Celebrating Women’s History Month

By Abby Miles ’25

Starting March 1, Lafayette College and the Office of Intercultural Development (OID) will kick off events in celebration of Women’s History Month. In collaboration with Student Government, the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, International Students Association, and many other student organizations, OID will celebrate the importance and impact of women. 

“It is important to acknowledge everything that makes women amazing and deserving to highlight, especially at the intersections of communities,” says Gabby Hochfeld, coordinator of gender and sexuality programs for OID. “In this month, OID hopes to honor the untold stories of all women.”

To kick off the month, Gateway Career Center, OID, and Gender and Sexuality Programs (GSP) will co-sponsor an event March 4 for Equal Pay Day. Posters will be on display, and info tables will be set up 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Farinon Atrium. Student groups will be talking about intersections in the workplace, including difficulties advocating for equal pay and different barriers in the workforce. “It’s important to look at different groups of women and gender identities throughout this month as well,” Hochfeld notes. “Women of color, disabled women, and queer women in the workplace face even more barriers, including access to equal pay.”

Kelsey Wong, an RA on campus and active member of ISA, is creating a bulletin board to highlight and promote women throughout the month. She notes an interactive component of encouraging her residents to write down people they want to acknowledge. This can range from celebrities to academics, and people in everyday life. “I think it is important for people to think about the people around them,” Wong says adding, “It’s important to acknowledge the women in your life, whether it is influential faculty, close friends, or even family members.”

“Throughout the month, it’s important to engage with the different perspectives of womanhood, in your own community and in Lafayette’s space,” Hochfeld says. “OID and other student organizations and departments are putting on incredible events all month to highlight women in all kinds of spaces.” 

Luna Garces, the inclusivity officer for Student Government, is helping to organize Sip and Speak: A Women’s History Month Panel, March 5 . Alumni and faculty will take part in a panel 6-8 p.m. at ThreeBirds Coffee House in Downtown Easton. For Garces, Women’s History Month is a time to come together and raise awareness of the things women do and things they have to deal with. 

“There is absolutely no limit to what women can accomplish when we unite. I am honored to spend this month surrounded by women who never fail to inspire me and remind me that we can do much more than people give us credit for.” -Luna Garces

Interfaith Fellow Elise Trocker is organizing an event March 27 with Rongdao Lai, a professor from McGill University and a practicing Buddhist nun. As part of “The Buddhist Nuns of Taiwan: Contextualizing and Complicating the Success Story,” Lai will talk about the history and success of Buddhist nuns in Taiwan. In Taiwan, the majority of monks and nuns are women, which provides a different way of thinking about who traditionally holds the position of a religious practitioner. 

“I always think of the quote from Little Women, ‘Oh, how I love being a woman.’ I want to see how people express that quote throughout the month, and what elements of womanhood this month is going to bring out in people.” -Elise Trocker

The Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program will host keynote speaker Tamar Jakeli ’17 on campus April 14. For more information, check out the calendar of events for Women’s History Month.