
For students seeking support, or just a conversation, over something that’s happened to them on campus, the Anna Howard Shaw Center for Gender Equity and Victim Advocacy is the place to go – and feel free to grab a snack and hold a Squishmallow while you’re there.
The Center for Gender Equity and Victim Advocacy provides resources, support and education to Albion students regarding gender-based discrimination and domestic and sexual violence. The center has gone through many changes in the past few years, and as of this summer has a new director and location.
Who’s This New Director?
The new director of the Anna Howard Shaw Center for Gender Equity and Victim Advocacy, Lisa Winchell-Caldwell, alumna ‘05, said she’s been a domestic and sexual violence advocate and prevention expert for over 20 years.
“Working with survivors of that type of violence is a particular skill set,” Winchell-Caldwell said. “It’s really about support and advocacy so that they can have the things that they need to begin feeling safe.”
When she was a student at Albion, Winchell-Caldwell said she worked as a peer mentor to advocate for survivors of sexual assault and to ensure access to contraception at the student health center.

Where Can I Find the Center Now?
In addition to its leadership changes, the Center for Gender Equity has also relocated. As of last semester, it moved from Robinson Suite 300 to its new home in Ferguson Suite 103, where it now shares space with the Office of Integrated Wellness and Counseling Services.
Assistant Director of Campus Wellness Melissa Sommers said having these offices in such close vicinity “just makes sense.”
“We do a lot of the same work, so having that office over here, we can bounce ideas off of each other, plan events together,” Sommers said. “Having that resource within walking distance is great.”
What Does the Center for Gender Equity Do?
Winchell-Caldwell said she and the Center for Gender Equity are there to support students dealing with many things, including sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, stalking, sexism, heterosexism, misgendering and any other forms of gender-based discrimination. The center can also offer guidance on relationships, sexual identity and gender identity.
Winchell-Caldwell said she wants students who’ve experienced harm on campus to feel like they still belong at Albion.
“I want (students) to always have a space where they feel believed and supported, even if it’s just this little slice of an office that they can retreat to,” Winchell-Caldwell said.
In addition to individual student support, Winchell-Caldwell said she wants to collaborate with student groups already doing work related to the center’s mission and provide them with support and resources. She added that she doesn’t want to interfere with any advocacy work that student groups are already doing.
“I wanted to spend the first year getting to know ‘What is the student vision for this office?’” Winchell-Caldwell said.
She said she wants to know what students think is missing on campus around gender-based discrimination advocacy and prevention, what beneficial things are already happening and what she can do to help provide and strengthen those things with her expertise and resources.
How is the Center Funded?
Another change is that the center is now funded directly by the college. Previously, its funding came from the Office on Violence Against Women grant, which expired in April 2023.
Assistant Vice President for Student Development and Title IX Coordinator Kelly Finn said the grant was “amazing,” in that it funded positions for the Center for Gender Equity, but it had its limitations. Under the grant, the director of the Anna Howard Shaw Center for Gender Equity and Victim Advocacy was not a full-time position. With the college now providing direct funding, the position has become full-time.
“The college made a strategic move to invest resources in that and not just rely on grant funding, which I think was the right move to make and just helps solidify the type of support we’re providing for students,” Finn said.
Finn added that while the Title IX coordinator and the director of the Center for Gender Equity work closely, their roles are distinct. As the Title IX coordinator, Finn’s primary responsibility is enforcing policy, whereas Winchell-Caldwell, as the director for victim advocacy, focuses on providing direct support to survivors.
“If we only had my role and didn’t have Lisa’s there would be a gap in services,” Finn said. “Survivors really need someone who can be their advocate in their corner, and while I care about them, I can’t serve as that person in the nature of my work.”
Who All Works at the Center?
While Winchell-Caldwell is the only paid staff member of the Center for Gender Equity, they hire students as part of the peer liaison program that was started last year.
Petoskey sophomore Honor Slocum is one such student. They said that the role of peer liaisons is to spread the word of the Center for Gender Equity and its services among students and to be someone “easier to approach” than the director.
Slocum said they wanted to be a peer liaison because they noticed that many of their peers don’t know about the services the center provides.
“There’s so much help there, and I kept hearing people say ‘I didn’t know this was a thing,’” Slocum said.
Winchell-Caldwell said her favorite part of her job is hearing from students about what their vision for the Center for Gender Equity is, and what they want it to be able to accomplish.
“This office is here to serve students, and it’s responsible to students,” Winchell-Caldwell said. “Their input is critically important to it being effective.”
Students with further questions are welcome to fill out an appointment request form or email Winchell-Caldwell at lwinchell-caldwell@albion.edu.
Rhiannon Slotnick also contributed reporting to this story.
Editor’s Note: Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 3:30 p.m. Jocelyn Kincaid-Beal worked as a secretary at the Anna Howard Shaw Center for Gender Equity in the fall 2022 and spring 2023 semesters.
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