Culture
33 Ways to Educate and Empower Yourself During Women’s History Month—And Beyond
Despite major strides in gender equality, there’s still plenty more progress to be made. Men are far more likely than women to hold leadership positions in corporate America, with women occupying only 24% of C-suite roles. In the male-dominated tech sector, a mere 28.8% of technical professionals are women. Representation is still lacking, and women’s stories are often not part of a central narrative, their accomplishments diminished in the retelling.
To create a community of empowerment and enable more women everywhere to claim power and equity through education, 2U’s Womxn’s Alliance Network (W.A.N.) has assembled a list of 33 programs that the company offers in partnership with leading universities around the globe. Today’s advancements in gender equality correspond with increased access—to technology, resources, and opportunities. That’s why we hope these resources will help you attain and hone the skills that will allow you to break down barriers and unlock your potential during Women’s History Month—and beyond.
Executive Education Topics in Leadership and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
Develop the skills to effectively champion gender equity in the workplace with these executive education courses offered by universities including Oxford, Yale, and Northwestern. As stackable educational programs, each course is self paced and can be completed in six to eight weeks.
- Oxford Women's Leadership Development Programme from Oxford University and Women’s Leadership Program from Yale University provide opportunities to reflect on and develop your leadership strengths and style.
- Women as Business Leaders from Syracuse University and Women in Leadership from the University of Stellenbosch look at the challenges and opportunities women face in business leadership.
- Women Leading Change: Shaping Our Future from the University of Cambridge explores the role women play in sparking change and bringing about more equitable societies.
- Rotman Women in Leadership from the University of Toronto examines the history, stereotypes, and behaviors of women in the workplace.
- Leadership in an Exponentially Changing World from MIT draws on the 4-CAPS+ Leadership Framework, developed by MIT’s Deborah Ancona, to provide approaches for effective team leadership.
- Managing Technical Professionals from the University of Cape Town is specifically for leaders of technical teams looking to improve team dynamics, performance, and innovation.
- Leading Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from Northwestern University and Leading Workplace Diversity from Rice University emphasize skills for leaders looking to build more inclusive and diverse organizations.
Courses in Unconscious Bias, Gender Equity, History, Health, Activism, and More
For courses focused on gender disparities in the working world and society at large:
- Unconscious Bias: From Awareness to Action, Communication Skills for Dialoguing Across Difference, Facing Racism and Emotional Tax in the Workplace, and Understanding Gender Equity constitute a four-part series from Catalyst that looks at unconscious bias and the importance of gender and racial equity in the workplace.
- Advancing Equity and Inclusion Through Gender Partnership is a leadership course from Catalyst that equips you with tools to model gender partnership in the workplace and beyond.
- Doing Gender and Why It Matters from the University of Hong Kong explores the concepts of "sex" and "gender" across history and cultures.
For a historical perspective on past and present women’s issues across the globe:
- International Women's Health and Human Rights from Stanford University looks at women’s health and human rights across ages, societies, and countries.
- Menstruation in a Global Context: Addressing Policy and Practice from Columbia University reviews menstrual health research and policies from around the world.
- Human Rights, Human Wrongs: Challenging Poverty, Vulnerability and Social Exclusion from SDGAcademy looks at human rights across marginalized and intersectional groups.
- Psychology of Political Activism: Women Changing the World from Smith College dives into the motivations of prominent women leaders and activists.
- Seeking Women’s Rights: Colonial Period to the Civil War, Wage Work for Women Citizens: 1870-1920, Negotiating a Changing World: 1920-1950, and Fighting for Equality: 1950–2018 constitute a four-part series from Columbia University that examines women’s impact on economic, political, and social life in America.
- Women Making History: Ten Objects, Many Stories looks at ten objects from Harvard University’s Schlesinger Library collection that demonstrate how women have sparked change.
For courses in activism, civics, and social justice:
- Civil Liberties from Princeton University and We the People: Civic Engagement in a Constitutional Democracy from Harvard University explore rights, civil liberties, and civic voices in American democracy.
- Unpacking Activism from Davidson College will get you thinking about your role as an activist in our current moment.
- Justice, one of the most popular courses taught at Harvard College, analyzes theories of justice and dives into present-day applications.
- Bridging Differences from University of California, Berkeley shares research-based strategies for building better relationships, dialogue, and understanding across groups.
- Community Engagement: Collaborating for Change from the University of Michigan will teach you principles and strategies for engaging with local and global communities.
- Through Storytelling for Social Change from the University of Michigan and Writing for Social Justice from the University of California, Berkeley, you’ll hone writing skills to craft stories about social, personal, and political issues.
Even More Ways to Celebrate Women’s History Month
Women’s History Month provides an opportunity to remember the often-overlooked accomplishments of incredible women throughout history while embodying their pioneering spirit. It’s our job to better ourselves and the world around us, and that starts with learning through education, but also by uplifting the voices of those in our community.
So share these profiles on Marylynne Lawson, Ilhaam Ismail, Corrine Padilla, and Imani Lewis, all inspiring W.A.N. members from 2021. (Throughout the month, stay tuned for more profiles for 2022!) You can also read two feature stories from W.A.N. Global Chair Kelsy Doheny: about the impact of Title IX on access and inclusion for women, then and now, and about 11 incredible boot camp graduates who’ve pivoted into tech careers and are increasing women’s representation in the field.