On a quiet Wednesday afternoon in November, amidst the scramble and stress of school in its final weeks, a group of more than 20 students gathered in the Blackstone LaunchPad at Syracuse University over freshly baked cookies and holiday blend teas, dreaming together of how they could achieve professional fearlessness.
The first meeting of EmpowerU, a new LaunchPad community started in partnership with Wo-manly, brought together people from all academic disciplines and career goals across Syracuse University. They had one purpose in mind — to form a community supporting and encouraging each other’s personal and professional growth.
After the first meeting, which brought inspiration and reflection from experiences shared of Kelly Davis, CEO of Wo-manly and Linda Dickerson Hartsock, Executive Director for the Blackstone LaunchPad, the initial members of Wo-manly brainstormed ideas to make this new Syracuse community flourish.
That is precisely what EmpowerU hopes to do to grow this community at the end of this semester into the next with their upcoming plans which include:
Mentor Matching
Mentorship is critical to sustained growth in career and personal aspects of life. EmpowerU hopes to provide career mentors for students across different academic disciplines. If you’re interested in finding a mentor, please fill the form here to be matched with one.
Study Hours
Often, the most powerful thing a community can do for its members is simply share time together in the mundane tasks of everyday. As finals loom and studying becomes an all-day activity, EmpowerU is offering study hours with Claire and Kelly in the LaunchPad Mondays from 12-2 pm, Tuesdays 2-4pm, and Wednesdays from 4-6pm for the next two weeks. Please come by and study over with your favorite LaunchPad tea!
Vision Board Party
As organizations hold their last event to wrap up the semester, EmpowerU hopes to offer a de-stressing, recentering time to help you refocus for finals. Stay tuned for our Vision Board Party, where we’ll gather to create vision boards reflecting on this semester and getting excited for the future!
EmpowerU warmly welcomes you to attend and take advantage of all our opportunities here. Please click here to join and hope to welcome you soon!
Story by Claire Howard ’23, Global Fellow