What's in a Name?

LILAC gets a new moniker: The Career and Civic Engagement Center.

From its beginnings in 2013, the mission of Bryn Mawr's Leadership, Innovation, and Liberal Arts Center (LILAC) has been clear: “To prepare and support liberal arts students and alumnae/i to become effective, self-aware leaders in their chosen life pursuits.”

To match this clarity of focus, it has become apparent that a simpler name would help parents and alumnae/i embrace its value faster and would help students find the Center as easily—and as early—as possible.

This spring, Associate Dean Katie Krimmel enlisted her staff, students, alumnae/i, and parents in a careful process that included focus groups, brainstorming sessions, and surveys.

In May, LILAC became the Career and Civic Engagement Center. Over the summer, Krimmel and her team will continue the work of rebranding the Center's website and print materials as they prepare for the next academic year.

With an emphasis on developing the whole student, the Center provides an array of offerings that address both professional and civic aspirations.

Experiential learning and alumnae/i involvement are front and center, with Praxis courses, internships and externships, workshops and intensives, volunteer programs, and a leadership learning laboratory that fosters the skills students will need as future leaders.

Students and alumnae/i in the throes of career planning or interested in engaging with the community can take advantage of one-on-one meetings with staff, self-assessments, and other networking opportunities to help them explore their interests. The result of this work is Mawrters who have choices after graduation and throughout life based on their preparation both inside and outside of the classroom.

“The core work of the Career and Civic Engagement Center is for students and alumnae/i to explore, connect, and ultimately lead the life they choose,” says Krimmel.

The Support team

The Career and Civic Engagement Center (formerly known as LILAC) has brought about real change at Bryn Mawr regarding the resources and tools available to our students as they engage with their community, their future professions, and the world. The Center was established more than five years ago through a generous challenge gift that totaled $10 million from an anonymous pair of past parents early in the Defy Expectation Campaign. Their challenge spurred on another $5 million leadership gifts, including a $1 million commitment from trustee Justine Jentes ’88 and her family. “We chose to support the Center as an important element of President Cassidy’s vision for the College,” she says. “I was particularly excited about the formalized Praxis and enhanced intern- and externship programs for students to apply their academic work to real-world situations, especially for those interested in business and finance.”