El Dia de la Mujer, an annual conference sponsored by the Office of Minority Student Affairs, will return to campus Feb. 17 at the Kellogg Center.

The conference began eight years ago as an evening reception that acknowledged the achievements of Latina faculty and staff at MSU, and has since grown into a one-day event, with more than 1,000 Latinas participating in recent years.

Dia de la Mujer, which occurs during Chicano History Month, is important to Chicana and Latina women at MSU, said Marcelina Trevino-Savala, coordinator for Chicano and Latino student affairs.

“It gives Latinas in Michigan and the Midwest an opportunity to all come together and discuss various issues affecting the community,” she said.

Dia de la Mujer, which means Day of the Woman, will feature keynote speakers and workshops in cultural issues, education, health, politics, relationships and self-improvement.

The Maria Zavala Award, named for a Chicana activist and former MSU student, is given annually to a Chicana or Latina woman who has contributed to her community.

The award will be presented during the conference.

Tying the event together is the theme “Linking Our Generations: Encadenando Nuestras Generaciones,” which Trevino-Savala said event planners felt was a key concept.

“They felt it was very important that we start bringing our community closer together, from the younger generations to the older,” she said.

The conference is open to Chicana and Latina women, as well as anyone who would like to learn more about issues in the community, Trevino-Savala said.

Registration for MSU students is $10. The conference is limited to the first 1,000 participants. For more information, contact the Office of Minority Student Affairs at 353-7745.