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MADISON – Wisconsin Women in Government (WWIG) announced today that Ambassador Karen Hughes will keynote the organization’s 23rd Annual Scholarship Recognition Banquet on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Hughes is a veteran Republican political advisor from Texas who served former President George W. Bush in a number of key roles, including as White House Counselor from 2001 to 2002.

“We are thrilled to have Karen Hughes keynote this year’s banquet,” said Grace Cudney, WWIG President.

“A woman of many accomplishments, Karen Hughes has led a remarkable life of public service and political activism.”

Hughes served as Counselor to President Bush from 2001 to 2002. Told by the President that he wanted her “in the room whenever a major decision was made,” Hughes worked on a comprehensive range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She also led the White House Offices of Communications, Press Secretary, Media Affairs and Speechwriting.

Hughes also served as U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs from 2005-2007. In that role, Ambassador Hughes dramatically reshaped the State Department’s communications efforts, launched a new focus on America’s “diplomacy of deeds” through health, education and English-teaching programs, and made public diplomacy central in the development of foreign policy.

Hughes’ political experience includes serving as Communications Director of President Bush's presidential campaign in 2000, senior communications strategist on his 2004 re-election campaign, Director of Communications in the Texas Governor's Office, Executive Director of the Texas Republican Party, and numerous political, issue and bond campaigns.

She is the author of Ten Minutes from Normal, a book about her experiences working for President Bush and her decision leave the White House and move with her family home to Texas in 2002. She is currently the Global Vice Chair of Burson-Marsteller, a leading global public relations and communications firm. In her personal time, she has also devoted herself to the cause of breast cancer awareness.

Individual banquet tickets are on sale now for $65 and can be purchased online at www.WiscWomenInGovernment.org. Those interested in attending can also call (608) 848-2321 for more information. Sponsorships are also available, and information on sponsorship levels and how to reserve your table can be found at www.WiscWomenInGovernment.org.

The banquet will begin with a networking reception at 5:15 p.m. The welcome and keynote address will begin at 7:00 p.m., with dinner and the awards program immediately following.

NOTE: Media interested in attending should contact Jessica Erickson at 608-215-0468 or via email at jessicaerickson20@hotmail.com for media credentials.

Tickets

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Reservations

WWIG’s annual dinner is the premier bipartisan political event in Wisconsin, attended by more than 1,000 state and local elected officials, business leaders, public servants, and political enthusiasts. Since 1987, WWIG has raised money to support and encourage women to choose a career in government service. Each year, the organization awards scholarships to women pursuing undergraduate study in public service and administration and government affairs.

2009 – Donna Brazile, veteran Democratic political commentator and strategist
2008 – Jenna Bush, best-selling author & international child rights advocate
2007 – Elizabeth Edwards, accomplished attorney, best-selling author
2006 – Christine Todd Whitman, New Jersey’s first female Governor
2005 – Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former First Lady and U.S. Senator
2004 – Mary Matalin, former counselor to President Bush & Vice President Cheney
2003 – The Capitol Steps, musical political satire
2002 – Linda Wertheimer, award-winning broadcaster for National Public Radio
2001 – Catherine Crier, award-winning journalist for Court TV
2000 – Arianna Huffington, syndicated columnist and author
1999 – Pat Schroeder, former Colorado congresswoman
1998 – Ann Richards, former Governor of Texas
1997 – Lynne Cheney, former Chairwoman of the National Endowment for the Humanities and author
1996 – Dee Dee Myers, former press secretary for President Clinton
1995 – Jeane Kirkpatrick, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
1994 – Ann Compton, award-winning journalist for ABC
1993 – Janet Steiger, former chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission
1992 – Molly Ivins, award-winning syndicated columnist and best-selling author
1991 – Peggy Noonan, columnist for the Wall Street Journal, author, and former speechwriter to President Nixon
1990 - Ellen Goodman, syndicated columnist
1989 – Marie Davis Jackson
1988 – Donna Shalala, President of the University of Miami, former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and former Chancellor of UW-Madison

Ambassador Karen Hughes

Karen Hughes is a senior strategist helping business leaders strengthen their corporate/CEO reputations, achieve business goals through effective communications and shape positive public and stakeholder perceptions.

Since joining Burson-Marsteller in 2008, she has brought to the business world her unique expertise honed over more than 30 years of public policy, communications and political experience, from helping lead winning presidential and gubernatorial campaigns to serving at the highest levels of federal and state government. Before joining Burson-Marsteller, Amb. Hughes was responsible for reaching out to audiences across the world on behalf of America as U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs from 2005-2007. In that role, Amb. Hughes dramatically reshaped the State Department’s communications efforts, rebuilt an agency that had been demoralized by years of budget cuts, launched a new focus on America’s “diplomacy of deeds” through health, education and English-teaching programs, and made public diplomacy central in the development of foreign policy.

