Before the meeting officially started, the board members discussed job interviews and internship opportunities, and at one point Mellsop eagerly talked about her own recent job interview in which she was grilled about her ability to use Microsoft Excel.
“If you don’t have an internship for the summer yet, it’s really important to start looking now,” Mellsop said as the meeting began.
The members all seemed to be in a good mood, lightheartedly joking around with each other yet doing so with a sense of professionalism that made them seem like established businesswomen.
The central goal of the meeting was to discuss events that WiB is to coordinate and host in the coming weeks and months. One of the main events, occurring next week on February 26 is called Women in Finance, in which attendees will be able to network with successful women in finance coming from companies such as Chase, PNC, and PBS Wealth Management.
“I think we’ll have a good turnout because people always like networking opportunities,” said Rogers about the Women in Finance event.
“It’s for everyone- regardless of gender, regardless of major,” Rogers continued.
Rogers and the rest of the board members made sure to highlight the fact that the event is about creating opportunities for anyone and everyone.
The WiB club itself, founded in 2017, lists inclusiveness as one of its core values. Additionally, WiB strives to “provide a values based-network” to promote “leadership development and future opportunities in the business community,” as stated on the club’s website.
Perhaps the largest event of the year for WiB is their Women of Wisdom event, which is occurring on May 14. While the event is still in the early stages of planning, Martinez mentioned that there will be eight table hosts and five panelists offering their knowledge to those interested in pursuing business as a career.
Martinez said that representatives from Northwestern Mutual and PNC are a “definite yes” to attend the event, while Charles Schwab’s appearance is still up in the air.
“Basically there’s the panelists at the front, and then there’s tables with different themes (…) such as startup tech space, banking, and accounting,” explained Martinez on the Women of Wisdom event.
“This is the third annual event, so people look forward to it and people know about it,” said Martinez. “It’s an awesome event. People consistently enjoy it.”
The meeting continued with its socially-conscious theme as Martinez discussed when in April to plan the annual sexual assault awareness month 5K race, also known as the SAAM 5K. The board also discussed assigning a date to a self-defense course that WiB is hosting in collaboration with Nicole Evangelista, a fellow DU student, and Jiu-Jitsu purple belt.
Throughout the course of the meeting, DU WiB proved that they mean business, but they also mean even more than that. WiB intertwines networking opportunities with important societal issues, all while facilitating the need for inclusiveness and diversity both in and beyond business.
The MFJS Reporter -- Winter 2020 M-W 