Women in Public Service: Are we living up to less than our dreams?

“Because man and woman are the complement of one another, we need woman’s thought in national affairs to make a safe and stable government.”-Elizabeth Cady Stanton

When I was little I wanted to be President of the United States, but I remember being told that it’s primarily a man’s role. Unfortunately, I think a lot women end up settling for less than their dreams.

Did you know that in the US women make up 52% of the population and nearly half of the workforce, but only about 17% of the seats in each the House and Senate? I feel fortunate to be at Wellesley where, for obvious reasons, there are few men competing for leadership positions and academic attention. I think this helps women to feel comfortable and more empowered to assert themselves. I’ve found support for my new political dreams as a student at Wellesley — I now plan to go into political PR.

Next summer, Wellesley will be hosting the first of The State Department’s Summer Institutes, which are being established to provide women in leadership roles from around the world with training on how to become more active in public service. This initiative will try to identify the main issues preventing women from being involved in politics and attempt to break the political “glass ceiling.” I’m really looking forward to being part of the planning for it.

I opened with a quote – I’ll end with one too. When she was National Democratic Institute Chairman, Former Secretary of State Madeleine Korbel Albright (a Wellesley Alum!) commented: “Every country deserves to have the best possible leader and that means that women have to be given a chance to compete.  If they’re never allowed to compete in the electoral process then the countries are really robbing themselves of a great deal of talent.”

What do you think: can the government effectively represent our entire population if women are not equally represented? Comment below!

P.S. Follow my posts while I’m at the Women in Public Service Project Colloquium at the State Department December 15th!