The Women's Services and Resources office provides services and information about women's issues to all students, faculty, and staff. We provide workshops, lecture series, and support groups to empower women to be successful in completing their education. Through our office, students can access information about services for women and various community resources. Even though we are equipped to mainly serve the female population, we are happy to answer questions from males, as well as point them in the right direction.

Our mission is to encourage the strength and worth of women. We are a place of encouragement and positive thinking that addresses the issues affecting women today in a proactive, preventive way by promoting health and wholeness. Our goals are to educate the BYU campus and community on women’s issues; to create a safe, inviting place for women to come where they can receive support, knowledge, and strength to meet the challenges facing women today; and to provide women with opportunities to serve other women.

Although Women's Services and Resources is not a counseling center, we have counselors on hand who can answer questions and provide information to students who are facing personal challenges in their lives, including eating problems, abusive relationships, depression, body image, dealing with a loved one with pornography addiction, anxiety, and so on. We also have a nutrition counselor who can answer basic questions about healthy eating.

Some women have not clearly identified their needs or are too frightened to seek out help. These women need a safe place to come to share their stories; a place to find understanding and acceptance. This is where Women's Services & Resources can help. Typically we provide 1-3 confidential consultations to evaluate the needs of the student, and depending on her needs, we will refer her to the Counseling and Career Center or another counseling center in the community for continued counseling, or to one of our support groups that may address her needs.

In addition to addressing more serious concerns of the student body, the WSR staff members are also available to answer questions about life at BYU, public health, service, nutrition, dating, being a non-traditional student at BYU, and so on. To accommodate these needs, WSR hosts a variety of activities such as Speed Dating, yoga for stress management, a mentoring program for middle school-aged girls, and monthly Workshops for Women, where our own staff members speak on a topic of interest to women. We also post frequently about women’s issues on our office blog (http://byuwsr.blogspot.com), and we encourage readers to contribute as guest posters on any topic that interests them. By interacting with the students on a peer level, we hope to encourage more participation from all students and create a more inviting atmosphere in our office.

We also host a variety of awareness weeks and conferences at no cost throughout the year, such as our annual 8-week Depression Seminar, National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, our Cyber Secrets conference, and other conferences as interest is expressed. These topics of interest cover a range of topics, including women in leadership, birthing methods, and healthy relationships. These events and activities are all free of charge and open to the BYU community. For a schedule or for more information, please call 422-4877 or look at our upcoming events on the front page of our web site.