they organized on campus for Martin Luther King Jr. day.
They also hosted the first of a new series in November, the Not a Hair Out of Place panel, that informed the student body of the different types of hair of different ethnicities and will be hosting another one in March.
Continuing with the idea of women’s hair, the MWL is currently organizing their first-ever hair show.
The third Not a Hair Out of Place event, the Hair Showcase will be held on at 7:30 p.m. Mar. 6 in the Student Center Ballroom.
The free event will be featuring hair through the decades, from 1950 to the modern days, with men and women from all different ethnicities.
The only people who know the specifics are the hairdressers. The looks of the models will be a surprise to everyone in the audience, including the girls in the MWL.
Former EMU student Taylon Taylor, who now styles hair, is working with the MWL in the Hair Showcase.
She, along with three other hairdressers, will be styling the models’ hair to replicate the styles of America throughout the past half century.
The MWL held a model casting call for EMU men and women on Monday.
The Showcase will feature EMU students who made the cut, as well as some of Taylor’s clients and classmates.
“We went from 200 seats to 700,” Byrd said. “We expect a great turnout. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
In addition to giving some more exposure to a new organization on campus, it’s sure to be an interesting night, full of fun and fashion.
For more information, visit the Minority Women in Leadership’s webpage at www.mwlcommission.wordpress.com.