Our WiSE Space and History
The WiSE Center opened in the fall of 2015 in Room 202 in the McLaury building. Since its inception, the Center has promoted gender inclusion through co-curricular programming, a women's peer mentoring program for all first year students (freshmen and transfer), and advocated on gender issues throughout the
university and community. The Center’s primary focus has always been service to undergraduate and graduate students.
It's your space -- hang out between classes, study, have coffee, use the printer, refrigerator or microwave. (We often have snacks!)
WiSE History
The WiSE program began as an NSF-funded program in the late 2000's, as a platform to provide professional development and mentorship to women students. The program went dormant in 2010 and then re-launched in 2013. The program has expanded since its re-launch to be an extremely robust
support mechanism for current women students, with an outreach arm as well as significant efforts in recruiting women students.
Constructive feedback from women students in the last five years included a strong desire for a physical space on campus devoted to helping women students find resources and study. In the fall of 2015, those comments came to fruition with the opening of the WiSE Center. This center is
the first of its kind among the South Dakota Board of Regent schools.