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Professor Melody Rose, a political scientist who teaches courses on politics and the presidency, is spearheading an effort to create and host a six-day training program at PSU every summer that will introduce 30-35 college women from around Oregon to public leadership, through mentorship and classes with current and former women in office.

The program will be run as an Oregon affiliate of the National Education for Women's (NEW) Leadership organization, with the goals of developing women leaders, creating collaborative partnerships with political women, encouraging women's participation in politics, and inspiring women to take responsibility for political change.

"This program is unique because it demystifies the political realm and its occupants, and because it gives women the hands-on training necessary to lead," said Rose, who will serve as NEW Leadership Oregon's executive director. The program, which will be housed in the College of Urban and Public Affairs' Mark O. Hatfield School of Government, is patterned after programs created at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University in 1991.