One Edmonds College student recognized the need for women students to be celebrated
on campus for their impactful work. Visit "Hermione's story" to read how she advocated and led the establishment of the Women's Empowerment Movement at Edmonds College.
"In 2018, I attended the National Conference
for College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL) and I was one of the two women selected
from Edmonds College (EC) by the American Association of University Women (AAUW).
At NCCWSL, I was inspired by the way w
omen provided support for one another. Once I returned from the conference, I searched
for a similar event on campus, but I could not find any that celebrated and encouraged
women at EC. This led me to begin the process of creating an AAUW EC Chapter, however,
I could not get this through to approval early enough to host an event.
Shortly after I got hired to work as an event programmer for the Center for Student
Engagement & Leadership (CSEL), I pitched my idea. My supervisor allowed me to share
my ideas with the rest of my colleagues, which was not received favorably by everyone
initially. The idea was to bring all women together, not just students.
It was quite difficult to get the program going and I was quite nervous to present
the proposal to the committee, but I had to persist until the Women Empowerment Luncheon
(WEL) was funded by the student government. Even though the odds did not seem to be
in our favor initially, through the help of my colleagues, the committee, and the
student government, we made it happen. In 2019, we organized the first event in EC
history that recognized women students on campus for academic excellence, community
involvement, and overcoming obstacles through the WEL.
Since I participated in NCCWSL, I learned women are wonderful, open-hearted, magnificent,
and ebullient non-stop achievers. I am proud to help create a program that provides
meaningful connections for women from different areas of studies; encouraging them
to celebrate the hard work of one another. I hope this Women Empowerment Movement
will continue to showcase how empowering women are at EC."
Staff and faculty from across campus, divisions, and departments nominated women students
for academic excellence, community involvement, and overcoming obstacles. 27 women
students are honored with a Women's Empowerment Award. These women are truly inspirational.
We are thankful we have had the opportunity to have these women at Edmonds College
and thank each one of them for their work. Below are some Women's Empowerment Award
features.
Brenda I have known Brenda through her work as the Associated Students Executive Officer
for Administration. In this role, she is the primary spokesperson for the Association
and the Executive Board. What became apparent to me from the time we began working
together is the passion she has for representing students and their needs and concerns.
She is a "fighter" and works hard to correct and make right what she believe are processes,
systems, or people that stand in the way of doing the right thing. She works hard
both academically and in representing students at the highest levels of the college.
She takes little credit for the work she does and makes sure all are involved in the
decision making process. She is an advocate for those that cannot advocate for themselves.
She is compassionate and understands the challenges that students face in completing
their academic goals at Edmonds College and beyond. She is a role model to the Executive
Board team and myself. She has my highest respect and admiration for the work she
has done and will continue to do, well beyond Edmonds College.
Nominated by Wayne Center for Student Engagement and Leadership
Simone I currently serve as Simone's supervisor. She currently serves as our Service Learning
Student Programmer. In this role, she has been and continues to be passionate about
developing service learning and community engagement opportunities to students. She
has done this by collaborating with campus departments, faculty, staff, students,
and community partners all over the spectrum. She continually seeks projects that
highlight social justice, equity and inclusion. She seeks out meaningful opportunities
that enrich our campus. I nominated Simone not only for community involvement but
for her academic excellence all while raising a family on her own. Simone is very
dedicated to her studies and maintains a 4.0 cumulative GPA. In addition, she has
chosen a degree program that I believe highlights her commitment to giving back to
her community. Simone has really found a community here at Edmonds College and I know
for certain after she graduates, she would like nothing better than to continue to
work for the college serving our students and helping them navigate their own obstacles
as they seek their own academic goals.
Nominated by Stewart Center for Student Engagement and Leadership
Kalei Kalei came to Edmonds College from Hawaii to work towards her AA degree and play for
the women's basketball team. How far she has come is remarkable. Her humble selfless
attitude was a driving force for the team this year. This year as a sophomore she
has maintained a 3.52 GPA while leading by example. She has demonstrated a desire
to help the community, whether by volunteering to help with the Special Olympics,
or leading a youth basketball clinic. Kalei recently signed with Douglas College and
will continue her academic and athletic journey towards her Bachelor's Degree in Criminology.
