Celebrate Women

​Women Empowering Women

Celebrating our 17th anniversary, Celebrate Women has provided community and business leaders, campus and community members, and students with the opportunity to learn, share ideas and network with one another.

Purpose

The purpose of Celebrate Women is to encourage and enhance gender equity by honoring the past, present, and potential accomplishments of women from diverse ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds. We believe this comes through education, enlightenment, and inspiration. This event is planned in conjunction with National Women’s History Month which occurs March, 2023. 

Conference Information

Theme: Women Empowering Women
Date: Friday, March 24, 2023
Venue: OHIO University Lancaster
1570 Granville Pike, Lancaster, OH

Registration

Early bird registration through March 3rd:
$45.00 for Non-Student
$25.00 for Student

After March 3rd:
$55.00 for Non-Student
$30.00 for Student

Non-Refundable

This year's conference is being planned for in-person attendance only the Lancaster campus. 

The Conference begins at 8:00 a.m. with an Opening Panel “Women Empowering Women,” and vendor tables, and includes a Luncheon with Speakers, 4 sessions, and a Keynote Address by Mary Murphy, International Ballroom Dance Champion, Studio Owner, and former Judge for the television show  So You Think You Can Dance.  

Service Project

Every year, Celebrate Women has provided the opportunity to give back to the community through a transformational service experience.

The 2023 service project will be working with New Leaf Justice Enterprises. If participants are interested in supporting our project this year, please read more about New Leaf Justice Enterprises:

New Leaf Justice Enterprises is a holistic primary and secondary violence prevention program that provides economic support and supportive services to individuals/families that have been impacted by trauma, incarceration, and substance misuse.

New Leaf provides all of the following at no cost: 2 years of housing in individual units, access to supported employment/workforce development training, and access to supportive services, childcare, and transportation.

The program components/facilities in each community are clustered into New Leaf Recovery Village microcenters, meaning housing, childcare, counseling, and marketplace locations are located within a 10-minute walk of each other. By providing and expanding housing, creating living wage employment/job training, and providing mobile strengths-based supportive services, the project will be taking steps toward health equity, preventing violence before it ever occurs, and building resilience such that if someone does experience trauma, struggle with addiction, or experience incarceration, there is a coordinated community response to support that individual. 

To donate, visit bit.ly/3YJE1iP or scan the QR code below:

Sponsors

Would you like to be a sponsor for this event?

Please contact Dr. Pamela Kaylor at dawes@ohio.edu.

Keynote Speaker: Mary Murphy

Mary Murphy

Choreographer and Business Owner
Champion Ballroom Academy

Mary Murphy is an award-winning International Ballroom Dancer, a Choreographer, and Business Owner of the Champion Ballroom Academy in California.  Murphy is also known as being one of the best-loved judges from the beginning on So You Think You Can Dance. Mary remained a constant on the show, as a choreographer and judge for 15 years, and is noted for introducing unique forms of praise, which include calling dancers "Hot Tamales" or issuing them tickets on her "Hot Tamale Train.”

Born in Lancaster, Ohio, Mary Murphy graduated from Ohio University with a degree in physical education and a minor in modern dance. 

In an October 2009 interview on Larry King Live, Murphy said that as a young bride and during her nine-year marriage, she was a victim of domestic abuse. 

At Celebrate Women 2023, Mary Murphy is speaking out about her life as a survivor so that other victims could learn from how she endured, but escaped, domestic violence. Mary has an incredible story of overcoming odds and adversity, and is returning to the area more than 40 years after her career began.  

Recent Public Appearances

The Ellen Show | Aired: October 26, 2022