Committed to serving the Tuscaloosa community is just one mission of Women of Excellence. WOE, a student organization at The University of Alabama, strives to build bonds and community between women students at the University.
Aubri Wherry, the president of the organization and senior public relations major, said that the organization has focused on impacting the youth in Tuscaloosa this year by volunteering at Holt Elementary School, the Tuscaloosa Public Library, the YMCA, and a trunk-or-treat event held by another organization on campus called SHINE or Spreading Hope, Inspiration and Education.
“Volunteering around the Tuscaloosa community is a great way for young collegiate women to give back to the community and set an example of what it means to empower your local areas,” Wherry said.
Wherry also shared that this year WOE brought back an event entitled “Sister to Sister” where members and nonmembers can come together and discuss a range of topics such as college life, relationships and mental health.
“WOE hosts many educational forums and listening to speakers discuss financial literacy, women’s health, mental health and more creates the space where you are motivated to learn more about these kinds of topics,” Taylor Nash, a WOE member and sophomore international studies major, said. “Not just that, WOE is a great way to network with so many like-minded people. Having people around you that are goal-oriented in their education becomes a great motivation for yourself.”
Nash shared that she decided to join WOE because she was looking for organizations that were building a community. She shared that it is hard for students to find their place at a large university like Alabama and that WOE has been crucial in her efforts to build friendships while also serving the community.
“The most valuable experience that I have had so far was the pinning and active membership brunch,” Nash said. “I was able to make such great bonds with the girls in the organization and everyone was so supportive of each other. It was just a great event. They also released who the 2023 to 2024 executive board was going to be, and there was nothing but support from the previous executive board and new active members. It was shown that everyone wanted the best for each other, and that is what made that event so special to me.”
Sydney Davis, a WOE member and junior psychology major, stated that WOE motivates her to be the best she can be as she is surrounded by women she believes influence her. She shared that she decided to join because she wanted to take the chance to immerse herself in an organization that would help her gain connections with other women on campus as well as build a better community.
“To be honest, it made me a more selfless person,” Davis said. “It helped me realize not everything revolves around me and that I can really make an impact. WOE can be a lifelong thing if you let it be. People think that WOE is just a freshman thing so you can get community service hours, but it really is not. It is more like a family, a sisterhood even.”
