By Jennika Baines
SUN Assoc. Editor
AVOW will host a series of seminars entitled “Women’s Formation and Leadership for a Better Society” from June 15 to June 24 in Cazenovia.
This will be the first time the seminar will be presented by AVOW. The organization’s name is an acronym for Advocating the Vocation of Women. It is dedicated to providing a voice for what its director Karen Stein calls “authentic feminism.”
Stein has arranged for faculty from Italy to travel to Cazenovia to lead the seminars. The objective of the program is to foster new academic and cultural contributions to the field of women’s studies. Using an intellectual approach to the subject, the course is intended to help women acquire skills that will help them positively impact society.
According to the seminar’s registration information, the event will aim to “promote a greater awareness of women’s invaluable role in today’s world; provide women with the tools they need to respond to the unique demands placed on them by modern society; empower ‘feminine leadership’ to help bring about a society that promotes the dignity and integral development of every human being.”
The course will include four seminars which, when completed, will lead to a certificate from the Institute for Higher Studies on Women at the Pontifical Atheneaum Regina Apostolorum of Rome.
The first seminar will consider “Feminine Identity, Psychology and Leadership.” It will look into the anthropological and psychological foundations of women. Focusing in particular on the traits characteristic to women, this course will begin to develop ideas of “feminine leadership.”
The second seminar is entitled “Interpersonal Relationships and the Family.” In this seminar, the integral role of women in nurturing and protecting the family will be analyzed.
“Women in the Social Field” will be the topic of the third seminar. By exploring different social situations in which women find themselves today, this seminar will consider how women might define and approach some of the problems which can be found in these situations. The seminar will help women come up with solutions that respect human dignity.
The fourth and final seminar will consider “Leadership, Education and Communication.” This seminar will offer some effective communication tools to help women educate and promote a culture that fosters personal growth.
The fee for the entire course is $1,000, and Stein said those interested in attending only some of the courses would be able to receive a reduced fee. Group rates and scholarships are also available. Special rates for those working in diocesan ministry and education are also available. There is no fee for priests or women religious, but they are encouraged to contact Stein to register.
Rooms are available at Cazenovia College for groups as well as for those who would be travelling to the course on their own. The nightly cost for rooms ranges from $47 per person for a double room with two twin beds and no air conditioning to $60 per person for a suite of three to five bedrooms with air conditioning.
Courses begin at 8 a.m. on June 15 and end at 6 p.m. on June 24. A banquet will be held on the final night.
Those commuting to the course will be required to pay an additional fee of $175. This fee includes lunch, use of Cazenovia College facilities and the on-site weekday facilities. Breakfast costs $6.50 a day, lunch, if not paying the commuter fee, is $10, and dinner is $12. The celebration banquet is $30 and a round-trip journey to the Syracuse airport is $50. All fees will be due June 1.
For more information on the course, contact AVOW at (315) 254-7929 or visit www.dignityofwomen.org.
