Speaking to Wellesley Academic Council: Summer Institute

I was recently asked to speak to Wellesley’s Academic Council about my experience at the Women in Public Service Colloquium that I wrote about in earlier posts.  My prompt was to tell the Board what I took away from the event.  I spoke about how incredibly inspiring hearing the stories of all of the powerful women–about how they overcame obstacles to get to where they are today.

But, what I told them that what I took most from the event was what happened during the 2-day training program (see previous blog posts).  I took the most out of the event when I was able to actively participate.  I also learned more when I heard stories of women with backgrounds who were distinctly different from my own. I learned that it was important to widen my focus more globally and have been interested in learning what I can do to improve the lives of women and young girls abroad.

The program changed my life…and the friendships that formed will last throughout my career….and this was just after two days! In fact, I even signed up this semester for a Political Science class at Wellesley taught by Professor Wasserspring called “Women and Development.” (most of the women at the event were from developing nations in Africa, the Middle East, and Latin-America)

Read the thoughts of Victoria Budson, Executive Director of the Women and Public Policy Program (WAPPP) at Harvard Kennedy School, about the Summer Institute. I really liked her comment on why it was so important to have this two week program for women:

“It is a rare opportunity in life when a woman has two weeks to take a step back from her professional and familial responsibilities in order to focus on her own development as a leader.As women, it is harder for us to prioritize our own learning and to step away from the critical work we do for our institutions, organizations, countries, communities, and families.  This program, this time with other women leaders, this time to work on one’s own development is a rare and distinctive gift.”

I definitely thought of the two day training program as a gift…it was an opportunity to learn from other women and I received a new network of connections and friends.

I will be at Wellesley helping with the Summer Institute blogging and tweeting again…so I look forward to meeting many more women who I can learn and share ideas with women and public service!

P.S. As a woman, do you find (as Victoria Bundson says) that it is hard to prioritize your own learning over helping others and other duties? I know my mom has a hard time prioritizing taking time for herself over all of the priorities she has with her work and family!