National Women's History Month celebrated with campus events throughout March

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State student organizations and units at campuses across the commonwealth will offer events in honor of National Women’s History Month in March.

According to the National Women's History Alliance, the theme of National Women's History Month this year is "Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion." The theme recognizes women throughout the country who understand that, for a positive future, society needs to eliminate bias and discrimination entirely from our lives and institutions.

Penn State University Park

Penn State's Gender Equity Center

Penn State's Gender and Equity Center and community partners are celebrating Women's History Month throughout March to raise awareness and to celebrate the accomplishments of hard-working women around the world. The programming established for the month highlights the national theme, "Women who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion."

"As the historic women's center on campus, we are excited to celebrate and bring awareness to the hard-working women throughout history," said Sophia Mills, program coordinator for outreach and prevention in the Gender Equity Center, a unit in the division of Student Affairs.

“Women are not a monolith,” noted Becca Geiger Wallen, associate director of the Gender Equity Center. “Living at the intersections of their experiences and identities women have often served as the champions of equity, diversity, and inclusion, highlighting and recognizing the interconnected nature of socio-political issues before being acknowledged by broader society.” 

The Gender Equity Center will host the following events to celebrate Women’s History Month.  

• "Barbie" movie screening and discussion — 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, Heritage Hall. Come on Barbie, let’s go smash the patriarchy! Join the Gender Equity Center, the Department of History, and the Center for Social Change and Belonging for a night full of Barbie. Join us for a screening of the "Barbie" movie and discussion of equity and inclusion in the film and the brand as a whole as we ask the question: "Is Barbie a woman who advocates for equity, diversity, and inclusion?" In addition to great conversation, we will be hosting a costume contest for the best dressed Barbies and Kens. Strut your stuff and wear your best pink in honor of this iconic film and win some cool prizes. We will have food as well as a photo booth, where you can take pictures of your costumes with your new favorite Barbies and Kens. 
• Women’s History Month Trivia Night — 5 p.m. Thursday, March 14, 008 HUB-Robeson Center. Join the Gender Equity Center in celebration of Women's History Month. Bring your friends for some friendly competition in a showdown of knowledge of women's history. Win prizes and glory! We hope to see you there.
• Explore and Connect in Washington, D.C. — Monday, March 18, Washington D.C. Join the Gender Equity Center for a bus trip to Washington, D.C., to learn about women’s history, careers in gender equity, and meet folks doing advocacy work outside of our community. During their time in D.C., students will explore both the significant women who made history pushing for equity and justice as well as meeting women and other folks who are currently making history. Join us for visits to the United States Agency for International Development, the U.S. Capital, and several Smithsonian Museums. Registration is required to attend.
• Women’s History Month Fun Friday — Noon-3 p.m., Friday, March 22, Paul Robeson Cultural Center. The Paul Robeson Cultural Center (PRCC) in collaboration with the Gender Equity Center will host a Women’s History Month-themed "Fun Friday," celebrating and showcasing racialized and minoritized women through an intersectional lens, highlighting different contexts of joy and resistance. To highlight this theme, the PRCC will feature women, accomplishments and quotes throughout their space, host various activities during this time such as affirmation writing/button making, as well as support local women-owned businesses by incorporating them into the event.  
• Women’s Night at OriginLabs — 4-8 p.m., Monday March 25, Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub (123 S. Burrows St.). If you can dream it, you can be it, and OriginLabs can help you build it. Join OriginLabs, in partnership with the Gender Equity Center, for a fun pop-in event for Women’s History Month. Stop by and check out all that OriginLabs has to offer! While there, join us for a free laser engraving make-and-take event. Select from our library of images of amazing women who have made history doing incredible work alongside an empowering quote perfect for spreading awareness about your new favorite shero.

For more information on gender equity issues and ways to get involved in awareness efforts visit studentaffairs.gmbot.net/genderequity. Follow the Gender Equity Center on Facebook and Instagram using @PennStateGenEq to stay up to date. Join the Gender Equity Center listserv by e-mailing [email protected].  

