Overcoming Hurdles for West Virginia Women

By Tessa Chafin

Studies have shown that women are just as likely to win in elections as their male counterparts, women vote just as often as men, and, on top of this all, women make up more than 50 percent of the people in West Virginia.

All of these are reasons why having only 18 women, a mere 14 percent, representing more than half of the state’s population in the West Virginia Legislature, is a dangerous and mystifying issue faced by the Mountain State today. However, it is exactly this issue, along with others plaguing West Virginia women, that the West Virginia Women’s Commission (WVWC) is working to fix.

Created in 1977, the WVWC has stood staunch in its fight to eradicate injustices and inequalities for women of all types. In a simple mission, the organization’s goal is to promote “the status and empowerment of all West Virginia women through advocacy, research, education and consensus building.” The commission has five pillars that encapsulate the issues on which it focuses: the well-being of children, health, economic empowerment, education and the prevention of violence against women.

While the commission does make suggestions to the legislative and executive branches, it also has a much more direct approach to helping women throughout the state. This approach includes conducting research to better understand the status of West Virginia women and girls, completing outreach events and coordinating events recognizing women’s past achievements and current needs.

Within these programs, the commission has had some major successes over the past year. More specifically, the commission co-sponsored College Dreams Ignited, a program designed to raise awareness of strategies for increased college enrollment and degree completions. Because of this program and the hard work put in by student volunteers, many students found themselves succeeding in ways they had not thought possible before. One student participant was able to start her college degree and finish her first semester with a 4.0 grade point average.

The WVWC’s most recent victory, however, was not due to just one program but to everything the commission has done since 1977. When the Legislature passed a bill during the 2017 session to terminate the commission, Governor Jim Justice stepped in with a veto saying, “Now more than ever, the women’s commission is needed in West Virginia.”

The recognition of the importance of the commission has been a major stepping stone. With the support of the governor behind it, the WVWC hopes to continue working to create a better West Virginia for women everywhere.