The student organization, Women Involved in Self-Empowerment, is working with the Women’s Resource and Services Office for a new approach to help women find their voices through activities on and off campus.

Alicia Kozak, president of WISE, said that throughout the years the organization has played multiple roles on campus. This year she wants the organization to take women’s empowerment to another level.

“Our mission is to encourage leadership, growth, activism and education,” Kozak said. “This year we really looked at these key points and decided the best way to move forward with each aspect.”

Sabrina Laurent, coordinator of WRSO, started the organization in 2008. She developed WISE to give women the opportunity to show leadership and empowerment.

Kozak said that in the past, the organization was very involved on campus with informative tables and events in cooperation with WRSO. She explained that this year she wants to increase involvement within the organization as well through weekly meetings.

“Instead of having business meetings like you go to every week for other organizations, I want our meetings to be focused around the women who attend,” Kozak said. “You will learn different things every week.”

Each week, members of WISE will volunteer to present for the following week with occasional guest speakers. Kozak said the presentations will cover many different things that impact and educate women.

The first event that WISE will participate in is Rape Aggression Defense classes, designed to bring awareness to sexual assault and teach participants about prevention and defense. The classes will be help on Sept. 28, 29 and 30. There will be a sign up sheet in the Student Union on Sept. 27. The classes are free.

“We’re also taking a philanthropy this year and doing work with Chez Hope, a family violence crisis center,” Kozak said. “We’re going to do a Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.”

In honor of domestic violence awareness month, WISE will participate in the candlelight vigil on Oct.11 with the WRSO and the Thibodaux branch of Chez Hope.

There will also be a domestic violence panel on Oct. 25 in the Plantation Suites of the Student Union from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 7:30 to 10 p.m. and Oct. 26 in Le Bijou Theater from 7:30 to 10 p.m.

“We work a lot with Women’s Resource and Services, so anything that office puts on, we get involved as volunteers just because it makes sense for the women on campus to support each other,” Kozak said. “We will also be teaming up with SEALS and another organization to be on a float in the homecoming parade. I think this is going to be a really exciting year.”

Meetings for WISE are held on Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m. in the Lafitte Room in the Student Union. Meetings are open to any woman who wants to attend and there are no dues.