The University of Lynchburg and Virginia Humanities will hold events next year honoring Rosel Schewel ’71, ’83 EdS and celebrating the 100-year anniversary of women’s suffrage in the United States.
The events will address the theme of “Women and Democracy” on October 23 – 24, 2020, just a few weeks after the anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which extended to women the right to vote. The University of Lynchburg will host the events, which will include discussions with women elected to the Virginia General Assembly as well local activists.
Virginia Humanities, the state’s humanities council, will use the events to launch the Rosel Schewel Fund, an endowed fund that will support public programming that amplifies women’s stories.
Schewel was a local philanthropist, teacher, and political activist, as well as a highly regarded leader at the University of Lynchburg. She earned her master’s degree in education and her educational specialist degree in counseling from Lynchburg. She became a professor of education and was the first woman to serve on and chair the University’s Board of Trustees. She was instrumental in creating the Lynchburg League of Women Voters and the Women’s Resource Center in Lynchburg, as well as Beacon of Hope, a nonprofit that provides scholarships and mentors students to help them gain entrance to college.
Virginia Humanities announced the Rosel Schewel Fund this morning. Read the announcement here.
