Ohio Women in Government hosted its Annual Meeting December 8, 2017, to celebrate the organization's success in 2017. OWIG was joined by members of the Columbus Women's Commission who shared a brief presentation of their accomplishments and vision for 2018. Below are excerpts from OWIG's year in review.
Membership Report
This past year was OWIG’s best yet in terms of membership engagement. We recruited a historic total of 93 paid members, a 230% increase over 2016. Our impressive membership rolls include state county & city employees, lobbyists, representatives from higher education, women in the nonprofit sector, city councilmembers, county-wide electeds, state representatives, and - after being keynote speaker at our 2017 kickoff event - Congresswoman Joyce Beatty.
OWIG was also excited to roll out its Member Feature program this year, which continues to provide an opportunity for us to highlight members who are especially engaged in the work we are doing or have recently celebrated a professional accomplishment.
Non-Profit Status
As of June 16, 2017, OWIG is a corporation recognized by the IRS as exempt from income tax under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3).
With this designation, we are now permitted to solicit charitable donations from the public. The ability to fundraise will enhance OWIG’s ability to promote the educational development of women in Ohio government.
Education and Community Impact
OWIG members had access to a number of educational events throughout 2017, many of which supported other women in our community. We held a breakfast networking event at Bottoms Up Coffee in Franklinton in February, where we learned about and supported the social enterprise's mission of preventing infant mortality through providing workforce development and diapers for new moms. Women's leadership expert Julie Graber led a wage negotiation workshop for OWIG members in August at Bricker & Eckler. After learning about the unique challenges women face advocating for themselves in the workplace, we practiced our newly learned negotiating tools with one another.
In October, we partnered with Dress for Success Columbus for an educational Wine Night in support of their mission. The event registration fee was donated and members were encouraged to bring new or gently used clothing or accessories to donate. OWIG Steering Committee member and Dress for Success Board member, Nikki Reiss, shared information about DFS’ mission. We also enjoyed presentations by Congresswoman Joyce Beatty and Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor about their experiences as women in public office, with special opportunities for Q&A after each presentation.
Communication and Engagement
In 2017, OWIG relaunched our Facebook presence and launched a LinkedIn Company Page and members-only group. We have grown our social media follower base by over 30% and amplified our ability to communicate with members.
OWIG looks forward to a successful 2018.