Women's Education Worldwide:

Student Leadership Conference 2008

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• The View from Mt. Holyoke: visit Mt. Holyoke, the westernmost peak on the Holyoke Range. At just under 1,000 feet, the summit gives a panoramic view of the valley below and highlands beyond, including New Hampshire's Mount Monadnock to the north, Mount Greylock to the west, and Connecticut's East Rock to the south. Visitors can see the cities of Northampton, Holyoke, and Springfield, Massachusetts. Hartford, Connecticut, is visible on clear days.
• Student staff will offer activities on campus such as tours of the Mount Holyoke Art Museum, Equestrian Center, and Athletic Facilities. Wear comfortable shoes and loose clothing if you plan to walk around the lakes, exercise in the Fitness Center, or join in the badminton, tennis, squash, racquetball, and Ultimate Frisbee games in the Field House (Kendall Hall).

Come and meet the MHC faculty, staff, and students who facilitate leadership and international programming, on campus and around the globe. Information will be available about MHC Global Challenges Conferences, study abroad programs, global internships, Community Based Learning, campus leadership conferences, peer mentoring programs, and the Speaking, Arguing, and Writing Center.

Check in at the Welcome Center at Prospect Hall where staff will escort you to your rooms to settle in. Refreshments available at the Welcome Center.

MHC and Smith College students will lead fast and fun activities to meet participants from around the world. Participants will meet their small group leaders and peers during these activities.

Dr. Elizabeth Cole, Professor of Women’s Studies and African American Studies at the University of Michigan, will offer an engaging multi-media presentation on global concepts of feminism and the role of women as leaders at this time in societies around the globe. Readings on women in leadership will be sent to all registered participants in advance of the conference so that participants will arrive prepared to engage in the keynote presentation.

Bring your favorite music with you and share the sounds of home! Enjoy sweet treats from the international dessert table and then step on to the dance floor to learn new dance steps from around the world.

Get ready to be motivated to make a difference in your world! This session will offer insight into important skills, traits, and attitudes for playing leadership roles anywhere in the world. Workshop leader Patricia VandenBerg is the Executive Director of Communications and Strategic Initiatives at Mount Holyoke College, director of the acclaimed Take the Lead! program, and nationally recognized figure in communications and leadership development.

Women CAN do Science with Darby Dyar, MHC Associate Professor of Astronomy; Women in Leadership
Astronomy Professor Darby Dyar will discuss her involvement with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), her current work on the Mars Science Laboratory, and her passion for her field of study. Professor Dyar is a graduate of a women’s college and a pioneer in the field of spectroscopy.

Leadership in College and Beyond with Katie Kraschel, MHC '06 and Young Alumna Trustee; Leadership Skills Building
Essays. Lab reports. Exams. Reading assignments. Journal articles. Group projects. Why work so hard to be a student leader while balancing all the demands of pursuing a degree? Take some time to evaluate how the skills and experiences of student leadership can translate directly to aid your leadership in your family, community, and work opportunities. In the process learn about some examples of women who have honed their skills at the collegiate level to become internationally known leaders in their fields.

A Garden Tour with Ellen Shukis, Director, MHC Botanic Garden; Fueling the Leader Within
A tour of MHC’s Talcott Greenhouse and surrounding gardens will stimulate your senses and give you a chance to contemplate your place in the natural world.

Beth Gibney Boulden, Conference Coordinator, will discuss the Give Back Projects and how best to utilize conference time to plan to achieve your goals.

Speaking, Arguing and Writing with Laura Greenfield, MHC Coordinator of the Speaking, Arguing and Writing Program and the Associate Director of the Weissman Center; Leadership Skill Building
The ability to think critically and creatively and to write and speak persuasively iscrucial for successful leadership. Oftentimes persuasive speaking is imagined as a one-sided activity where the speaker needs to convince the audience that she is right. In contrast, we will talk about effective leadership in terms of the ability of the speaker also to be a careful listener who can learn from and collaborate with others. In this workshop we will explore what it means to communicate effectively and we will experiment with these leadership skills through an interactive activity. Participants will be invited to draw on ideas encountered in the workshop in order to develop specific strategies to use towards their own leadership goals and projects.

Women CAN Aid Sustainability with Sandra Postel and Todd Holland; Women in Leadership
Sandra Postel, founder of the Global Water Policy Project, and Todd Holland, Five College Energy Manager will lead a discussion of environmental issues and what you can do in your community.