She has a strong spirited personality, and we think, is a poster child for Women's
Empowerment.
Nominated By Spencer and Nick Athletics
Zoe Zoe is a super woman. She is a proud veteran, daughter, loving girlfriend, hardworking
career center employee, musician, world traveler and super IT student. At a young
age Zoe has seen and done a lot. She is full of life and extremely curious and adventurous;
hence, her interest in anthropology. Zoe is extremely helpful to everyone walking
into the career center. Her passion for her peers in the IT world and especially her
fello musicians is apparent in the way she consistently provides her peers with information
on financial and other support. For most of her college life she has performed as
a tutor in various subject matters. She is a true student advocate.
Nominated By Ronee Career Action Center
Taylor Taylor came to us with a keen desire to overcome her earlier struggles in school,
with the goal of becoming an engineer from the get go. She took a couple pre-college
classes and has taken advantage of about every program or service that she can. She
has been active in RiSE, MESA, Society of Women Engineers club, numerous outreach
events in our local area and is currently an engineering mentor, helping other engineering
students. She has willingly been filmed in our engineering outreach videos and has
put in countless volunteer hours helping others. There is no doubt in my mind that
she will continue to make a difference in the world. She is a shining example of a
student who kept her eye on the prize and is well on her way to getting there.
Nominated By Su STEM
Sisson Simply put, Sisson has been an inspiring role model at Edmonds College since Fall
2019. I have had the pleasure of getting to know her through two classes I taught
in Fall and Winter, in which she was enrolled, in both classes she worked harder than
maybe any other student I have taught in precollege math in my 22 years of experience.
More to the point, she has overcome various personal challenges to be an Edmonds College
student. None of these life challenges have dampened her spirits one bit. Not only
does she invest 125% of her energy in what she studies, she actively seeks to help
people around her whenever possible. I have personally watched her reach out and support
struggling students of all backgrounds, ages, and creeds. She celebrates diversity
with her every compassionate act and has a true social justice moral compass that
guides her thinking and actions. I cannot laud her enough. As soon as I saw this nomination
opportunity, I could not conceive of a more deserving candidate than Sisson!
Nominated By David Precollege Education, High School Completion
Alona Alona immigrated from the Ukraine and began studying accounting at Edmonds College
where she is scheduled to graduate this year. In the Spring of 2019 she received a
federal work-study award and was hired as a library assistant. While excelling in
her standard job duties, Alona took on increased responsibilities during a period
when her manager was out on extended medical leave. During this time she played a
crucial role in helping the Library maintain excellent service to our students through
her natural ability to quickly adapt to changing needs. Additionally, Alona was immensely
helpful in her ability to leverage her accounting background to quality check library
debts by consolidating fines and purging duplicative entries. Alongside her academic
and professional excellence, Alona interns with United Way where she helps members
of the community file their taxes.
Nominated By Charly Library
Patricia Patricia returned to school to improve her skills after a job lay off. She is a fantastic,
participatory student, and excellent at incorporating the project management skills
she is learning even before getting that next career job. She is a volunteer at the
Mountaineers, currently working on putting their courses online. She is helping people
explore, learn, and conserve while still in school, hunkering down, and soon looking
for a job. Patricia is a wonderful, engaged person who is soon to be part of the Edmonds
College alumni, who will carry that with her. Patricia embodies an empowered woman,
empowering others!
Nominated by Claudia Business Management
Sumiayaa Sumiayaa is a student who has survived challenging life experiences to enroll in our
EdCAP program to finish her GED and pursue a degree in nursing. I first met Sumiayaa
when she was a student in my English Prep class the Winter of 2019. The text we used
for the course is Things That Make White People Uncomfortable written by Michael Bennett.
It is a memoir about how risky and dangerous and yet necessary it is to stand up for
racial, gender, and socioeconomic justice.
Sumiayaa was an outspoken and articulate student who challenged her classmates to
think beyond themselves to consider other perspectives. I remember thinking this student
in a precollege English course was so sophisticated in her formulation of arguments
that she could be in a graduate school seminar.
