BWF Spoke Updates - December 2025

In the Bolder Way Forward Framework, there are 18 specific areas of focus (spokes). Each spoke, a key topic area where change needs to occur, is also a movement with a strategy that functions to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts. Effective work within the spokes is needed to create more expansive and cohesive change overall. To learn more about each spoke’s leadership, bold vision and goals, thriving statements, partners, and ways to get involved, please click on the individual  spoke webpages  (linked below). The following are monthly updates on what is happening within each of the Spokes:        

Childcare & Pre-K: For Entrepreneurship Awareness month, the Childcare & Pre-K Programs Spoke posted stats about how lack of childcare affects entrepreneurs. The monthly statewide update featured Open Doors Imagination Station in Davis county, which offers parents a scheduled block of three hours of care, once per week, completely free of charge. Locally, the Spoke covered the Salt Lake County Council voting to close four county-run childcare centers, and then subsequently pushing back the closures to mid-2026 after community outcry. The Spoke is working with various groups  to spread the word about the expanded federal childcare tax credit, which allows companies to provide a childcare benefit without becoming a childcare operator onsite. In addition, employers could receive up to 50% of their childcare benefit back in the form of a tax credit. With a tight labor market and tremendous financial stressors on young families, this new federal tax credit could be a game-changer for employers struggling with retention and recruitment.   

Child Sexual Abuse: Through The Policy Project’s generosity in sharing space at their booth, the Child Sexual Abuse Spoke was able to share key resources with guests at the Utah School Counselor Association Conference. Attendees were able to learn more about BWF, Spoke efforts, and how to get involved. The Spoke is looking forward to implementing changes with Phase 2 of BWF to drive change and welcomes anyone interested in taking part in child sexual abuse awareness, advocacy, and prevention education to get connected. Please reach out to Alexa (Spoke Coordinator) at alexabsimon@gmail.com.  

Domestic Violence: This month, the Spoke welcomed a new coordinator, Danielle Rosales. Spoke Leaders thank former Spoke Coordinator Carey Van Wagoner and look forward to partnering on aligned initiatives in the future. The Spoke is grateful for all current and new partners who help to create change for Utah women and girls. The UDVC, a BWF Change partner, has a new blog. This will be a great resource to learn more about DV from the coalition, members, health professionals, and victim survivors. The Spoke encourages everyone to send them a message and let them know what you think and what you want to hear about. Sign up here if you would like to start receiving the quarterly BWF Domestic Violence Spoke newsletter! 

Entrepreneurship: On November 19th, Utah celebrated Women’s Entrepreneurship Day with the official launch of the Women’s Entrepreneurial Empowerment Proclamation - a statewide commitment to strengthen and support women entrepreneurs. This historic event drew a standing-room-only crowd, a powerful reflection of the momentum building across the state. More than 30 leaders and organizations signed the Proclamation on-site, joining the first wave of supporters dedicated to advancing opportunities for women in business. The document outlines 10 actionable commitments, and signers pledge to complete at least one by June 2026 to help fuel meaningful progress. To date there are over 80 signers! We were honored to receive supportive media attention from KSL, KUTV, and Utah Business, helping extend the message far beyond the event. The Proclamation is now open for signatures statewide. Anyone can participate and even display the document in their workplace using its built-in QR code to encourage others to sign. This launch marks an exciting step forward for Utah’s entrepreneurial community, and the movement is just beginning. Stay tuned for the next “She-Suite” webinar. Sign up for our newsletter here. Please read and sign the Proclamation here. If you want to get involved email crystal.bwf@gmail.com.   

Finance: The Finance Spoke is pleased to promote the 2026 USU Extension Winter Financial Wellness Webinar Series available from Tuesday, January 6, 2026 -Tuesday, March 31, 2026.  Click here for more information and registration. The Spoke continues to collect information on local and statewide resources for financial assistance and financial education. If you have information on resources we can share, or other questions, please contact Angela Rawlings at atrawlings1@gmail.com.   

Gender Pay Gap: The Gender Pay Gap Spoke partnered with the University of Utah MBA School and UVU-sponsored “Rise” event to host the Spoke’s salary negotiation training modules. Spoke Leadership is also working with Silicon Slopes to host the 4-part salary negotiation training series in January during Monday/Tuesday lunch hours. These trainings help Utahns address the pay gap, with research showing most women do not negotiate salary. In collaboration with the Sexual Harassment & Gender-Based Discrimination Spoke, additional training modules are being developed for those who may be experiencing gender-based pay discrimination. To request a live presentation for your group, contact emily@martinprisbrey.com.   

Health Across the Lifespan: November subspoke meetings focused on identifying Calls to Action for BWF County Coalitions. Reproductive Health is exploring working with local libraries on backpacks that include health information and resources tied to the UWLP Fall Survey question “I feel empowered to make informed decisions regarding reproductive health that fit my needs and/or the needs of my family.” Perimenopause/Midlife is partnering with the U of U’s Midlife Women’s Health Program in collaborating on their upcoming CME courses to help increase the number of menopause certified providers in the state, especially in rural communities. They also are strategizing ways to distribute the “It’s More than Hot Flashes” resource within counties to help increase agreement for the survey metric “I am knowledgeable about perimenopause for women.“ The December newsletter focused on the importance of data, highlighting the PRAMS data set for our state. Sign up to receive Health Across the Lifespan spoke newsletter here.  

