NCCWSL Workshop Roundup

During last week’s National Conference for College Women Student Leaders, students learned about opportunities in different professional fields, attended workshops that provided helpful skill-building tools, and took part in seminars that allowed them to share their experiences with leadership, street harassment, planning their futures, and balancing family and school. The workshop topics were as diverse as the attendees.

Here are some highlights of what this year’s conference offered these student leaders:

• NCCWSL co-sponsor NASPA presented an overview of their Undergraduate Fellows Program, which provides students with mentoring opportunities while they explore the career field of student affairs in higher education.
• In the Do You Fear the “F Word”? Feminism Explained workshop, students focused on the changing definition of feminism. Participants were able to voice their different views on what the term feminism means to them and how it impacts their leadership styles. Students explored the idea that feminism is a personal choice and a term that is redefined from individual to individual.
• Street harassment is an issue that does not get enough attention, but it is something that women deal with every day. In the workshop Hey Shorty! Ending Gender-Based Violence in Schools and on the Streets, created by Girls for Gender Equity’s Sister in Strength program, participants viewed the film Hey Shorty. After watching the film, which was created by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, the women shared their experiences with street harassment and discussed the work Girls for Gender Equity is doing to help young girls.
• AAUW Leadership Programs Intern Jessica Kelly presented the Identity Development and Leadership workshop along with two of her colleagues from George Washington University. The workshop was a discussion on intersecting identities, privilege, being an ally, and what those things mean for being a good leader. Kelly said after the workshop that “visually, it was apparent that we had a diverse group of participants, and as we started to dig deeper into identity, we discovered more and more things that made each person unique and things we all had in common. Not only was it obvious how wonderfully diverse the participants were, but it was also obvious how motivated they all were to have a meaningful conversation.”

There were dozens of other workshops at this year’s conference that were inspiring and practical for students. If you had a great experience at a workshop that was not listed here, please feel free to post about it in the comments section below.

This post was written by Leadership Programs Intern Donnae Wahl.