Although women now outnumber men in American colleges nationwide, this reversal of the gender gap is a very recent phenomenon. The fight to learn was a valiant struggle waged by many tenacious women across years and across cultures. After the American Revolution, the notion of education as a safeguard for democracy created opportunities for girls to gain a basic education. However, that education was based largely on the premise that, as mothers, they would nurture the minds and bodies of the (male) citizens and leaders. This idea that educating women meant educating mothers endured in America for many years at all levels of education.
The equal opportunity to learn, which today is taken for granted, owes much to Title IX of the Education Codes of the Higher Education Act Amendments. Passed in 1972 and enacted in 1977, this legislation prohibited gender discrimination by federally funded institutions. Its enactment has served as the primary tool for women’s fuller participation in all aspects of education from scholarships, to facilities, to classes formerly closed to women. It has also transformed the educational landscape of the United States within the span of a generation.
Each year National Women’s History Month employs a unifying theme and recognizes national honorees whose work and lives testify to that theme. This year we are proud to honor six women who help illustrate how ethnicity, region, culture, and race relate to Women’s Education – Women’s Empowerment.
The 2012 Honorees are:
Emma Hart Willard, Women Higher Education Pioneer
Charlotte Forten Grimke, Freedman Bureau Educator
Annie Sullivan, Disability Education Architect
Gracia Molina Enriquez de Pick, Feminist Educational Reformer
Okolo Rashid, Community Development Activist and Historical Preservation Advocate
Brenda Flyswithhawks, American Indian Advocate and Educator
The stories of women’s achievements are integral to the fabric of our history. Learning about women’s tenacity, courage, and creativity throughout the centuries is a tremendous source of strength. Knowing women’s stories provides essential role models for everyone. And role models are genuinely needed to face the extraordinary changes and unrelenting challenges of the 21st century. National Women’s History Month, designated by Joint Resolutions of the House and Senate and Proclamations by six American Presidents, is an opportunity to learn about and honor women’s achievements today and throughout history.
What is your school, community or organization doing to celebrate National Women’s History Month this March?
For more information and resources to commemorate multicultural women’s history and to celebrate Women’s Education – Women’s Empowerment, visit, WWW.NWHP.ORG
