By: Rhoni Basden, VWW Executive Director In 1965, a Presidential Executive Order called for equal opportunities for women and minorities to be hired for state contract work. These minimum targets, set at 6.9% female and from 0.8% to 17.3% minority participation, have yet to be met by any state in… Read More
Vermont Works for Women (VWW) was back at The MINT for the graduation of our tenth Trailblazers class, training 91 women and gender-expansive folks in the skilled trades since 2019. Eight awesome women spent the last seven weeks learning construction skills. They gained valuable hands-on experience, building their self-confidence… Read More
By: Marisa Keller, Trailblazers Graduate This story was originally published by 350vt.org Photo by Marisa Keller Since I showed up to a 350Vermont meeting six years ago and said, “I’m a writer; what can I do?” most of my climate justice work has revolved around words—composing letters to the… Read More
Opening remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen On Saturday, October 1, VWW staff members Paige Ruffner and Missy Mackin presented at the 25th annual Women’s Economic Opportunity Conference (WEOC) hosted by Sen. Patrick Leahy at the Vermont Technical College campus of Vermont State University. Each year this… Read More
By: Julia Bessy, Program Specialist for Justice-Involved Services Vermont Works for Women (VWW) is bringing back two program offerings for women incarcerated at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility: Enrichment Night and Build Your Skills. State Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale speaking at Enrichment Night in 2017. Enrichment Night invites outside companies… Read More
By Jillian Scannell, Development and Communications Coordinator Trailblazers practice working with circuits. Vermont Works for Women marked another milestone as we graduated our first cohort of Trailblazers: Green – our training program that covers core renewable energy, construction, and solar installation skills. In seven weeks through a combination of… Read More
By Elaine Ezerins, Communications and Marketing Manager The excitement was palpable as buses began to pull up to Vermont Technical College’s campus in Randolph, VT in the early hours of Thursday, October 6. High school girls and gender-expansive youth were arriving from all over the state – representing 12 of… Read More
Op-ed by Rhoni Basden, Executive Director of Vermont Works for Women and Cary Brown, Executive Director of Vermont Commission on Women On August 26, 1920, the 19th amendment to the US constitution was certified, and women’s right to vote was finally recognized. We celebrate this as Women’s Equality Day, and… Read More
By Elaine Ezerins, Communications and Marketing Manager This summer, Rosie’s Girls camps returned to the workshop, creating a safe, empowering space for middle school campers to use power tools, welding equipment, and a plasma cutter to build and fabricate original creations. Vermont Works for Women (VWW) held two camps: Rosie’s… Read More
By Elaine Ezerins, Communications and Marketing Manager Participants celebrated their successful completion of Vermont Works for Women’s (VWW) culinary training program on Thursday, June 30 with a graduation ceremony and dinner at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility (CRCF), Vermont’s sole prison for women. June 30 Graduation at Chittenden Regional Correctional… Read More