By Joe Garvey
March is Women's History Month, and 91Ƭ's Women's Center has planned a number of events around the theme "Our History, Our Strength." All will be conducted via Zoom and are free and open to the public.
First up is "The REALidad Series: Visualiz(h)er" at 6 p.m. March 1. Emi Valerio, CEO of She Commands, a women's empowerment platform, is the guest speaker. This event is hosted by the Office of Intercultural Relations.
Other scheduled events include:
- "The Road to Leadership: Building and Maintaining Our Success," 6 p.m. March 3. Panelists will discuss paths they have taken to achieve leadership positions, the work they have done this past year to stay focused in the shadow of COVID and future endeavors. Panelists are Monique A J Smith, CEO of Seeds Empowerment, LLC; Tracy Keller, CEO of the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast; Nakia Madry-Smith, director of 91Ƭ's Peninsula Center; and Kristen Prichard, sexual and reproductive health promotion manager for the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance.
- "International Women's Day," 6 p.m. March 8. The guest speaker for this global celebration of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women is Gabriela Christie Toletti, arts and humanities chair and professor of Spanish at Tidewater Community College. She was recently selected as TCC's 2021 Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Distinguished Service Award recipient and is also an associate adjunct professor of world cultural studies and world literatures at 91Ƭ. Toletti's talk will be followed by an interactive discussion moderated by Courtney Meyer, assistant director of 91Ƭ's Women's Center.
- "Women's Empowerment, 5 p.m. March 14. Guest speaker to be announced.
- "Being B.A.D. featuring Brittney S. Harris," 4 p.m. March 20. This show explores the lengths a woman takes to regain power after years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her family and romantic partner. A recording of the show will be followed by an interactive discussion with Harris, a faculty member in 91Ƭ's Department of Communication and Theatre Arts.
- "Women in STEM & Sports," 4 p.m. March 25. Participants in this panel discussion are Miranda Maverick, UFC fighter and 91Ƭ industrial and organizational psychology Ph.D. candidate; Kimberly Bethea, 91Ƭ engineering alum; and T.J. Jordan, former 91Ƭ women's basketball player.
- "The REALidad Series: Growing Through It," 6 p.m. March 29. The guest speaker is Joseida "Josie" Rosario, founder and CEO of The Healing Strategy, a boutique marketing consultancy that supports private practice therapists. Hosted by the Office of Intercultural Relations. Register at this .
- "$tart Smart Workshop," 2 p.m. March 30. This event will also be conducted in the York/Portsmouth Rooms at Webb Center..
For more information or to register for events, contact the Women's Center at 757-683-4109 or womenctr@odu.edu.