Higher Education Attainment: This month, the Spoke connected with several BYU clubs and services, highly successful high school counselors, higher education professionals, and nonprofit supporters of single parents to gather qualitative data focused on where Utah can improve in supporting high school students in their transition to higher education as well as services that can be accessed by higher education students in need. The Higher Education Attainment Spoke made great efforts to support and connect Per Scholas with community partners as this organization explores expansion into Salt Lake City. Per Scholas is a national nonprofit that has been advancing economic mobility through no-cost tech training for over 30 years. If you or an organization you know is interested in learning more about Per Scholas or potentially recruiting its graduates, reach out to courtney.bwf@gmail.com. 

Home & Family: The Spoke was thrilled to connect with two new advisors, Jake Neely and Catherine Hutton, who are both passionate and experienced advocates for helping families across Utah. The Moms with Littles group is working on business badges for spaces that are child-friendly for families and hopes to encourage even more businesses to take part. The Single Mothers Subspoke continues to hold monthly luncheons. Any one supportive of, involved with, or a single mother themselves is welcome to attend to connect, network, and find support. This includes businesses, organizations, and individuals across the state. Please email megan.bwf@gmail.com for more details if interested.   

K-12 Initiatives: Have you heard about the State of Utah’s “Every Day Counts” campaign to address chronic absenteeism in the state’s K-12 schools? One easy way to engage in this important initiative is to join the team of community-based “Attendance Ambassadors” being mobilized across the state. An Attendance Ambassador is someone who works hard to promote students attending school, knows about the campaign and helps spread the word within their school or community, cares about students and their success in school and out of school, supports others by sharing tools and pointing them to helpful attendance resources. Sign up to be an Attendance Ambassador today and help all students in your community better thrive - in school and beyond!  

Leadership Development: In the new year, the Leadership Development Spoke will add a new section to the Spoke’s monthly newsletter entitled “Did You Know?”, where leadership opportunities, research, or other educational information in support of the Spoke’s vision to significantly increase the number and percentage of women leaders in all settings within Utah. Sign up to receive the newsletter here, today!  

Organizational Strategies & Workplace Culture: This month, the Spoke evaluated goals and brainstormed calls to action to find more tangible and specific ways to encourage companies to implement family friendly policies and provide more leadership opportunities for women. A Spoke event to share best practices is being planned for next year. If you have any questions or best practices stories, you’d be willing to share, please contact Kristen Lee (Spoke Coordinator) kleeabwf@gmail.com. 

Political & Civic Representation: In November, the Political and Civic Representation Spoke gathered data to gauge the number of female candidates in municipal elections. While we are still working to get our metric dashboard updated, we are happy to report that we saw a substantial uptick in female candidate participation from 2023 to 2025, going from 251 female candidates in 2023 to 382 female candidates in 2025. We had hoped to see an increase of 12% in 2026 and an increase of 25% in 2030. With these current results exceeding both measures, we will be reevaluating our metric to determine an appropriate target for 2030.  

Poverty & Homelessness: This month, Spoke Leadership met to discuss strategies and refine goals. As these are finalized, more information will be shared on the Spoke’s webpage. The Spoke is working to connect with organizations across the state that are helping individuals experiencing homelessness. Please reach out to Brie Sparks (UWLP Statewide Impact Manager) at brie.sparks@usu.edu to share efforts happening within your organization or community.  

Sexual Assault:  The Spoke is excited to welcome Melissa Wayment as the newest Spoke Advisor. Melissa is a Grant Program Manager with the Utah Office for Victims of Crime. She brings a strong background in advocacy, crisis intervention, and program management. Melissa has extensive experience managing federal and state funding streams while collaborating with coalitions to improve statewide reporting and best practices for sexual assault programs. The Spoke is excited to have her expertise. This month, in partnership with The Rape Recovery Center, the Spoke was at the 2025 race for campus safety  at the University of Utah and was able to engage with 74 attendees at the event. The Start by Believing Subspoke has a goal to get 50 signatures for the proclamation by the end of the year (there are currently 11 signed proclamations).  Please continue to encourage groups, organizations, clubs, etc. to sign the Start by Believing Proclamation using this Google Doc. The Spoke is sending out monthly newsletters to keep advocates informed on upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, donation needs, latest news, and current Spoke information. Sign up here if you would like to start receiving the newsletter! 

Sexual Harassment & Gender-Based Discrimination:  The Spoke welcomed a new coordinator, Emily Martin Prisbrey. The spoke is in the process of creating training modules for those who may experiencing gender pay discrimination in collaboration with the Gender Pay Gap spoke. If you are interested in contributing to these important efforts, please reach out to emily@martinprisbrey.com.  

STEM Fields: The STEM Fields Spoke continued discussions this month focused on strengthening collaboration and increasing visibility for women and girls in STEM across Utah. There are many ways to get involved—such as joining efforts to support STEM Fields efforts within your local county, attend STEM related events as a BWF/Spoke presence, co-host events, mentoring within your field, sharing resources, or serving as a County Spoke Representative. The STEM Fields Spoke values the time, expertise, and voices of all who are already participating and welcomes those interested but not yet involved to join its efforts– please follow the BWF STEM Fields Spoke on LinkedIn for more. The Spoke is continuously gathering upcoming STEM events and opportunities; organizations or individuals with items to share can email the Spoke Coordinator, Ashley, at ashleyp.bwf@gmail.com.  

Workforce Development: The Workforce Development (WD) Spoke is actively expanding its partnerships and offering successful workshops. Following the success of the "ROCK YOUR RESUME" workshop in November, Matthew Hilbig (Executive Vice President and co-owner of OCM, Inc.), will present a similar BWF webinar on Friday, December 12. Register here. Looking ahead, the Spoke will host a workshop focusing on interview skills in Utah County on January 9. The Spoke also welcomes two recently added partner organizations (the South Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce and StarterYou), and looks forward to future collaborative efforts.