The Center for the Performing Arts

The Center for the Performing Arts presents Rhiannon Giddens with special guest Charly Lowry  — 7:30–9:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, Eisenhower Auditorium. NPR named Giddens one of its “25 Most Influential Women Musicians of the 21st Century.” The folk-music artist is an opera-trained, two-time Grammy Award-winning singer and reproduction instrumentalist.

The College of Engineering

Women's History Month Festival — 5–8 p.m. Tuesday, March 26, Kunkle Lounge, Hammond Building. The event — presented by the Society of Women Engineers, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, National Society of Black Engineers, Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers, and Wired-In at Penn State — will be a great opportunity to bond, make connections and learn more about the history and experiences of women in STEM! Join us for crafts, cultural hors d'oeuvres, a keynote speaker (to be announced soon), roundtable discussion and more.

University Libraries

Women's History Month virtual display on the Libby reading app — throughout March. Penn State University Libraries' Libby reading app will feature a women's history month virtual display of e-books and audiobooks available for borrowing. Check out these titles about extraordinary women, take a deep dive into issues affecting women, or enjoy a novel with strong women protagonists, by visiting this link.

Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon: Native American Women Activists and Environmentalists — noon to 2 p.m. March 19 on Zoom. In celebration of Women’s History Month, Penn State University Libraries will host a virtual Wikipedia editathon focusing on Native American women activists and environmentalists. Participants can get the Zoom link by registering for the event here. Wikipedia editathons are organized events held with the intention of increasing representation on Wikipedia of underrepresented identified groups and providing basic training to new editors. Participants will learn how to use University Libraries books and databases, as well as online open-access resources to improve or create articles.

Digitize Black Women's Records Day events — March 26. Penn State's Center for Black Digital Research Black Women's Organizing Archive will be hosting a speaker, poetry reading, and panel for Digitize Black Women's Records Day on March 26. Details are at this link.

Women's History Month books at Pattee and Paterno Libraries — throughout March. Physical displays of titles for Women's History Month will be available in Pattee Library and Paterno Library. A bookshelf featuring leisure reading titles is available at the Keiko Miwa Ross Global News Center, first floor Paterno Library near the Starbucks order pickup area.

Women Scientists displays — throughout March. A display about scientists who are women will be featured in the Life Sciences Library, 4th floor Paterno Library, beginning March 1, and will include books, profiles and information on women scientists. In addition, across the STEM libraries on the University Park campus, digital screens will display a rotation of slides highlighting women scientists.

Penn State Altoona

Wikipedia Editathon — Native America Women Activists and Environmentalists — noon–2 p.m., March 19, 202 Eiche Building. In celebration of Women’s History Month, Penn State University Libraries will host a virtual Wikipedia editathon focusing on Native American women activists and environmentalists. Participants can meet in 202 Eiche, where we'll work together while using the Zoom, or participants can get the Zoom link by registering for the event here. Wikipedia editathons are organized events held with the intention of increasing representation on Wikipedia of underrepresented identified groups and providing basic training to new editors. Participants will learn how to use University Libraries books and databases, as well as online open-access resources to improve or create articles.

“They Call Me Q” — 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 12, Slep Student Center. “They Call Me Q,” a one-woman show by Qurrat Ann Kadwani, is the story of a girl from Bombay growing up in the Boogie Down Bronx who gracefully seeks balance between cultural pressure and acceptance into the American culture. During the show, Kadwani transforms into 13 characters who have shaped her life including her Indian parents, Caucasian teachers, Puerto Rican classmates, and Indian and African American friends. With heart and humor, “They Call Me Q” gives voice to all the universal struggles for identity and self-understanding that are experienced by immigrants of all nationalities.

Poet and storyteller Ebony Stewart, 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 8, Slep Student Center. Award-winning poet and storyteller Ebony Stewart uses her powerful voice and drive to make an impact. She is an "art-ivist," social worker, and facilitator, as well as a published author and Woman of the World Slam Champion. She aims to make her work relatable and to help remove shame, heal minds, encourage dialogue, and inspire people in marginalized communities.

Penn State Beaver

Women's History Poetry Slam — 12:15 p.m. March 13 in the Brodhead Bistro. This event will be an empowering celebration of the voices, stories and resilience of women throughout history.

