I am in love with you. It’s a special, scared kind of love that forms unbreakable bonds and creates a feeling of community and support. It’s called sisterhood.
Every time I meet one of you who is a leader of an organization or who wants to be a doctor or lawyer or engineer my heart swells with pride and happiness. Every time I see news about an amazing achievement that an alumnae of UCF has accomplished I feel so happy.
Simply put, women are shining on the UCF campus. They have held the highest positions of power and responsibility and are leaders and innovators. They speak their minds and stand for their beliefs. They work hard everyday to achieve their goals.
Attending a school with such incredible women leaders is not something to take for granted. Yale University didn’t become co-ed until 1969. Historically, academia has been controlled and dominated by white men and their perspectives. Women had to fight to be taken seriously as thinkers and contributors to their colleges and universities. If it weren’t for the trailblazers, the women who raised their voices and had to work twice as hard as their male classmates in order to prove their worth, then I may not have all the opportunities I have today.
UCF is rich in diversity and offers opportunities to all people of all genders and races. That is a beautiful thing. If you are one of these amazing women that I’m talking about, then its your responsibly to lead the way and lift up the women that come after you. Help others by giving them opportunities to lead and thrive. Cultivate the sparks that you see in others and encourage them to pursue their passions.
I speak up in class and I share my opinions and I am a leader on campus because I know that there are women who came before me who never had the opportunity to attend college. They never were able to work side by side with men as equals.
So to all the amazing women leaders on this campus, the women are working everyday to make our campus a better place and who embrace the spirit of the trailblazing women who came before them, I just want to say this- I love you. I love your spirit, your drive, and your determination. Keeps on being an inspiration for the women who will follow.
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