Tulane University and Loyola University New Orleans are partnering to host Elect Her, a national nonpartisan training program aimed at empowering and encouraging women to take on leadership roles on and off college campuses.

Women make up half of the population, but less than one in four elected leaders are women. When women run, they win at the same rates as men - the problem is that there aren't enough women running. Research shows that engaging women in politics in high school & college is key to increasing the number of women in public office. More than 56% of Congresswomen got their start in student government.

Developed in 2009 by Running Start and the American Association of University Women, more than 300 Elect Her trainings have been held at 118 schools in 40 states and 4 countries, reaching over 15,000 college students.

The Tulane-Loyola Elect Her training will feature a panel with local politicians and community leaders, including New Orleans City Councilmember Cyndi Nguyen and Louisiana State Court of Appeal 4th Circuit Judge Joy Lobrano, among others. Participants will discuss the importance of women running for office, examine the issues they care about, map out their support networks, craft and deliver elevator speeches, learn about campaign strategy, network with student government leaders on campus, and will leave the training with a concrete plan to run for student or political office.

Elect Her focuses on women's leadership and welcomes all students. All Tulane and Loyola students (male, female, gender non-conforming) are welcome to participate. To register, contact Patricia Boyett, pbboyett@loyno.edu