AAUW Dialog

In the United States, women have made great strides toward equality. Novelist and Little Women author, Louisa May Alcott, once said, “I am not afraid of the storms, for I am learning to sail my ship.” Increasingly, women have weathered the storms and stood up for the issues that impact their lives and the lives of their children. They have worked hard to open doors for themselves and for the generation of female leaders who will come after them.

We learn best from each other, so I hope to start a conversation among women of different ages and interests about their experiences as leaders creating change. I will begin this conversation by sharing how I learned to “sail my ship” for the betterment of women.

On college campuses, women leaders have the opportunity and responsibility to create change.  It only takes one person to get the ball rolling. During my years as an undergraduate student at the University of Central Oklahoma, I was extremely active as the president of Women of Many Ethnic Nationalities, a women’s organization. I implemented programs I thought were most useful to the campus, and I began to pull in other women to participate. My county had one of the highest rates of new HIV infections among women in Oklahoma, so I implemented These Steps Could Save Your Life, a program from which students could receive free and confidential HIV testing and sexual health counseling from trained professionals. The program proved to be a great success and continued for many years. It brought attention to the issue of STDs and HIV on campus, and many women and men were reminded of the importance of protecting their bodies.

When we learn to sail our ship, we make an impact that may be felt by many or may be felt by few, but it is felt. I invite you to share the ways you have learned to “sail your ship” for the betterment of women, including your ideas for campus events that you are currently planning or that you have already implemented.

Kendra L. Smith is a member of the 2009–10 AAUW Student Advisory Council.