Integrating technology into the mission of a women´s center: creating a women´s community with technology

The Women´s Center at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) has adopted a multifaceted approach to technology including training courses and a listserv. The Center now has a successful 4-year history of teaching women and girls to use technology, of using technology to leverage the resources and time of staff, and of using a listserv to disseminate information to the regional community. Benefits gained from the integration of technology into the mission of the Women´s Center include enabling the university´s female staff and students to learn the Web and other computer related skills in a non-threatening woman-centered environment; providing information to geographically dispersed women; and easy access of the Coordinating Council to the director. The Central Illinois Women´s Action (CIWA) listserv creates a community of networked women and enables the director to participate in all the area´s women community organizations