Amb. Hughes served as Counselor to President George W. Bush in the White House from 2001 to 2002. Her title of "Counselor" reflected her role as a strategic advisor to President Bush. Told by the President that he wanted her “in the room whenever a major decision was made,” Amb. Hughes worked on a comprehensive range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She also led the White House Offices of Communications, Press Secretary, Media Affairs and Speechwriting.

When she left the White House to return with her family to Texas in 2002, The New York Times wrote: “The rule of thumb in any White House is that nobody is indispensable except the president. But Karen Hughes has come as close to that description as any recent presidential aide.” The Associated Press called her “perhaps the most influential woman ever to serve an American president.” ABC News said Karen Hughes was “the indispensable aide who could walk into the Oval Office and give the president an unvarnished opinion that he trusted.

Amb. Hughes’ extensive political experience includes serving as Communications Director and one of the “Iron Triangle” of three people who led President Bush's successful presidential campaign in 2000, and she traveled with President Bush as a senior communications strategist on his 2004 re-election campaign. She worked on state policy and served as Director of Communications in the Texas Governor's office (1995-1999) and directed communications during Governor Bush's successful campaign for Texas governor in1994 and his campaign for re-election in 1998. She was instrumental in helping develop and shape then-Governor and presidential candidate Bush’s image as a “compassionate conservative.

As Executive Director of the Texas Republican Party from 1992 until 1994, Amb. Hughes managed all aspects of the party's operations from candidate recruitment to fundraising. She served as a public relations consultant and frequent spokesman for the Republican Party in Texas throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. She was the Director of Media Relations for Halcyon Associates, a boutique public relations/public affairs company in Dallas, from 1987 until 1990. She worked on numerous political, issue and bond campaigns in Dallas in the 1980s and early 1990s and was the Texas press coordinator for the Reagan-Bush '84 campaign.

Amb. Hughes started her career as a journalist, working as a television reporter for KXAS-TV (NBC affiliate) in Dallas-Fort Worth, where she covered everything from tornadoes to the Texas Legislature from 1977 until 1984. She is the author of Ten Minutes from Normal, a book about her experiences working for President Bush and her decision to leave the White House and move with her family home to Texas in 2002.

Amb. Hughes is a Phi Beta Kappa and received a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Journalism from Southern Methodist University in 1977. She is an elder in the Presbyterian Church and a long-time Sunday School teacher. She is married to attorney Jerry Hughes and has two children, Leigh and Robert.

WWIG Board Member featured in March Madison Magazine

WWIG Board Member Kelli Thompson is featured on the cover of this month's Madison Magazine along with her mother, Sue Ann and her sister Tommi.

Sue Ann, Unfiltered
By Shayna Miller
March 2010 Madison Magazine

The female head of the prominent and successful Thompson family works hard and takes life in stride, lesson's she's learned from rural roots, motherhood, breast cancer survival and the fight for health Wisconsin women

We look like a bunch of criminals in a lineup with our suits on, don’t we,” jokes Sue Ann Thompson, gesturing to a silver-framed photograph she’s brought out to show me. The mug shots in question are of Sue Ann flanked by former First Lady of America Laura Bush and the Vice President’s wife Lynn Cheney … hardly the hardened-criminal types that come to my mind.

I ask her about another photo on her desk—a nice shot of Sue Ann and middle daughter Tommi with former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. “Oh, that was at a function a few years ago,” she shrugs with hardly a second thought.

Most of us know who Sue Ann is—former First Lady (husband Tommy was governor for fourteen years) who hails from rural Kendall, Wisconsin; dedicated mother of three and grandmother of seven; devoted public school teacher; founder of the Wisconsin Women’s Health Foundation and member of many boards of directors (like Very Special Arts Wisconsin) at one time or another. If you look online, though, you’d be hard-pressed to find any substantial details about her life, other than a few perfunctory paragraphs on where she grew up, how she met Tommy (more on that later), her bout with breast cancer and her work with the foundation.

Few know the “inside story” on Sue Ann—which, ironically, isn’t an inside story at all: As Sue Ann frequently reminds me (and is echoed by friends and her two daughters), “What you see is what you get.”

