Leslie E. Tower is devoted to improving the lives of women from all walks of life.

Tower, an associate professor in West Virginia University’s Division of Social Work and the Division of Public Administration, is being honored this year with the Mary Catherine Buswell Award. She will be recognized at an award dinner on April 9, during WVU’s Weekend of Honors.

The award, established in 1978 and given by WVU’s Council for Women’s Concerns, honors faculty, staff and citizens who have provided outstanding service to women at WVU. Recipients are chosen for excellence in their field as it relates to the advancement of WVU women, community and civic activities that serve and advance women or significant pioneering activities that improve the status of women.

Tower teaches a variety of courses at WVU, including Policy Issues in Women’s Health. She has published research on pay equity, the social costs of having a career for women, climate issues for women learners and other issues that impede women’s participation in society.

In 2005, she was a member of the organizing committee that attained the distinction and funding for WVU to become one of 20 National Centers of Excellence in Women’s Health.

Tower currently serves as chair of the Campus Climate Committee of the Council for Women’s Concerns, part of the WVU President’s Office for Social Justice. She is a strong advocate for supportive work-life balance policies at WVU and around the state.

Tower created the Lactation Network to provide nursing moms at WVU with a private space to nurse. Several rooms, where faculty, staff and students can nurse their children, are listed on a Web site at http://www.as.wvu.edu/cwc/lactation_network.html .

“The Council of Women’s Concerns is very happy to honor Dr. Leslie Tower as this year’s Mary Catherine Buswell Award recipient. Her creation of the Lactation Network and work on the Faculty Climate Study are just a few examples of her dedication to improving equality for women at WVU,” said Vickie Trickett, chair of WVU’s Council for Women’s Concerns.

She also created two parenting listserves for faculty, staff and students. The listserves provide an open forum for moms and dads to discuss childcare issues, share news and information and connect with other working parents. For more information, visit http://www.as.wvu.edu/cwc/links.htm#Listserv .

More information on WVU’s Council for Women’s Concerns is available at
http://www.as.wvu.edu/cwc/index.html .

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cd/04/05/10

CONTACT: Vickie Trickett, WVU Council for Women’s Concerns
304-293-7804, Vickie.Trickett@mail.wvu.edu