Elevate

Elevate Your Leadership Impact with MCWT

The MCWT Elevate program is designed exclusively for early-to-mid career women in technology and first line managers seeking to strengthen their influence, enhance their leadership skills, expand their professional networks, and take the next step in their careers. This six-week program offers practical training, senior leader perspectives and peer exchanges to support your growth as a leader.

Participants will engage in a blend of in-person and virtual sessions designed to equip emerging women technology leaders with the business acumen, strategic communication skills, and leadership capabilities needed to translate complex technical work into enterprise value, effectively manage organizational and technical challenges, and confidently engage with executive leadership and boards of directors.

Program Details:

Program Duration: September 23, 2026 thru October 28, 2026

Program Schedule: Wednesday evenings from 5:30 – 8:00 pm

Program Format: Three regional cohorts in Grand Rapids, Lansing, and Metro Detroit, with a combination of in-person and virtual sessions. Each cohort will participate in two in-person regional sessions (9/23 and 10/7), three virtual sessions (9/30, 10/14, and 10/21), and an all-cohort Capstone Celebration on October 28th in the Lansing area. Locations will be announced at a later date.

Participation Expectations: To gain the greatest value from the Elevate experience, participants are encouraged to attend all six in-person and virtual sessions.

Program Benefits:

Through interactive workships, senior leadership perspectives, peer exchanges and hands-on practice, Elevate will help participants:

Strengthen their leadership presence and visibility.
Build business and financial acumen to connect technical work to organizational value.
Develop strategic communication and executive presence skills.
Navigate organizational dynamics and influence without authority.
Build meaningful relationships with mentors, peers, and other technology leaders.
Practice new skills in a supportive environment where participants can share challenges, test ideas and stretch themselves as leaders.

2026 Session Topics:

Personal Branding & Strategic Visibility
Organizational Savvy: Building Influence & Driving Outcomes
Leading with Confidence in High-Stakes Situations
From Tech Outputs to Business Outcomes (Change Leadership)
Providing & Receiving Feedback for Leadership Impact
Capstone Celebration

2026 Registration Opening Soon!
Questions? Email elevate@mcwt.org.

To stay up to date, we encourage you to subscribe to our Career Newsletter here.

This six-week program for early-to-mid career women in technology and first-line managers, uniquely combines peer group exchanges with senior leader speakers to support leadership development and professional networking.

Interested in becoming a facilitator? We’re excited to share more about this volunteer role — more details to come. Email your interest to elevate@mcwt.org

Program gallery

Success stories

Meet Vanette Hill, a powerhouse IT manager at BCBSM breaking barriers in the tech world. Benefiting from the support of MCWT, she has risen from participant to lead of our ELEVATE cohort program.

We hope you’ll feel inspired by Vanette’s experience and the history our organization is making as we inspire and grow women in tech.

Vanette Hill

MCWT scholar Mariam Mahmoud shares her journey to success with her MCWT mentor match. All MCWT scholarship recipient are partnered with a mentor to guide and support them throughout their college career. To learn more about Mariam’s story, keep reading.

Mariam Mahmoud

Friends of MCWT Scholarship Recipient, Chelsea Carter shares her personal story of how MCWT fueled her passion for technology. Carter’s story serves as a prime example of how the MCWT lifecycle continues. To learn more about Chelsea’s journey, keep reading.

Chelsea Carter

Fay Ghoujeghi’s learning journey of professional development with MCWT has reached new heights. As an MCWT member, Ghoujeghi had an opportunity to experience a 6-month scholarship program. To learn more about Fay’s journey, keep reading.

Fay Ghoujeghi

Angela Matta shares her story on how her engagement with MCWT has led to scholarship and internship opportunities. Throughout the years of her involvement, MCWT has been the spark of Matta’s interest in computer science. To learn more about Angela’s story, click the button below.

Angela Matta

MCWT multi-year scholar, Himaja Motheram shares her personal story on how the GET-IT programs made an impact on her interest in technology. Throughout her course of the program, she grew closer to a community of girls who were just as eager to learn and engage as she was. To learn more about Himaja’s journey, click the button below.

Himaja Motheram

Taking scholars to the next level in their tech career is apart of MCWT’s goal to continue the lifecycle of girls and women in technology throughout Michigan. Take a moment to read this success story on Vonnita Jones, a former MCWT Scholarship recipient who was able to stay connected and engaged with MCWT on a career level.

Vonnita Jones

MCWT Scholar, Jenna Sultes shares her success story on how she has been able to grow into the MCWT community and continue her engagement as a former scholarship recipient.

Jenna Sultes

Learn more about the impact of MCWT’s Ignite! Mentoring had on Tatiana Duggan. This connection has led Tatianna to accomplish her goals and share her success story with MCWT and other young girls in tech.

Tatiana Duggan

Arial Magyar shares her story on how MCWT’s high school GET-IT program fostered her interest in design, coding, and programming, as well as how her skillset in technology has.

Arial Magyar

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