Sumiayaa and another student asked if it was okay if they missed class for one day
mid-Winter quarter. When I asked why, she said that there was an African American
man who was due to be executed in Texas on very questionable evidence and without
proper appeals, and she felt strongly about attending a demonstration on his behalf.
Sumiayaa has no fear about standing up for what she believes is right.
This spring I met up with Sumiayaa again as her instructor for HSC 055, a support
course for students taking Allied Health 110, Human Body: Structure and Function,
a course almost overwhelming in its expectations of what students can memorize about
the human body in ten short weeks.
I hear from Sumiayaa’s adviser that she is studying 10 hours per day, and it shows,
with a current perfect course grade.
Nominated By Lisa, Larry, and Clay PreCollege, ENGLP, and HSC
Vanessa Vanessa is one of the most driven MESA students I have seen. She works, serves as
an Engineering Peer Mentor, volunteers, participated in the Society of Women Engineers
(SWE) club, conducted artificial intelligence (AI) research, and succeeds academically.
Vanessa is a returning student and she came to Edmonds College with one goal in mind:
to be able to transfer into a computer science program to create AI that enhances
human life, such as brain implants that can cure paralysis. This Fall, Vanessa will
be transferring to the University of Washington Computer Science program to do just
that and we are so proud of her!
Nominated by Holly Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement
Brie During her time at Edmonds College, Brie has been an integral and transformative part
of our engineering community. As a founding member of the Edmonds Rocketry Club she
has been instrumental in growing this organization from a few interested students
to a regional presence. She has played prominent rolls in: using rocketry as an outreach
tool to area schools, securing program status and funding for the Rocketry Program
with CSEL, founding the Edmonds competition rocket team Dynamo, developing Edmonds'
NAR Rocket Certification Pipeline, attending high power rocketry launches, marketing
Edmonds engineering, participating in promotional videos, starring in the new Edmonds
Rocket Therapy podcast.
Brie has also been the Engineering department Student Laboratory Technician for two
years. Among her accomplishments: Brie created a barcode checkout system for engineering
equipment so that it could be borrowed by students. She overhauled all engineering
engines, harvesting useful parts from scrap engines, and created a parts inventory
and storage system. She holds office hours during engineering graphics courses to
help students one on one with learning the software. She maintains and runs the department
3D printers and holds office hours to help students get started and printing for their
projects.
In 2023 AAUW will award three scholarships of $2000 each, to students identifying
as female, graduating in 2023 from a high school in the Edmonds, Everett, or Marysville
School Districts. The $2000 scholarships are for a STEM field of study (science, technology,
engineering, or math) at a college or university.
A memo addressed to high school counselors and teachers, students and their parents,
explains the scholarships, criteria for awarding, and the process for applying.
In addition to the three high school scholarships, AAUW will award:
One $2000 scholarship to a student continuing her STEM studies at Edmonds College.
AAUW'S SUPPORT
The American Association of University Women (AAUW) is a community that breaks through
education and economic barriers so that all women have a fair chance. AAUW's mission
is to advance gender equity for women and girls through research, education, and advocacy
with values of integrity, inclusion, and intersectionality.
AAUW - the Edmonds SnoKing Branch has played an integral role in supporting the Women's
Empowerment Event at Edmonds College. Leaders have come together to support the recognition
of women on campus. AAUW also partners with Edmonds College through Expanding Your
Horizons, selecting students to attend the National Conference for College Women Student
Leaders (NCCWSL), and through being an AAUW college partner.
"I am proud to see this tradition continue and to honor this year’s awardees who have
impressed us with their commitment to not only their educational journey but also
to being leaders in our campus and broader communities. More than half of our students
are women, and we know that many are working, some are taking care of families – all
while going to school. Women have also been disproportionately impacted both economically
and in health outcomes due to COVID-19. During this time, many have worked harder
than ever before to stay in school.
The Women Empowerment awards serve as an acknowledgment of the hard work, long hours,
and dedication that the women students of our campus community have put in to pursue
an education and a better life and community. Please join me in celebrating their
accomplishments and contributions."
MESA recognizes that there are many more women at Edmonds College who are making a
positive change on and off campus. We would like to thank each person for their impactful
work!
Dr. Amit B. Singh - Edmonds College President