15TH ANNUAL WINTO CONFERENCE 2025

Join us for the 15th Annual Women in Non-Traditional Occupations (WINTO) Conference at St. Philip’s College – Southwest Campus on Friday, March 28, 2025, from 9:30 AM – 2:00 PM. The conference will cater to high school females seeking education and job exploration in career technical education fields.

We are excited to announce that our WINTO Conference Keynote Speaker will be Blythe Zemel, Founding President of Girl with Grit Program. The conference will also include CTE Program Demos, Presentations, and Photoshoots for students.

The Importance of Rosie the Riveter

Rosie the Riveter was the star of a campaign aimed at recruiting female workers for defense industries during World War II, and she became perhaps the most iconic image of working women. In movies, newspapers, propaganda posters, photographs and articles, the Rosie the Riveter campaign stressed the patriotic need for women to enter the workforce. Between 1940 and 1945, the female percentage of the U.S. workforce increased from 27 percent to nearly 37 percent, and by 1945 nearly one out of every four married women worked outside the home.

The call for women to join the workforce during World War II was meant to be temporary and women were expected to leave their jobs after the war ended and men came home. The women who did stay in the workforce continued to be paid less than their male peers and were usually demoted. But after their selfless efforts during World War II, men could no longer claim superiority over women. Women had enjoyed and even thrived on a taste of financial and personal freedom—and many wanted more. The impact of World War II on women changed the workplace forever, and women’s roles continued to expand in the postwar era. [https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/rosie-the-riveter]