At this semester’s first meeting of the University of Delaware’s Women in Business, a registered student organization, group leaders said they expected less than 50 people based on previous attendance. Instead, about 150 interested Blue Hens attended, with the meeting room “bursting at the seams.”

UD Assistant Professor of Management Amanda Bullough said that this increased enthusiasm for the Women in Business group “is a real testament to the Women in Business executive board under Marlena Gelin's leadership last year.”

“It is certainly a sign of the level of interest in the work that they've been doing,” Bullough said. “I’m very impressed with Marlena and her stellar leadership with this organization!”

Gelin, president of Women in Business, said that in the two years since she became president, the group has also gone from a registered membership of less than 100 to a membership of more than 450.

“Women in Business is now one of the largest and most active RSOs in the Lerner College,” said Gelin, who is a senior with a double major in finance and marketing and a double minor in business analytics and economics.

“So many UD women have expressed interest in Women in Business this year, because we've largely increased the visibility of the organization,” she said. “Due to our valued relationships with employers, we receive donations from them to continue providing opportunities to our members.

“Women in Business has become a well-known organization on campus and a large majority of incoming freshmen express interest in joining it,” she said.

Women in Business was also one of a select group of RSOs asked to partner with the Biden Institute, recently established by former vice president Joe Biden.

“As a partner, we represent one of former Vice President Joe Biden's policy interests,” Gelin said. “We interact with the Biden Institute to provide our members with unique opportunities.”

In terms of the future of Women in Business at UD, Gelin said that she hopes for the group to “keep evolving and to keep providing more members with leadership opportunities.”

For example, the organization currently offers a mentorship program between upperclassmen and underclassmen. In the future, Gelin hopes to see this mentorship program expand to include alumni.

The organization also held its first Women in Business Networking and Connections Panel this year.