About NEW Leadership®
NEW Leadership® is a national bipartisan program created by the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) in 1991 to address the underrepresentation of women in American politics. This six-day residential program educates college students about the important role that politics plays in their lives and encourages them to become engaged leaders in their communities and on their campuses.
NEW Leadership® teaches college students the value of civic engagement and the importance of having women in positions of political leadership. During the program, participants meet women leaders with a wide range of backgrounds, educational experiences, and political views. Students learn about the history of women’s political participation, participate in hands-on skills-building exercises, and develop their own leadership skills. NEW Leadership® inspires students to see themselves as empowered leaders who can effectively participate in politics and public policy.
The Susan N. Wilson NEW Leadership® New Jersey program is our flagship program, hosting undergraduate students from across the Garden State with a variety of socioeconomic, ethnic, racial, and educational backgrounds and academic majors.
The NEW Leadership® National Network
The NEW Leadership® National Network is CAWP’s initiative to expand NEW Leadership® programs to colleges and universities across the United States. Since 1999, CAWP has been working with partner institutions to train them to establish state or regional NEW Leadership® programs on their home campuses. The National Network currently serves college students in 25 states.
This summer, NEW Leadership® programs will take place on 20 college campuses across the country. To date, thousands of college students have participated in summer institutes based on the NEW Leadership® model. Our alumnae have run for office, run political campaigns, established their own non- profits, and worked in the White House and on Capitol Hill.