Sue Ann’s office in the Wisconsin Women’s Health Foundation building on Todd Drive isn’t what you’d associate with a woman who on and off lived in the ornate Revival-style Governor’s Mansion from 1987–2001, donned a sparkling silver sequined cocktail dress to Tommy’s first inauguration, has socialized with former presidents and countless who’s whos, and has joked around with Mikhail Gorbachev (or as she calls him, “Gorby”) at a White House dinner.

WWHF’s offices are housed in an unused WPS building donated by the insurance company to operate rent-free. The mint-green walls and hunter-green carpeting are certainly corporate-looking enough but the décor belies the comfortable feeling the place holds. At the end of a long, nondescript hallway is Sue Ann’s sunny office, where she sits with her scheduler Janeen Meehan and miniature Pomeranian Emmy in tow every day. If that sounds too quaint, Sue Ann shakes up your assumptions right away.

“They call me the shameless beggar here,” she asserts, nodding her strawberry-blond crop. “When you see a need, it’s much easier to ask for money for the needs of other people than, for example, campaigning. I was never good at asking for money for campaigns—I didn’t do that well. In fact, I probably didn’t do it at all! [Tommy] left me out of that part, fortunately.”

An expressive woman who gestures freely and leans forward in earnest throughout our conversations, Sue Ann has a steady gaze. When she holds it you can tell she’s passionate about a topic. For instance, when she speaks of how vital women’s health education is in her life, it’s practically like she’s talking about a family member. Which really, she is: With a mother (who died in 1980), two daughters and five granddaughters, the foundation is as much personal crusade as public service that will no doubt become a large part of her legacy here in the state. Sue Ann, her mother Fern and daughter Tommi also have all battled breast cancer.

Sue Ann Mashak was nine when she found out her mother was very ill, but never knew what was wrong.

“It was one of those things you didn’t ask about, Mother’s breast cancer. I don’t know if it was embarrassment, guilt or what,” she says, shrugging and folding her hands on her desk, her voice a bit softer. “When I would ask, I was made to feel bad about it, like I did something wrong. My father would say, ‘Oh, Sue Ann, we don’t talk about that.’”

Which is exactly why she chose to confront her own breast cancer in 1994 head-on in the media. Diagnosed at age fifty-three during a routine mammogram, Thompson admits she never really thought about the disease despite her family history. The genetic factor simply wasn’t discussed much at that time.

“After the whole thing with breast cancer, there was really no hiding,” she says. “I was First Lady at the time and people are interested in what you’re doing. So they knew almost immediately that I had it ... Shortly after I came out of surgery there were cameras there.”

Tommi says there was a dynamic shift after her mother’s diagnosis—her father Tommy was now the anchor, there to hold the busy and prominent but close-knit Thompsons together.

“It really became day-to-day. I think it was shocking for our family,” remembers Tommi, who now works closely with her mother at WWHF. “It was a strange time because it was the first time my mom seemed to need other people.”

“I hate to say it, but it brought us closer,” says oldest daughter Kelli, now Deputy State Public Defender. “It was very difficult, but she’s a strong person. Had she fallen apart, we would’ve fallen apart. But with Mom it was always, ‘We’re going to beat this, and here’s what we have to do to get through this.’”

Click here to visit the Madison Magazine website for the full article.

Women in Government Seminar Underway

A class of 24 women who include elected officials, lawyers, police, engineers, health officials, state agency workers and legislative aides will take part in the 10th annual leadership training seminar sponsored by the Wisconsin Women in Government and the La Follette School of Public Affairs.

“This is an outstanding class,” says Bridget Pirsch, a La Follette outreach specialist who handles arrangements for the class. “Each year the reputation of the class grows and spreads, and more women around the state see this as a vital step in their professional and personal growth and networking.”

The class was started in 2001 by the WWIG board in partnership with professor Dennis Dresang of the La Follette School and professor Georgia Duerst-Lahti of Beloit College. Other instructors include professor Susan Yackee of the La Follette School and writing consultant Alice Honeywell. The program provides management and leadership training for women working in state and local government. The class also accepts a limited number of women from business and non-profits who interact with government.

Over the course of 32 hours spread over six weeks, seminar participants explore topics such as organizational culture, networking, leadership styles, ethics, gender and power, Wisconsin’s political culture, effective writing and presentation, and career advancement. The instruction includes case studies, readings and writing and presentation exercises.

In addition, participants get advice from current leaders and professionals, including Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser; Laura Rose, deputy director of the Wisconsin Legislative Council; Mark O’Connell, head of the Wisconsin Counties Association; Wisconsin Appeals Court Judge Burnie Bridge; Rep. Kitty Rhoades; and Jessica Tormey, a government relations specialist for the University of Wisconin System.

