The American Council on Education Women’s Network Indiana, or ACE WIN, hosted its annual conference in Indianapolis on Feb. 26. The ACE Women’s Network has a group in each state that supports and encourages women in higher education by providing resources and programs to help them develop their skills and advance their careers. These annual conferences, held every year since 2022, feature multiple breakout sessions to choose from and different speakers for attendees to learn from.

This year, Anna Groff ‘06, an associate professor of communication, and Sara Method, an associate professor of art, were able to attend. Solidia Brown, Goshen College’s institutional representative, is normally in attendance as well, but was ill this year. One or two institutional representatives are selected from each college in Indiana and appointed to a two-year term. The ACE Women’s Network looks for people passionate about women’s leadership to act as catalysts, apply what they learn, raise awareness and advocate for women at their campus.

Groff took over for Ann Vendrely, the academic dean, as board recorder in 2024. “This is my third time attending this conference. Spending time with Sara Method in the car was a highlight, and in other years I’ve always enjoyed driving with other GC women down to Indy and back,” she said.

Groff spoke about one of the breakout sessions she attended. The session was titled “Dissin’ Black Women: Stories Behind Our Disappearance.” “The three speakers showed a video that summarized their research project, which included 21 focus groups, including over 150 Black women at an institution in Indiana,” Groff said.

The poster for the presentation said that their research concluded with a 52-page paper that “revealed the systemic silencing, ignoring, bullying and ‘pushing out’ of Black women.” Groff says that she found the session to be very powerful due to how it combined personal anecdotes from Black women with quantitative and qualitative data to make a point. “I wish more people from our institution could have been there,” she said.

However, not all of the sessions were just presentations. Groff brought up another more interactive session. She said, “We discussed collaborating across campus for student success. I was able to share what I think GC is doing to the rest at my table and hear similarities from other schools, even ones that are much larger.”

After all of the breakout sessions, there was one keynote presentation for everyone. Groff said, “The keynote speaker this year was quite strong — Stevie Baker-Watson. She was from DePauw and is the associate VP for campus and student wellness … She shared her professional journey.” Groff mentioned one of the meaningful takeaways from this presentation was a slide that said, “It’s ok to stay when it’s uncomfortable. Leave when it’s hurtful. Speak when it’s easier to stay silent. Serve when no one is keeping score.” Groff said that the speaker was “really motivating, and her delivery was very energetic, honest and inspiring.”