
Thank you for your interest in Hartford International University’s Women’s Leadership Institute (WLI).
For decades now, and guided by the tireless efforts of Professor Emerita Miriam Therese (MT) Winter, our Women’s Leadership Institute has worked to empower women. We have brought together hundreds of women over the years from diverse religions, social locations, and ethnicities. Our students have supported one another in their personal and collective journeys of spiritual, psychological, and intellectual growth. We are continually proud of our graduates who demonstrate an ongoing commitment to working collectively for the common good.
Dr. Winter is taking time to reimagine the Institute and envision what comes next. Therefore, WLI will not take place for 2023-24. We are excited with her to see what the future brings.
The Value of Experience

The Spark of an Idea
Over the last two and half decades, WLI graduates have started leadership projects that went on to become highly successful, even worldwide phenomena. One is the Prayer Shawl Ministry, started in 1998 by Janet Bristow and Vicky Galo. The ministry has chapters all over the world.
Faculty
WLI Founder and Director Miriam Therese Winter, known to all as MT, develops a personal bond with each participant. Her scholarship is rooted in what she likes to call the liturgy of life. She is a Medical Mission Sister, an award-winning author, a pioneer in introducing folk-style music into the Catholic liturgical tradition, and a songwriter whose work is performed the world over.


Alumni
WLI graduates stay in touch. They support each other long after the program ends, building bonds of sisterhood. Of the hundreds who have graduated over the years, the most common refrain is that the program was “life-changing.”
Related Blog Posts

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How Exploring Other Religions and Interreligious Learning Can Deepen One’s Own Faith
I am the product of a particular Lutheran tradition of theological education, what Richard Lischer in his book Open Secrets called “the system.” It was not indoctrination by any means, but it was a particular...
The post How Exploring Other Religions and Interreligious Learning Can Deepen One’s Own Faith first appeared on Religion & Peace.

From the Blog
The Need for Discussing Religion in an Interfaith World
In a diverse society, debate is unavoidable. How do we discuss sensitive topics like religion openly, productively, and respectfully? There’s the old maxim of forbidden dinner table topics – right at the top, you’ll find...
The post The Need for Discussing Religion in an Interfaith World first appeared on Religion & Peace.

From the Blog
An interfaith exploration of light representation in the celebration, practice and interpretation of religion
Light is a cross-cultural symbol for knowledge, truth and awareness that takes on even deeper meanings when we look to its use in religious texts and traditions. From ceremonial usage to the symbolic presence of...
The post An interfaith exploration of light representation in the celebration, practice and interpretation of religion first appeared on Religion & Peace.
Take the Next Step
Broaden your perspective. Deepen your ability to make a difference. Hartford International University programs prepare religious leaders and peacemakers who go beyond their own beliefs to embrace people of all faiths.

General HIU News
Emerita Professor MT Winter to Celebrate 25 Years of the Women’s Leadership Institute
September 27, 2023

Faculty In The News
Dr. Walter Earl Fluker Receives Prestigious 'Freedom of Worship' Award from Roosevelt Institute
September 26, 2023