This year’s class begins with a full-day session on Saturday, January 23, and ends with a graduation ceremony on Tuesday night, February 16.

Lytle looks to level playing field

By Scott De Laruelle
The DeForest Times-Tribune

The “glass ceiling” for women may contain a few more cracks these days, but there is still work to be done to achieve equality in the workplace.

Arlington’s Cheryl Lytle is participating in a seminar to help her and others break through barriers and lead the way for women throughout the state.

Providing opportunities for women is a goal of Wisconsin Women in Government (WWIG), which has offered scholarships to Lytle and 23 other women, who will participate in the 10th Annual WWIG Public Policy Graduate Seminar program. Offered in cooperation with the La Follette Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the goal of the program is to provide management and leadership training to women working in state and local government, and those working in the private sector who interact with government.

Past Board Member Named Director of the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant

Gov. Doyle: Appoints Shannon Loredo as Director of the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant

Contacts:
Laura Smith, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2162
Carla Vigue, Department of Administration, 608-266-7362

MADISON – Governor Jim Doyle today announced the appointment of Shannon Loredo as the Director of the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant.

“Shannon has been committed to helping improve access to higher education for students across the state and she will be an excellent leader for the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant, “Governor Doyle said. “In her role at the Wisconsin Covenant Foundation, Shannon worked very hard to ensure that the Covenant Scholars who have financial need will have help paying for college.”

“I am pleased to join the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant and to work to help get more young people into higher education,” Shannon Loredo said. “Governor Doyle has said many times that every young person, regardless of their income, should have the opportunity to advance themselves through education. I will work hard to ensure that we are doing everything possible to give students the opportunities they deserve.”

Loredo most recently served as Development Director of the Wisconsin Covenant Foundation, where she oversaw the implementation of the Wisconsin Covenant Scholar Grant program. Immediately prior to joining the Wisconsin Covenant Foundation, Loredo served on President Barack Obama’s National Advance Team where she planned and executed events across the country, including the Democratic National Convention in Denver and the Election Night Acceptance Speech at Grant Park in Chicago. She is a former Board member of Wisconsin Women in Government, a non-partisan and non-profit organization which encourages the increased participation of Wisconsin women at all levels of government.

Under the Wisconsin Covenant, students agree to graduate from a Wisconsin high school, take college preparatory classes, maintain at least a B average, and be a good citizen. Any student who fulfills the pledge will be recognized as a Wisconsin Covenant Scholar, receive a financial aid package based on the family’s federally-defined financial need, and be guaranteed a place at a University of Wisconsin campus, a Wisconsin Technical College, or a private institution affiliated with the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

More than 50,000 students have signed the pledge over the past three years.

WWIG Announces Recipients of 2010 LaFollette Graduate Seminar Program

Wisconsin Women in Government announced today that 24 women have received scholarships and are participating in the 10^th Annual Public Policy Graduate Seminar program.

Offered in cooperation with the La Follette Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the goal of WWIG’s Graduate Seminar is to give management and leadership training to women currently working in state and local government and to women working in the private sector who interact with government.

“We are pleased to offer this leadership training once again to women who are committed to continued careers in Wisconsin government,” said Grace Cudney, WWIG President. “Through this course, women are able to gain valuable management, networking, and leadership skills.”

The six-week course will begin on January 23 and ends February 16. As part of the program, a panel of professional women will discuss their careers at an event open to the public on Wednesday, January 27 at the Pyle Center’s Alumni Lounge on the UW-Madison campus. The event begins with a wine and cheese reception at 5:30 p.m., with the panel beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The Graduate Seminar is a program of Wisconsin Women in Government offered in cooperation with the La Follette Institute of Public Affairs at UW-Madison. It is funded through an annual banquet fundraiser, attended by 1,500 state and local elected officials, business leaders, public servants, and political enthusiasts. WWIG has raised money to support and encourage women to choose a career in government service since 1987, and each year awards scholarships to women pursuing undergraduate and post-graduate study in public service and administration and government affairs. WWIG also provides a scholarship to the young woman selected “Governor” at Badger Girls State.

WWIG Encourages Women in Government to Apply for Graduate Seminar Program

Wisconsin women interested in furthering their careers in state government are encouraged to apply for Wisconsin Women in Government’s (WWIG) ninth public policy Graduate Seminar by December 4, 2009.

Offered in cooperation with the La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW–Madison, the goal of WWIG’s Graduate Seminar is to give management training to women in both the public and private sector, and help women in government acquire the skills they need to move into positions of leadership.

