The Leadership Conference of Women Religious ( LCWR ) is the association of the leaders of congregations of Catholic women religious in the United States . The conference has more than 1500 members, who represent more than 80 percent of the 57,000 women religious in the United States . Founded in 1956, the conference assists its members to collaboratively carry out their service of leadership to further the mission of the Gospel in today's world. The scope of the conference's concerns is broad and includes collaborating in Catholic church and societal efforts that influence systemic change, studying significant trends and issues within the church and society, utilizing our corporate voice in solidarity with people who experience any form of violence or oppression, and creating and offering resource materials on religious leadership skills. We serve as a resource to our members, as well as to members of the public seeking information on leadership for religious life.