Hot Topics in Student Government with Marissa Arnold, MHC Class of 2008, SGA President
Emily Taylor, Smith College Class of 2008, SGA President; Leadership Skill Building
What are the current issues for student leaders on college campuses? Share your perspectives and hear what challenges other student leaders face today. Participants are invited to bring questions about current leadership issues and ask the group for suggestions on influencing positive change in these areas.

Library, Information & Technology Services with Aime DeGrenier,
MHC Manager of Community Technical Support;
Fueling the Leader Within
Make technology work for you! An interactive workshop examining multiple technology tools such as Blogs, WWW, Multimedia, Social Networking, and Open Source applications to bring out the leader within. Includes a tour of the new Mediated Educational Work Space -- The Mount Holyoke College MEWS.

WEW Conference Planning with Beth Gibney Boulden and Julianne Ohotonicky, Institutional Exchange
Professional staff gather to discuss elements of hosting a global leadership conference on their campuses.

Global Feminism with Liz Cole, Institutional Exchange
This session will be a follow-up workshop by our keynote speaker to further discuss global feminisms and women in leadership.

Setting and Achieving Goals with Hannah Durrant, Smith College Assistant Director of Residence Life; Leadership Skills Building
How can women best achieve their hopes and dreams? How can women shape a vision for a group and help the group achieve their goals? We’ll transform inspiration into action in this goal setting session.

Women CAN Lead in Education with Lenore Reilly Carlisle, Women in Leadership
Education Professor Lenore Carlisle speaks on the imperative of women’s role in educational leadership around the globe.

All talent is welcome! Be brave and take the stage to share your talent with new friends! Bring a favorite poem or piece of literature to read, show us your dancing talent, sing a song from home, or create your own entertaining performance.

 

What We Bring to the Table with Jennifer Walters, Smith College Dean of Religious Life; Leadership Skill Building
A guided experience in sharing the diverse backgrounds, religious beliefs, and experience that each of us ‘br bring to the table’ this conference, and how we can value the diversity within our own peer groups or community when we return home.

Women CAN do Engineering with Susannah Howe, Women in Leadership
Smith College Lecturer and Director of the Design Clinic in Engineering Susannah Howe will discuss how women are leading the way in engineering.

Successful Partnerships with Campus Constituencies with Kristen Niendroff, Wellesley College Director of Residence Life and Campus Life; Leadership Skill Building
Learn how to live with your peers and still be able to talk to the Deans. This session will discuss how to building rapport with campus administration, faculty, and staff; using resources to achieve student government or student organization goals.

Women in History with Jennifer Gunter King and Nanci Young, Fueling the Leader Within
A joint presentation by the MHC and Smith Archivists on women’s education over time.

International Leadership Training: Massachusetts to Rome with Beth Gibney Boulden, Priti Rao, MHC Class of 2008, Ari Chadwick Saund, MHC Class of 2008, Judith Frank, MHC Class of 2010; Institutional Exchange
MHC students visited Collegio Porta Nevia in Rome, Italy in June 2007. Hear students share tales of this cross-cultural leadership exchange with a photo show of the event. How did they benefit from this in-depth leadership experience? How have their schools benefited from their new approaches to leadership? How can other schools create a similar leadership exchange?

Women in Leadership: Creating Change Today with Liz Braun and Kristen Renn, Leadership Skill Building
Dean of Students Liz Braun and Professor Kristen Renn of Michigan State University will host a discussion on how women lead in 2008 and how you can take steps toward achieving your personal leadership goals.

Women CAN have Faith with Gladys Moore, Dean of Religious & Spiritual Life and Director of Diversity & Inclusion; Women in Leadership
Faith and feminism - A session about faith, not religion. Can you be a woman and a leader, within a spiritual life? Can you believe in feminism and in a church with patriarchal view? Come and explore your own beliefs as you learn from others.

Seeking Silence with Leslie Fraser, Fueling the Leader Within
A non-denominational guided meditation in the Mount Holyoke Interfaith Sanctuary.

Smith College President Carol Christ will inspire all of us by speaking on the collective intelligence, energy, and passion with which our group is poised to understand the role of women in leadership and education.

Gather around the fireplace for games, desserts, and lively conversation with friends.

Mount Holyoke College President Joanne V. Creighton reflects on the great unfinished agenda of the 21st century: the education of girls and women around the world.