Published 8/30/2022

5K Race Supports Opportunities for Women in Industry

The inaugural HERizon 5K Race, in support of the Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation, will take place on October 9, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Workforce Development

Edited by: Chris Pasion

Managing Editor, Modern Machine Shop | Production Machining

Photo Credit: Thinkstock

The Women in Manufacturing (WiM) Association’s twelfth annual Summit which takes place October 10-12, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia, will open on October 9 with the inaugural HERizon 5K Race in support of the Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation (WiMEF). This public event helps WiM provide ongoing programs and cultivate new initiatives to assist women in the manufacturing industry gain knowledge and become leaders within their companies and communities.

Since its inception in 2016, the WiMEF says it has impacted thousands of women with its programming, including 14,000 professionals who have participated in the foundation’s monthly Virtual Learning Series and more than 300 women who have graduated from formal leadership programs — the Management Development Program and the Leadership Institute for Women in STEM and Manufacturing.

In 2021, the WiMEF launched its newest program, Empowering Women in Production, to assist in the professional development of women in production and shop-floor roles. Since the inception of this program, 60 women have graduated and another 145 are currently enrolled.

“The WiMEF is excited to host our first-ever HERizon 5K,” WiM and WiMEF Founder and President Allison Grealis says. “Funds raised from the event will allow us to continue addressing talent and leadership gaps in the manufacturing industry. Our research-based, best-practice educational training and leadership-development programs prepare women to fill open manufacturing positions, and readies them to be manufacturing’s creative problem-solvers and innovators of today and tomorrow.”

The HERizon 5K will take place on Sunday, October 9, 2022, at 2 p.m., leading racers through midtown Atlanta, Georgia. The registration cost is $45 and includes a T-shirt and celebration beverage at Stats Brewpub. Awards will be presented to the top 10 finishers as well as the top individual and team fundraisers.

For information on registration and sponsorship, contact Jen Kopf at jkopf@womeninmfg.org or visit the HERizon 5K event webpage.