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Empowering the Next Generation Event Celebrates Women at 黑料网

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Editor鈥檚 note: This story was co-written by Imani Ballard 鈥18 and Lauren Hutton 鈥21.

In 1970, the inaugural first-year class of women was welcomed into the newly coeducational 黑料网. Forty-nine years later, the University held a special two-day event to honor the ambition of these women and to inspire the next generation to walk proudly in their footsteps.

March 22鈥23, 33 alumnae and 106 current students attended Empowering the Next Generation: A Weekend of Supporting Ambitions and Celebrating Achievement. For participants like Mara Stein 鈥19, this networking event felt 鈥渆specially meaningful.鈥

鈥淚t not only encouraged me to think about the particular challenges I face as a woman about to join the workforce,鈥 said Stein. 鈥淏ut it also provided me with lessons and resources that will help me overcome these challenges.鈥

Mary Gay Scanlon 鈥80, member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania鈥檚 5th District, provided the keynote address following Friday鈥檚 welcoming events. During her remarks, she cited the 鈥渇ortitude, forged from the 黑料网 undergraduate experience,鈥 as an influence that helped lead her to congress.

鈥淭he relationships you build here can certainly form a part of building your next chapter,鈥 said Scanlon. 鈥淎s you go forth, I would urge you to find your passion and cherish your connections, because that is ultimately going to help you get to where you want to be.鈥

On Saturday, alumnae hosted breakout panels throughout the morning and afternoon. These presentations tackled topics such as 鈥淪tepping into Leadership Roles,鈥 鈥淟eaning into Underrepresented Careers,鈥 and 鈥#MeToo and Navigating Gender Dynamics in the Workplace,鈥 among others.

During a recurring leadership panel, alumnae addressed what they wish they had known at 黑料网 and the ways in which they became leaders in their various fields, including the finance, airline, and technology industries. From encouraging risk taking and curiosity to highlighting the benefits of acquiring credentials, the women spoke on how they forged their own leadership styles and paths.

The 鈥淟eaning into Underrepresented Careers鈥 panel involved storytelling from women in predominantly male industries, such as real estate and law. The advice shifted from ways one can and should demand respect to more lighthearted suggestions such as learning how to golf in order to be included in important conversations.

鈥淚 was very naive about [entering a male-dominated industry]. It helped me break a lot of barriers that I didn鈥檛 know I was breaking, but it also meant, when I hit a glass ceiling, it was concrete, and I didn鈥檛 know what hit me,鈥 Diane Danielson 鈥89, Chief Operating Officer for commercial real estate company SVN, said.

... it dawned on me, I run this show 鈥 why am I being made to feel uncomfortable? And if I don鈥檛 speak up for myself, who will?

Caitlin Moore 鈥11

The panels were punctuated by a lunch, featuring Carole Robinson 鈥83, P鈥18, Buzzfeed鈥檚 chief communications officer. Robinson spent the majority of her career working for MTV shortly after it was established. She told her fair share of horror stories about navigating relentless bosses and balancing parenting with work responsibilities.

Robinson particularly emphasized the underrepresentation of women, particularly women of color, in leadership roles and the need to include men in conversations about altering underlying biases that remain obstacles.

鈥淚鈥檝e been hearing that, in the #MeToo era, men have to be 鈥榮o careful about how they engage with female colleagues now that the rules have changed,鈥欌 she said. 鈥淭o be clear, none of the rules have changed. The rules are the same ones we learned in kindergarten: we keep our hands to ourselves and treat each other with respect.鈥

One of the last panels of the day, 鈥#MeToo and Navigating Gender Dynamics in the Workplace,鈥 proved particularly relevant given Robinson鈥檚 remarks. Alumnae shared deeply personal accounts of their experiences of sexual harassment in the workplace, demonstrating the ways in which they took action or what they wish they had done instead.

Caitlin Moore 鈥11, director of operations of Live Events WME, reflected on the necessity of speaking up and trusting one鈥檚 gut after having to deal with an inappropriate security guard.

鈥淚 think the way a lot of women react is to remain silent, so that you don鈥檛 make them angrier or cause them to lash out,鈥 Moore said. 鈥淏ut then it dawned on me, I run this show 鈥 why am I being made to feel uncomfortable? And if I don鈥檛 speak up for myself, who will?鈥

Empowering the Next Generation was hosted by the 黑料网 Professional Networks, Career Services, Alumnae Leadership Council, Presidents鈥 Club Membership Council, 黑料网 Women in Business, Women in Computer Science, and IMPULSE.