Drexel students are known for being go-getters. We manage to make it through a rigorous 10-week quarter system, and we’re willing to go to school in the summer if it means having work experience. In the case of Saemi De Palm, her ambitious nature also led her to help create a new student organization on campus that would serve as a venue for people to talk about women’s issues, become more socially aware, and feel more confident about themselves. This club is called Women’s Empowerment at Drexel.
Saemi, a 20-year-old sophomore biological sciences major from New Jersey, serves as the vice president of WE at Drexel. WE at Drexel’s mission is to help women feel like they can do or be anything they want to be through group discussions, events, bonding activities, and community service they hope to build a community that is inclusive, positive, and uplifts the female student body.
Every term, the organization focuses on a different theme that their discussions are based on. This term the theme was social media, so the group talked about how social media influences the way we as women view ourselves and the way we view others.
“Social media can influence your self esteem through the number of likes and comments you get. It also gives people a way to criticize others. We felt like a lot of people could relate to this topic so that’s why we chose it,” Saemi said. In her role as vice president, Saemi, along with the other executive board members pick the theme and create discussion questions based on the theme. She also facilitates the conversations during meetings as well as coordinates volunteering and bonding events. An upcoming bonding event that WE will be having this term is a female self-defense class conducted by Drexel Public Safety. As a new organization on campus, Saemi hopes that by collaborating with other groups on or off campus, the club will receive more visibility.
The organization is still in its growing stage, and Saemi describes it as being difficult to get the word out about Women’s Empowerment. Despite some difficulties, the plans for WE at Drexel are lofty. “Next school year, we want to have more events where we bring in guest speakers, do more community service, and have multiple bonding events per term.”
In her spare time, Saemi enjoys crafting, knitting, exploring the Philadelphia area, and learning more about social justice issues. She is also a member of Phi Sigma Pi National Honor Fraternity.
In the future, Saemi aspires to become a doctor of osteopathic medicine, specializing in pathology or obstetrics. In the same way she hopes to help make the lives of patients better through her career, she hopes Women’s Empowerment at Drexel will leave a mark on our school. “The best thing about this club is that I have a chance to make an impact within the Drexel community and Philadelphia about issues that I am passionate about. My experiences in WE go beyond the classroom and what I thought I could accomplish at Drexel and that motivates me to pursue my goals even further.“
You can visit the Women’s Empowerment Facebook page to learn more.