On many college campuses, Sunday morning is quiet. Students work on homework, go to church, and get ready for the week. This Sunday was an exception for some of the students at CNU. More than 100 young women attended the Women’s Leadership Summit, a relatively new campus tradition. This four hour affair may have been over quickly, but it left some lasting impressions that will stick with students for the rest of their time here at CNU.
The summit began with a dance party. Keynote speaker Bonny Shade called everyone to stand up and dance around a little bit. The infectious rhythm of “Despacito” kicked in, and before we knew it all of the attendees were swaying to the beat. One student climbed on top her chair; she danced in a fit of devotion. Shade, confident that the room had been effectively woken up, began her lecture. It was a fascinating take on being a “boss” and releasing “your inner gangster.” What Shade was saying made sense — there were moments of clapping and of snapping, where the room was taken aback by the absolute truth of her words. Something particularly striking that she said: “Nobody is going to come down and crown you Miss Good-Enough. You have to do that yourself.”
After this rousing speech, the room was ready to start setting bras afire. All the revolutionary energy was directed towards three sets of educational programs, with three options for each. Some of the lectures were entitled “Rolling in the Deep and Water Under the Bridge,” “Not Everyone Can Be President,” and “Build a Positive Core.” These sessions were led by Christopher Newport faculty, as well as Shade. There were a variety of topics covered, so there was always something for everyone. Given the smaller size of the summit, all of the sessions were interactive. While I am hopeful that in the future the conference will grow, I hope that it remains accessible to students.
The most rewarding part of the summit for me personally was the Student leadership panel. This took place during lunch (hello yummy turkey sandwich) and featured five women leaders from around campus. These women were predominantly upperclassmen who had spent a fair amount of time in leadership positions and were acutely aware of the many challenges faced with female leaders. Each woman answered a different set of questions, each relating to their constant struggle to balance their gender in the workplace. Some major points to take away were the importance of self-care and the understanding that you don’t have to be perfect all the time. It isn’t easy being a woman in situations where there are usually men. In her introductory address, Shade had quoted Madeleine Albright’s famous appraisal that “there seems to be enough room in the world for mediocre men, but not for mediocre women.”
The 2017 Women’s Leadership Summit was incredible, and I was so delighted to be a part of it. I left my name and email address, and I hopefully may get to help plan next year’s conference. An analysis of the registered attendants showed that nearly a third of the students present were sophomores, part of the class of 2020. Also, around sixty percent of the attendants were Greek affiliated, and the remainder was not. Something I didn’t see, but would like to see in the future, is male representation. There were four men present: two were photographers, one was a catering representative, and one was the director of the Office of Student Activities. Women cannot hope to fix the gender disparity alone — it will take sound minded male leaders to fully raise all genders to the status in society that they all deserve. After all of the inspiration I heard today, I think that I can speak for most of the students present when I say: bring it on world.