STEMspriation: Women in STEM Celebration — 12:15 p.m. March 27 in the Student Union Building Auditorium. Join us for a show full of various chemistry demonstrations as we celebration the accomplishment of women in STEM. Penn State Beaver professors Claudia Tanaskovic, Haifa Abulaiha and Stephanie Cabarcas-Petroski will be leading this celebration.

Penn State Behrend

“Tres Vidas” (“Three Lives”), a one-woman show featuring a live chamber music ensemble – 5:30 p.m. March 13, McGarvey Commons. The Office of Educational Equity and Diversity Programs and the Organization of Latin American Students will host this theatrical performance, which recounts the lives of three legendary Latin American women: the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, Salvadoran activist Rufina Amaya and Argentine poet Alfonsina Storni.

Penn State Berks

Latinos United for Change's "Queen Gala" —  7-10 p.m. Friday, March 22, Perkins Student Center Multipurpose Room. The campus DEIB committee will be supporting Latinos United for Change's gala this year, the "Queen Gala." The event will share educational messages and speeches related to Women's History Month with an emphasis on women and the intersections of their identity. The event will also feature food, dancing and performances.

Penn State Brandywine

• Art display — March 14, common hour, Student Union lobby. Thank-you cards featuring Brandywine students’ art. Sponsored by the Chancellor’s Commission on Empowering Women.
• Pi Day celebration — March 14, common hour, Vairo Building STEM Lab. Pi Day celebration cohosted by the STEM Lab, Brandywine library and the Chancellor’s Commission on Empowering Women.
• "Picture a Scientist" — March 14, 4-6 p.m., Tomeszko Lounge. Streaming of the documentary highlighting gender inequities in science. Food will be served. Sponsored by the Chancellor’s Commission on Empowering Women.
• Salina Almanzar, artist — March 20, 5-7 p.m., Student Union 114-117. Salina Almanzar, Women’s History Month artist. Sponsored by Student Affairs and the Latinx Club.
• Trivia — March 25, common hour, Student Union Parsons Hall. Women’s History Month trivia. Sponsored by Student Affairs.
• "Flirting with Harassment" — April 2, common hour, Student Union 114-117. Workshop provided by the Gender Equity Center. Food will be served. Sponsored by the Chancellor’s Commission on Empowering Women.

Penn State Dickinson Law

Annual Hon. Sylvia H. Rambo Awards Ceremony and Reception — 6–8 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, Penn State Dickinson Law, 150 S. College Street, Carlisle. Each year, the Women’s Law Caucus honors a legal professional who has had a distinguished career and who, by example, has made the professional success of other women more likely. The WLC established this award in 1993 when it honored Judge Sylvia H. Rambo as the first recipient, paying tribute to her contributions as a lawyer and jurist and to her interest in promoting the role of women in the law. This year we will be paying tribute to Paula A. Roscioli, class of 1990 (2024 Rambo Award recipient), and Madelyn R. Snyder, class of 2022 (2024 Recent Graduate Award recipient). Register online by March 12.

Penn State DuBois

Women in STEM Panel — 12:15–1:15 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 28, 209 DEF Building, Penn State DuBois. Learn more about the inspiring achievements of women in STEM. Connect with experts in the field and explore opportunities to support and promote women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Women Authors celebration — 12:15–1:15 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, Penn State DuBois Library. Celebrate the incredible contributions of women authors throughout history. Explore their works and learn more about their inspiring stories and literary achievements.

Women’s History Month Poster Presentations — 12:15–1:15 p.m., Monday, March 25, Penn State DuBois Library. Come join Women’s Studies 106 in the library for Women's History Month! Celebrate by checking out our inspiring posters highlighting the achievements and contributions of women throughout history. Don't miss out on this educational and empowering event!

Penn State Harrisburg

"Read 365" — Through March. Penn State Harrisburg Read 365 readers are selecting to read books to celebrate Women’s History Month. For more information, please contact Alyson Garland, Diversity and Educational Equity Committee (DEEC) Project Lead at [email protected].