“This graduate course is a way to support Wisconsin women who have helped make Women in Government a success,” said Grace Cudney, WWIG President. “Not only will this seminar benefit women and the government agencies and private sector organizations in which they work, it is also a wonderful opportunity to gain management, networking, and leadership skills.”

There are at least 15 full scholarships available for women currently employed in government. Five additional places are reserved for other applicants, including those in the private sector, at a reduced cost of $400. The course will be offered for six weeks in January and February of 2010.

All applications must be postmarked or received by December 4, 2009 and should be sent or e-mailed to:

The Graduate Seminar is a program of Wisconsin Women in Government offered in cooperation with the La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW–Madison. It is funded through an annual banquet fundraiser, attended by 1,000 state and local elected officials, business leaders, public servants, and political enthusiasts. Every year, the organization awards scholarships to women pursuing undergraduate study in government, sponsors the Graduate Seminar to help women managers advance their careers, sponsors the Bonnie Reese Legislative Scholarship, provides scholarships to the young woman elected Governor of Badger Girls State (BGS) and 22 girls to attend BGS, and sponsors five women to attend the National Education for Women (NEW) Leadership Conference in Milwaukee. New this year, WWIG is also offering fall leadership seminars to help women across the state with career and professional development.

WWIG Announces Fall Leadership Seminars Across the State

Join Wisconsin Women in Government for a 1-day leadership seminar focusing on creating a more optimal work life. Learn how to navigate within your organization as well as tips for better communication, time management, networking, team building, and negotiation.

Women at all stages of their careers are encouraged to participate!

The seminar will run from 9 a.m. – 2:45 p.m. Registration will begin at 8:15 a.m. at each of the locations.

The cost for this event is just $30 and includes the seminar fee, lunch, and light refreshments throughout the day. The unique leadership development opportunity is underwritten by the Wisconsin Women in Government.

October 15, 2009
The Waterfront Restaurant
328 Front St S
La Crosse, WI 54601-4023

October 22, 2009
Florian Gardens
2340 Lorch Avenue
Eau Claire, WI 54701

October 27, 2009
Westwood Conference Center
1800 Westwood Center Blvd.
Wausau, WI 54401

October 29, 2009
Foley and Lardner Offices
777 East Wisconsin Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53202

November 5, 2009
NOTE LOCATION CHANGE!
The Madison Club
5 E. Wilson Street
Madison, WI 53703

November 12, 2009
Heritage Hill State Historical Park
2640 S. Webster Ave.
Green Bay, WI 54301

If you would like to register for one of these events, please download the registration form PDF, fill it out, and send it back to WWIG at the address listed on the form or fax to 608 441-1435.

If you would like to pay online for your registration, you can use the PayPal button below. (You don't need a PayPal account to pay online.)

June 11 Networking Event Features Judge Kitty Brennan

Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Kitty Brennan was the featured speaker at a Wisconsin Women in Government (WWIG) networking event in Milwaukee on Thursday, June 11, 2009 at the Milwaukee Athletic Club.

Judge Brennan serves on the District I Court of Appeals in Milwaukee. She served over 14 years on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, three as Chief Judge. She also worked as a private practice attorney and an Assistant District Attorney in Milwaukee. Judge Brennan received her Bachelor of Science and Juris Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin and is active in several statewide professional associations.

WWIG was founded in 1987 to celebrate and support the talented women who choose a career in government service. Its free networking programs feature dynamic women working in government and are an opportunity to network and hear from successful female leaders on opportunities, challenges, and learning moments from their lives.

This networking event was sponsored by Godfrey & Kahn, S.C.

WWIG Honors First-Ever Military Women of Distinction

At its 22nd Annual Banquet in Madison on May 21, Wisconsin Women in Government (WWIG) honored the first-ever Military Women of Distinction. The banquet featured veteran Democratic political strategist and commentator Donna Brazile as its keynote speaker.

"We are proud to honor an amazing group of women who have been trailblazers for women in the military,” said Eileen Pierce, WWIG President. “The Military Women of Distinction Awards honor women from nearly all branches of the U.S. military who have not only been leaders and role models in the Armed Forces, but also in their communities.”

Each year, WWIG honors women who have been trailblazers in a certain sector of government with a First Woman Award. This year, the organization has chosen to honor a Wisconsin woman from different branches of the military with the Military Women of Distinction Award. WWIG solicited nominations from Wisconsin military leaders, and this year’s honorees include women on active duty, in the reserves, and retired from military service.

Karen Hughes to Keynote 23rd Annual WWIG Scholarship Recognition Banquet

Dinner to Be Held Wednesday, May 5 at the Monona Terrace in Madison