Women's Fund of Greater Milwaukee

Women's Fund of Greater Milwaukee Our mission is to mobilize philanthropy and foster unity for gender equity.

We work to improve the world for women and girls through two primary channels
• Grantmaking programs, which provide the backing for social change initiatives.
• Capacity Building programs, which build the social change capacity in our community.

Ask an AI chatbot for help writing a work email. Use the word "maybe." Say "I think" or "we." Sign it with your name.Now...
09/28/2026

Ask an AI chatbot for help writing a work email. Use the word "maybe." Say "I think" or "we." Sign it with your name.

Now ask the same thing without the hedges.

Johns Hopkins researchers found that four major AI models gave back less formal, less sophisticated responses when the prompt used language patterns more commonly associated with women. Not because of the name attached... because of how it was asked.

The bias is baked into how these tools read us. And most of us have no idea it's happening.

This is the kind of thing we're digging into at WF Presents 2026. Dr. Meredith Broussard, data journalist, NYU researcher, and author of "More Than a Glitch," is joining us on November 18 to talk about the systems we use every day, and what's really going on inside them.

Reservations are open. Early bird pricing ends October 1 >> https://womensfundmke.org/wf-presents-ai

Say today's date out loud: 9/25. Nine to five.When 9 to 5 hit theaters in 1980, audiences came for Jane Fonda, Lily Toml...
09/25/2026

Say today's date out loud: 9/25. Nine to five.

When 9 to 5 hit theaters in 1980, audiences came for Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. They left having experienced a story about unequal pay, workplace harassment, and bosses taking credit for women's work.

The film also pictured changes that seemed bold at the time: flexible hours, job sharing, and childcare at work.

The story came from real organizing. It was inspired by 9to5, National Association of Working Women, a group of women office workers founded in Boston in 1973. Milwaukee office workers started a local chapter in 1982 9to5 Wisconsin, and today 9to5's national headquarters is here.

Who in your life clocked in so you could have more options? Tell us about her in the comments.

"Women's work, and particularly women's work to lift up and make equal women's lives, is just so d@mn*d important. And y...
09/24/2026

"Women's work, and particularly women's work to lift up and make equal women's lives, is just so d@mn*d important. And yet it gets so little fanfare."

That's from Kiersten Marek, founder of Philanthropy Women, on why preserving feminist history and funding the people who document it matters. It's a big part of why we opened our Gloria Steinem tribute campaign this month.

Gloria spent sixty years doing exactly the kind of work Marek is talking about... the unglamorous, unfinished, generational kind. She never wanted the movement to be about her. She wanted it to outlast her.

A gift in her name helps make sure it does. Every donation made through the campaign is matched dollar for dollar, up to $10,000, by WF board director Pamela Klein.

Give today >> womensfundmke.org/gloria

Photo: Facebook.com/gloriasteinem

Ownership is how many families in our community have built wealth that lasts: a business that grows over time, supports ...
09/22/2026

Ownership is how many families in our community have built wealth that lasts: a business that grows over time, supports a household, and can one day be sold or passed on. Yet the path to owning an established business is rarely explained in plain terms, and too few women are part of that conversation.

We believe economic equity requires more women on both sides of the ownership table, as buyers and as sellers who exit on their own terms.

That's why we're partnering with Chicago Booth: Milwaukee Alumni on Saturday, October 3, for an afternoon on the full cycle of ownership: finding, buying, running, and selling a business. You'll learn from advisors, lenders, and owners who have done this work themselves.

We hope you'll join us >> womensfundmke.org/event/business-ownership

It takes a community to build a conversation worth having.We're so thankful for our 2026 WF Presents Passion Partners, B...
09/21/2026

It takes a community to build a conversation worth having.

We're so thankful for our 2026 WF Presents Passion Partners, BMO U.S., Pamela Klein, Michael Best, Quarles & Brady LLP, speak.write.coach., and WaterStone Bank, for helping us bring Dr. Meredith Broussard to Milwaukee this November.

Her keynote on the AI systems already shaping our daily lives is exactly the kind of conversation our community needs right now. And it wouldn't happen without partners like these showing up for it.

Individual reservations are open. Early bird pricing ends October 1 >> womensfundmke.org/wf-presents-ai

Katherine Gehl spent years leading a Wisconsin manufacturing company before turning her focus to a different kind of sys...
09/18/2026

Katherine Gehl spent years leading a Wisconsin manufacturing company before turning her focus to a different kind of system: how our elections are structured, and why that shapes what Congress can (and can't) get done.

On October 15, we're joining the Woman's Club of Wisconsin and Professional Dimensions to host her for a conversation about Final Five Voting... a proposed reform pairing an open, nonpartisan primary with a ranked-choice general election. Katherine is the author of "The Politics Industry" and the originator of the concept.

This is a nonpartisan conversation about systems, not candidates or parties. Civic engagement is one of our ten advocacy issue areas, and understanding how elections work is part of that ongoing work.

The first 70 people to register get a signed copy of Katherine's book >> womensfundmke.org/event/final-five-voting

This Urban Milwaukee piece breaks down the three constitutional amendments on the ballot in November: limiting the gover...
09/15/2026

This Urban Milwaukee piece breaks down the three constitutional amendments on the ballot in November: limiting the governor's veto power, protecting religious gatherings during emergencies, and prohibiting government discrimination >> https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2026/09/14/not-just-governor-three-constitutional-amendments-on-the-ballot

It's a lot to unpack before heading to the polls. That's what Thursday is for.

Join us September 17 at 12:30 PM for a free, 30-minute WF Civic Break with Margo Kirchner of Wisconsin Justice Initiative who will walk us through how these amendments got on the ballot and what they really mean before you vote.

Link to register in the comments.

AI is already part of how we shop, how we get hired, how our kids learn, how we get our news, and how decisions get made...
09/14/2026

AI is already part of how we shop, how we get hired, how our kids learn, how we get our news, and how decisions get made about us every day. Most of it happens without us noticing. And the choices built into those systems weren't made by accident.

At WF Presents 2026, on Wednesday, Nov. 18, Dr. Meredith Broussard, data journalist, NYU researcher, and author of More Than a Glitch, is coming to Milwaukee to help us see what's actually going on behind the technology we already live with, and what we can do about it.

This isn't a tech event. It's a conversation for anyone with a phone in their pocket. Individual reservations are now open. Early bird pricing ends October 1 >> womensfundmke.org/wf-presents-ai

September's Laundry Night has a venue worth talking about before the conversation even starts. Join us Tuesday, Septembe...
09/11/2026

September's Laundry Night has a venue worth talking about before the conversation even starts.

Join us Tuesday, September 29, at Milwaukee Cheese Bar at Hill Valley Dairy LLC for artisanal Wisconsin cheese, carefully curated cocktails, and the kind of warm, welcoming atmosphere that makes good conversation come naturally.

Hosted by WF board director Alexandria Staubach. from 6–8 p.m. Free and open to all... but let us know to expect you >>

Address

316 N Milwaukee Street, Ste 215
Milwaukee, WI
53202

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

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