An endeavor of InterVarsity’s Graduate & Faculty Ministries (GFM)

Welcome

We are glad you found us, and we hope this page helps you to understand why Women in the Academy & Professions (WAP) exists and what we are trying to do.

• If you are a woman who has attended or is currently in graduate or professional school, Women in the Academy & Professions is for you.


• If you are a woman seeking to let God creatively compose your life using the education and training you have received and the gifts you have been given, this endeavor is also for you.


• If you are someone (male or female) called to encourage and bless the bright, gifted, highly educated women in your life, we are here for you.


• If you desire to see Jesus be a compelling reality to all women, join us as we seek to pursue this goal.

History

This endeavor came about as Graduate & Faculty Ministries (GFM) staff Jay Sivits, Sara Scheunemann, and others began to observe that women in graduate and faculty settings often have not been afforded the same encouragement and equipping in their pursuits of excellence as their male colleagues. They felt that InterVarsity, because of its history, values, and core commitments, is uniquely suited to address these concerns. A survey was conducted in 2003-04, and the first National Director of Women in the Academy & Professions, Sharon Gartland, was hired in 2005 to more formally launch this initiative.

Mission Statement

We are called to equip women and men to be a redeeming influence for women in the academy and professions.

Vision Statement

InterVarsity’s vision is to see campuses renewed, students and faculty transformed, and world-changers developed. By God’s grace, as we work towards the fulfullment of that vision, we hope to see the following outcomes:

• GFM as a whole is strengthened and well-equipped to evangelize and minister to women in graduate school, professional school, and faculty contexts.


• Women called to higher academic pursuits, and the careers that follow, find specific encouragement, support, and practical guidance to be faithful followers of Christ as women in advanced degree programs and beyond.


• Men in graduate and faculty settings will be equipped and challenged to honor God by living out healthy and supportive work/peer relationships with women.


• Many women in academic and professional settings become passionate followers of Christ.


• Women faithfully steward our privileged positions towards God’s purposes of caring for the plight of poor and oppressed women throughout the world.

What Are We Doing?

The Well — The Well is the online gathering place for women to come together and connect, find helpful resources to strengthen and encourage their walk with Christ, and so much more! Come and see for yourself.

Following Christ 2008 — Women in the Academy & Professions is offering a one-day pre-conference event December 27-28, 2008, specifically designed for women — Finding Space for God. See the Following Christ 2008 site for details.

Under the Surface — Much of what the staff of Women in the Academy & Professions is doing is partnering and consulting with the many significant activities and ministries of GFM. All of InterVarsity’s GFM staff are supportive of what we are doing and eager to offer campus fellowship events that are relevant and useful for the women in their midst. Usually, we are just cheering on the good work already happening. Sometimes we are able to offer some new ways to expand the success of an event, as we did in hosting a women’s reception at the Open for Business Conference at Urbana 06 or in providing workshops at various regional conferences or serving on planning committees for Faculty Conference 2008.

Future Plans — We have more dreams than resources to carry them out! We hope eventually to sponsor short-term missions opportunities specific to the needs of women in third-world countries and also to provide spiritual retreats for graduate and faculty women. We also hope (in partnership with Faculty Ministry, Professional Schools Ministries, and local GFM chapters) to offer evangelistic events and resources specifically to connect women to the good news of Christ. If you have suggestions for us for our future plans, please contact us and tell us about them.