2018-2019 WLP Annual Report

OUR IMPACT
Founded in 2005 by a small group of individuals and Tampa Bay area foundations and corporations,
USF Women in Leadership & Philanthropy (WLP) advanced a collective vision to create the first women’s
philanthropic organization in the Tampa Bay region focused on developing the intellectual and leadership
potential of women through the promotion of mentorship, philanthropy, community engagement and
scholarly excellence. 14 years later, WLP – now numbering more than 350 individual and 25 corporate
members strong – has helped stimulate numerous transformational gifts to benefit USF; has directly
raised well over $6 million to support our mission; and has invested more than $1.5 million in grants,
scholarships, and programmatic funding to assist female students, faculty members, and women in the
Tampa Bay region. These achievements are a clear sign that USF WLP is a trailblazer in advancing women’s
leadership and philanthropy in our communities and is fulfilling the vision of our founding members.
Since our founding, WLP has awarded more than $1 million in scholarships, has devoted countless
mentoring hours to over 800 students, and has provided transformational grants to 35 female faculty
members through the Dr. Kathleen Moore Faculty Excellence Award program. WLP presents a wide
variety of educational and leadership development programs annually at all three USF campuses and
in the surrounding communities, and has formed formal mentoring partnerships with numerous campus
colleges, units, and other entities.
In 2016, in partnership with Valley Bank, WLP formed the WISE (Women Who Ignite Student
Engagement) Advisory Council. Together with the WLP Mentoring and Program Committees and with
the WLP/WISE Advisory Council, we developed and launched USF’s first student-led women’s leadership
symposium in spring 2017. We are in the planning stages for our fourth successful WISE Student
Symposium in March 6, 2020. The continued success of WLP is the result of the collective generosity of
all of our members, who lend their time, talent, and treasure to make WLP the impactful organization
that it has become. We thank our Founding, Lifetime, Corporate, and Individual members for their
engagement and continued leadership and support.
USF WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP & PHILANTHROPY 4