March is Women’s History Month. Observed in the U.S. since 1987, Women’s History Month recognizes the significant impact of women from across the spectrum of social identities and lived experiences. The month-long celebration begins with National Women of Color Day (March 1), followed by International Women’s Day one week later (March 8). Throughout this month, and every day, WSU Vancouver honors the vital contributions women have made in every facet of campus, life and history including leadership, science, technology, engineering medicine, education, literature, government, arts, community organizing and social justice, to name a few.
WSU Vancouver promotes an ethical and socially just society through an intentional commitment to inclusion, equity and diversity. WSU Vancouver is dedicated to building a campus community of equity, belonging and thriving for all, specifically women and all people from historically excluded populations across demographics, including gender, sexuality and race. This is critical as women contend with systemic barriers and injustices daily.
In general, women constitute a majority of the U.S. population and earn more baccalaureate, graduate and doctoral degrees than men. Yet, women remain underrepresented in leadership positions. When controlled for by race/ethnicity, this number decreases greatly for women of color. The gender wage gap is wide for women in general, and widest for women from historically excluded racial and ethnic groups. Cisgender and transgender women in general experience greater rates of domestic and physical violence. These rates are even higher for women of historically excluded communities, including cisgender women of color and transgender women of color.
WSU Vancouver is dedicated to disrupting and dismantling these inequities. The university is engaged in strategic efforts to make campus a more inclusive and equitable place where students, faculty and staff feel a sense of belonging because of their multiple social identities and not despite them. As WSU Vancouver honors the great achievements of women from all experiences of life, you are encouraged to join the university’s institutional efforts to challenge and crush structural inequities including sexism, transphobia and racism.
Let’s continue building and moving forward together to actualize a campus community of equity-mindedness, cultural responsiveness and inclusive excellence during this Women’s History Month and throughout the year.