A Week-Long Celebration of International Women's Day at NCS

NCS students, faculty, and staff recognized the 2019 International Women's Day with a week of programming to raise awareness of gender-parity issues and to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.

 

For its third year honoring the global day, which was first observed in 1911, NCS dedicated more community time than in years past to an exploration of the IWD theme and to encourage advocacy for women's equality.

 

The Middle School kicked off the celebration on Monday, March 4, with a brief history of International Women's Day and an introduction to this year's global theme, Balance for Better. Across Woodley North, students wrote postcards to their elected representatives about issues or legislation, made posters about women's empowerment, committed to finding gender balance in their own lives, and learned about menstrual equity.

 

Balance for Better was introduced to Upper Schoolers during an assembly on Tuesday. Social Sciences teacher Mary DiQuinzio provided global context to the theme and led students through a series of interactive polls. Quizzes examined perceptions of which countries had the highest percentage of women in the workforce (developing, low-income countries), the biggest obstacle for women to enter the workforce (work/family balance), the amount of time women spend on unpaid domestic work compared to men (2 hours and 15 minutes more/day on average), and more.

 

Wednesday's co-curricular time was also dedicated to International Women's Day. In Grace Chapel, Director of Global Programs Melody Fox Ahmed moderated a panel of religious leaders, which included Senior Chaplain Eva Cavaleri, about promoting gender equity through religion. The discussion centered around ways women can advocate for equality within their faith communities and how people of different faiths and doctrines can work together to advance gender equity.

 

In Hearst Auditorium, DiQuinzio and Dean of Student Life Jessica Clark hosted a discussion about women's autonomy, agency, and empowerment across cultures and communities, with each table representing a different country. The United States table had articles on the Equal Rights Amendment, how universal day care could influence the economy, and high school and college athletes who stood in solidarity when USA Hockey players went on strike. Each story prompted discussions about how the instances of autonomy, agency, and empowerment (or the lack thereof) influenced women in each country.

 

And in the Middle School Meeting Room, Upper Schoolers watched excerpts from a CNN documentary called We Will Rise that follows girls who fought for education across the globe. Stories of the extreme lengths to which the movie's subjects went to get an education inspired and awed students.

 

NCS's closing assembly for International Women's Day took place on the day itself: Friday, March 8. As Upper Schoolers filed into Grace Chapel, a slideshow played of gender-equity role models, which students had submitted throughout the week.

 

Among the admired were Serena Williams, Emma Watson, the women of the 116th Congress, bell hooks, and Sally Ride. More were celebrated as Denise Brown Allen, associate head of school/head of the Upper School, invited the group to share why these women inspired them, and nearly 20 students joined in. From Malala Yousafzai's courage in the face of physical and emotional harm to soccer player Sydney Leroux's dedication to playing the sport while pregnant, and the stories of mothers, grandmothers, and faculty/staff members who made a personal impact, the testimonials stirred the audience. To close, an anthem of female empowerment called "I Can't Keep Quiet" was played as students engaged in silent reflection.

 

Many thanks go to Jessica Clark, who coordinated this year's International Women's Day celebration for the Upper School, and Kelly Dickinson, who coordinated the Middle School event!

 

Scenes from the week are online in the Media Gallery.