Library Exhibit — "Driving, Designing, and Defying: Women Paving the Way in Automotive History (1880s-2020s)" – March 5-Dec. 20, Madlyn L. Hanes Library, 1st floor. The Madlyn L. Hanes Library at Penn State Harrisburg and the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Library and Research Center will present an exhibition in the library, showcasing women and their many contributions to automotive history as documented in the AACA Library's extensive collections as well as in the Alice K. Marshall Women's History Collection in Archives and Special Collections at the Hanes Library. A combination of original materials and facsimiles from the 1880s through the 2020s will be on display, including advertisements, automotive brochures, automobilia, books, magazine covers, photographs and road maps, as well as a rare woman's vintage driving coat and dress from the early 1900s. Contact Heidi Abbey Moyer ([email protected]), archivist and humanities reference librarian, for more information, or visit our website.

Career Related Convos (CaReCo) – Topic: Sexism in the Workforce — Noon–1 p.m. March 26, Olmsted Building, Oliver LaGrone Cultural Center W132. This topic is being led by the student group Women in Technology. CaReCo sessions are a space where students can converse and ask questions freely regarding self-identity and culture and its effect in the workplace.

Penn State Hazleton

Women That Shape(d) the Future poster display and reception — display March 18–31, with a reception at noon Monday, March 25, Center for Multicultural Engagement. Poster display of some of the influential women of our time who dared to dream, dared to compete, and dared to shape the future. In a world where listening is as vital as leading, where history is both a foundation and a roadmap, we invite you to join us in celebrating the legacy of women.

The Future is Female — "The Barbie Effect" — 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21, Center for Multicultural Engagement. The release of the "Barbie" movie has sparked a cultural phenomenon, igniting conversations and inspiring movements that resonate with women. With its vibrant portrayal of inclusivity, empowerment, and self-discovery, the "Barbie" movie has become a rallying cry for diversity and representation in today's society. Join us for a discussion of the memorable poignant scenes that highlight body positivity, gender equality, and the importance of embracing diversity. Dress like Barbie, Ken or Allen! Prizes awarded and snacks provided.

We Are #Worthy Women: A Vagina Monologues Tribute — Wednesday, March 27, 2024, 7:30 pm - Black Box Theater. Join us for an evening of inspiration and connection as we pay tribute to "The Vagina Monologues" and the enduring power of female storytelling. We'll honor the legacy of Eve Ensler's groundbreaking work while forging new paths of expression and solidarity. Don't miss this tribute to the voices that shape our world and define our shared humanity.

Penn State Law

Interviewing Witnesses to HerStory Panel and Discussion — 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 26, Sutliff Auditorium of the Lewis Katz Building. Presented by the Manglona Lab for Gender and Economic Equity, in collaboration with the Women’s Law Caucus. Penn State Law students interviewed women who lived through one of the most dynamic times in American women’s history, from former Senator Barbara Mikulski to the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, Kathrine Switzer. Learn more and register here.

Pennsylvania College of Technology

Educational Display — Tuesday, March 19, and Wednesday, March 20. An educational display focusing on Women's History Month will be held in the Bush Campus Center lobby, Dauphin Hall lobby and the Hager Lifelong Education Center lobby.

Women Who Paved the Way — 11 a.m.–4 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, Bush Campus Center lobby, Dauphin Hall lobby and the Hager Lifelong Education Center lobby. Celebrate the women who have made a difference in your life! Visit one of three stations to learn about a woman who paved the way through history, and then write a card, note or positive affirmation for a powerful woman in your life.

Women of Color Museum — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesday, March 27, Bush Campus Center lobby. Making its return to Penn College in honor of Women’s History Month, The True Black History Museum features its exhibit titled “Women of Color — A Tribute to the Contributions of African-American Women.” The exhibit profiles several dynamic African-American women who have made significant contributions to society and includes original artifacts, signed documents and photos of individuals such as Mary McLeod Bethune, Rosa Parks, Maya Angelou, Angela Davis, Dr. Mae Jemison, Shirley Chisholm, Coretta Scott King, Oprah Winfrey, Condoleezza Rice and other great African-American women who have impacted the history of Black women around the world.