March is a time for all women to come together and unite as one. Dawn Lindsay, president and superintendent of Glendale College, gave a lecture regarding Women’s Ethics and Leadership on March 1 in celebration of Women’s History Month.

Lindsay gave her lecture in Kreider hall among a room full of GCC students and faculty. Lindsay said that her lecture was designed for the success and progress of all types of women.

Lindsay wanted her lecture to revolve around what a woman’s road to success is like and to provide a better understanding of how and why women are as successful as they are today.

All over the world, women are flourishing in the workplace, academically and at home.

“I smile as I look back 25 years and see how far we’ve come as women,” Lindsay said.

In the 1970s, the celebration of Women’s history was only a week long. Today, people celebrate women’s history for the entire month of March. People take this time to commemorate the differences between men and women.

Lindsay would like people to look back and take note of all the accomplishments that women all over the world have made.

“Historically people look back at men’s accomplishments and stories in priority to women’s,” she said.

She wants every woman to take the month of March as a time for a self evaluation. She said that March is the perfect time for the women of GCC to evaluate where their life is going.

“Fall is right around the corner, and classes will be starting. Time to find out what your goals are,” Lindsay said.

She said that around the age of 3 people starting becoming who they are due to their gender. At such a young age, girls are taught to play “house” and wear pink dresses. Young boys are given toy trucks to smash and blue pants to wear. The public already has a predestined plan on what people’s lives should be and what type of role they should play in their environment.
“Hold yourself accountable for everything you do, be in charge,” Lindsay said.

Lindsay said that these days women have the opportunities they do because of the women who worked so hard before them. Every decade women become stronger than the year before. Women are continually raising the bar for themselves. Continual improvement is one of the most important things to Lindsay.

“My life was much easier as a working woman due to the women who worked before me,” Lindsay said.
“It is the responsibility of the women today to come together and secure the foundation for women of the future,” said Lindsay. This is to ensure that they have the same rights, options and choices that women have today, and even more.

In order to do this Lindsay suggested some steps women can follow. Women need to surround themselves with positive people. Lindsay has learned that being around strong, successful people has led to her to be all that she can be. Lindsay wants every woman to do the same. People need to acknowledge that everyone has problems but it’s how they deal with it which makes them who they are.

A big part of who women are as people is determined by who they are friends with, according to Lindsay.

“When women choose a friend, she is choosing a lifelong friend,” Lindsay said. She claims that women tend to need allies. They need someone they can count on, someone to talk to and support them in their choices.

“When a woman gets bad news, good news or any news at all, the first person she calls is either her best friend or her mother,” Lindsay said.

Lindsay also believes that people need to start embracing the differences that men and women share. She wants people to examine these differences and learn how to make them useful and powerful to everyone involved. Someone’s weaknesses will be someone else’s strength, and that is how a team is formed.

In general, men will rely more on hard justice and strict rules. Women on the other hand will analyze situations and what is going on, and foresee the long term effects of the problem. Both of these traits are needed when dealing with any situation, which is why men and women when working together form such great teams.

“Men and women will always come at situations and confrontations differently,” Lindsay said.
In honor of Women’s History Month Glendale College released a screening of the movie, “Iron Jawed Angels.” The film stars Hilary Swank. She plays a feminist who fights for the right of women to vote.