March is Women’s History Month, and in honor of the occasion, we are spotlighting the Gayle R. Davis Center for Women and Gender Equity. The CWGE is dedicated to teaching about and advocating for gender justice, which is defined as “an ongoing process, rooted in intersectionality, to dismantle systems of oppression in all spheres”.

Since its inception as the GVSU Women’s Center, the Center for Women and Gender Equity has made it its mission to “create meaningful learning about gender and to advocate for gender justice through the education, engagement, and empowerment of students and the greater GVSU community.” The center does not just help women across campus; its mission is to support all genders.

“Some of the supports we provide are violence prevention and response services, non-academic advising, and other student groups such as NIARA, which is a social support program for women of color,” says Jessica Jennrich, the Director of the Center for Women and Gender Equity. Jessica is especially proud of their upcoming annual event EqualiTEA, a tea party that has been fostering important conversations on global issues for nearly 20 years.

The CWGE is also in charge of Replenish, a program that not only assists students struggling with food insecurity but also acts as a place “where students can commit to service learning about food justice, access and campus-based hunger,” Jessica says. Food justice and gender justice closely intersect, but the most important thing to the CWGE is that no student goes through hardship alone. The variety of programs hosted by the CWGE have had a positive impact on many students from all walks of life.

Over the years, the CWGE has hosted an invaluable service of providing advocacy and support to all students, especially our campus’ most vulnerable populations. The Center relies on a lot of help from students: it accepts donations of food and hygiene products for Replenish; hires students for its CWGE Ambassadors program and other internships; and asks that everyone on campus educate themselves on important social issues. Find out how you can take on an active role through the CWGE’s Get Involved page, found on the website.

We are proud to host the Center for Women and Gender Equity on our campus and look forward to many more years of insightful, empowering programming. If you are ever in need of help, know that the CWGE is there to offer you support and guidance.