The Women’s Resource Center has been putting on many events in celebration of Women’s History Month, and as Collegiettes, this is obviously something that we should be paying close attention to.
I attended an event with Grace Simmons (‘05) entitled, “Celebrating our Past, Envisioning our Future”. It featured a screening of the Council for Women’s video “Making our Place”, and Grace Simmons (VP for Strategic Initiatives at Chobani) speaking to the group about her BC experience as a female leader and her transition to her current career.
Honestly, one of my classes required me to attend a WRC event, and even though I was definitely interested, it wasn’t something that I would have necessarily gone to on my own accord. I had never previously been to a WRC event before, and at the end of the program I was ashamed that I hadn’t.
As a female student at Boston College, I sometimes take my education for granted. Let me specify, I take my ability to gain an education for granted. Grace Simmons highlighted this in her presentation; she expressed her desire for the women of Boston College to take this opportunity we have been given and do something great with it.
Although this is a generalization, a lot of BC women feel the perfectionist syndrome- the need to take on every challenge and complete it flawlessly, all the while competing with other women which in turn feeds the entire cycle. In her conversation with us, Grace urged the women of BC to find supportive faculty mentors, lead with love, and maintain what she called the four most important virtues: courage, confidence, faith and endurance.
This discussion really opened my eyes to not only the amazing Alumni network we have at BC, but also the wonderful work that the Women’s Resource Center does in attempting to further educate the BC community about prevalent gender issues on campus. These events are truly entertaining and enlightening, and something fun to take your mind off your twenty-five page research paper.
And to you male readers out there….yes, you! There is no reason why you should stay clear of WRC sponsored events. There was a pretty good male turnout at the event that I attended, and with these kinds of topics I think it’s important to have both sides represented. There is a lot to learn, and gender discussions aren’t just for women.
So next time you see a promo for a WRC event, take the opportunity and go! There is so much to learn, and we Collegiettes can never be too informed about Women’s issues here on campus.
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