Ohio Women's Coalition

What is the Ohio Women’s Coalition?

The Ohio Women’s Coalition is a diverse, non-partisan alliance of women in business, women leaders, women business owners, and men that support the mission across Ohio who are coming together to improve the economic position for all women in our state. The OWC was created to amplify the voice of women in Ohio and to help draw attention to the unique challenges that women encounter, especially underserved women of color and women who live in underserved areas of the state, to gain access to economic opportunities in order to achieve financial stability and prosperity.

Why should I join the OWC?

The OWC stands up for women. As a member of the OWC, you don’t have to go at it alone. Our collective voice exists to help solve problems and to hold policymakers accountable by acknowledging the impact of gender inequality on the economic performance of women and taking action to help improve it.

Our goal is to support all women throughout all of Ohio to achieve financial security through entrepreneurship. Building wealth is integral to women’s economic security, good health, and overall well-being. Wealth enables you to weather unexpected economic hardships and provides you with financial resources that allow you to have proactive control over your life, giving you the chance to pursue educational degrees, business ventures, or other opportunities without accruing significant debt.

Virtually all of the economic gains experienced by the typical middle-class family since 1970 have been due to increases in women’s earnings. From 1970 to 2013, women’s increased labor force participation and increased earnings grew the U.S. economy by 13.5 percent, which translates into an additional $2 trillion in economic activity. Women, and mothers in particular, make up a significant proportion of the labor force, and their employment and wages are vital to the overall health of the labor market and the U.S. economy.

Women, especially women of color, continue to face numerous obstacles to wealth accumulation throughout their lifetime and the OWC is here to help eliminate them by supporting entrepreneurship and existing Ohio women owned businesses.