Editor’s note: All in-person events through April 6 have been cancelled or postponed at all Penn State campuses. The cancellation is due to Penn State's move to remote instruction beginning March 16.
Penn State student organizations and units at campuses across the commonwealth will be holding events in honor of National Women’s History Month. Here’s a look at some of the events taking place at the University’s campuses during the month of March.
This list will be updated as events are added throughout the month; the University community is invited to send diversity and inclusion events for consideration to DiversityEvents@psu.edu.
PENN STATE UNIVERSITY PARK
March 2 — Researchers and authors Jennifer Hirsch and Shamus Khan will take audiences through their journey with "Sexual Citizens: A Landmark Study of Sex, Power and Assault on Campus," which draws primarily on the ethnographic component of the Sexual Health Initiative to Foster Transformation (SHIFT), the groundbreaking mixed-methods research project on sexual assault among Columbia and Barnard undergraduates. Free and open to the public. 6:30 p.m., Freeman Auditorium, HUB-Robeson Center.
March 3 — "When Hope is Not in Sight: A Talk on Mental Wellness on Campus." In this talk, speaker Scott Fried will talk about his own experience, living with HIV for more than 32 years, and the ways in which we, as college students and community members, can explore and call upon powerful healing modalities to reach our full potential and find room for our pain. Free and open to the public. 6:30 p.m., 129 ABC HUB-Robeson Center.
March 3 — Women's Activism Kickoff Event. The College of the Liberal Arts is hosting a launch event for students, faculty, staff and community members to learn more about the theme for the next year, "Moments of Change: A Century of Women’s Activism," and various perspectives related to women’s activism. From 3 to 4 p.m. a series of short presentations by faculty, staff and students will examine moments throughout the last century involving women’s activism across numerous ethnicities, races, genders and sexual orientations, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library. From 2 to 5 p.m. a Special Collections exhibit will feature materials related to women’s activism, in the Mann Assembly Room of Paterno Library.
March 3 — Celebrating Women's History Month through film: “Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer,” will be shown. 7 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library.
March 4 — International Women’s Day Open Mic event, sponsored by Schreyer for Women, Penn State Libraries, and Derby, a women’s comedy student organization. Individuals can share their experiences and/or stories as women and non-binary individuals and/or about women and non-binary individuals in their life through spoken word, poetry, song, speech, etc., in a supportive environment. Registration is required; register here. 7 p.m. in the Mann Assembly Room in Paterno Library.
March 17 — Celebrating Women's History Month through film: “One Woman, One Vote,” will be shown. 2:30 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.
March 19 — Women’s History Zine Workshop. Join us as we make zines (small, self-published magazines) to celebrate women's history month and use Penn State Libraries' Special Collections materials. Drop by anytime between 5-6:45 p.m. to make zines. A discussion will follow from 7-7:30 p.m. about personal archiving and preservation. Participants will be able to take home their zine at the end of the event. 4:30-8 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library.
March 24 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. 9 a.m.–4 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, Paterno Library, University Park.
March 25 — "Candice Benbow: Red Lip Theology" — Taking a walk down memory lane to explore the intersections of beauty, faith, feminism, and culture in the lives of black women, Red Lip Theology founder Candice Benbow will discuss the millennial woman’s journey towards progressive theology, wholeness, and freedom. Through Red Lip Theology, Benbow merges theological ideals with beauty-industry participation to celebrate black women’s creativity and spirituality. Free and open to the public. 7 p.m., Freeman Auditorium, HUB-Robeson Center.
March 31 — "Your Vote, Your Voice" — This non-partisan panel discussion will include commentary on voting in the United States and how to attract people to the polls, and address questions about issues that impact students, barriers that exist for specific populations of voters, and more. There will also be discussion on the 100th anniversary of women having the right to vote and the reality of that movement in terms of inclusion and exclusion.
The panel includes representation from the Gender Equity Center, University Park Undergraduate Association, Presidential Leadership Academy, and Ni-Ta-Nee NOW (National Organization of Women), and will be moderated by Genevievre Miller, an international politics and African Studies major at Penn State who also serves as State College Borough Council Liaison. Free and open to the public. 6:30 p.m., Flex Theater, HUB-Robeson Center.
March 30 — "QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) Training: Jana Marie Foundation" — QPR stands for "Question, Persuade and Refer" — the three simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. The event is free and open to the public but requires advance registration here, or e-mail info@janamariefoundation.org. 5:30 p.m., 233 A HUB-Robeson Center.
PENN STATE ABINGTON
March 1-31— Student Women’s HERstory Month Display and Pop-Up Book Display. Penn State Abington Library/Penn State Abington Art Gallery.
March 24 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. Noon-4 p.m., Room 10 Abington College Library, Penn State Abington.
PENN STATE ALTOONA
March 4 — Women's History Month reception. 4:30 p.m., Titelman Study of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts.
March 7 — Motivational speaker and best-selling author Jaclyn DiGregorio. 7 p.m., Slep Student Center.
PENN STATE BEAVER
March 23 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. 9 a.m.-1:15 p.m., Penn State Beaver Campus Library.
PENN STATE BERKS
March 18 — Beverly Gooden, founder of #whyIstayed movement, will speak. No cost or registration required. 7 p.m., Perkins Student Center Auditorium.
March 19-31 — "What You Were Wearing" installation, part of a national event, will be on display beginning March 19, with a panel discussion about preventing sexual violence to be held March 24 at 7 p.m. Multipurpose Room, Perkins Student Center.
PENN STATE BRANDYWINE
March 23 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. 11 a.m.–2 p.m., Vairo Library Instruction Lab, Penn State Brandywine.
PENN STATE HAZLETON
March 19 — Penn State Hazleton is hosting the third annual Women in STEM lunch program for campus students, featuring a panel of alumnae, female industry professionals and faculty discussing their unique experiences as women studying and working in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math. Free and open to all Penn State Hazleton students, faculty and staff. Those planning to attend should register online. 12:20 to 1:10 p.m., Black Box Theater in the Slusser/Bayzick Building.
PENN STATE DICKINSON LAW
March 21 — Penn State Dickinson Law will deliver a panel presentation titled “Finding and Using Your Voice For Justice” at Dickinson College’s Second Annual Women of Color Summit. The panel, featuring Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law Danielle M. Conway; Bre Bennett, class of 2021; and Maame Boateng, class of 2022, will explore the experiences of black women (African and African-American) in pursuing a career in the American legal profession, which is dominated by white and male voices. Noon to 1 p.m. Althouse Hall, Room 106, Dickinson College.
March 24 — The Women's Law Caucus and Dickinson Law community will honor 1986 alumna Noreen Tama, senior counsel, Exxon Mobil Corporation; and the inaugural co-recipients of its new Recent Alumna Award, 2018 graduates Alexia Tomlinson and Erin Varley, at the 26th Annual Hon. Sylvia H. Rambo Award Ceremony. The ceremony honors a female in the legal profession who has had a distinguished career and who, by example, has made the professional success of other women more likely. Learn more about the award here. 6 p.m., Apfelbaum Family Courtroom and Auditorium, Lewis Katz Hall, Dickinson Law.
March 27 — Community Conversation featuring Assistant Professor of Law Medha D. Makhlouf, the founding director of the Medical-Legal Partnership Clinic, which aims to reduce health disparities and improve health in vulnerable communities through collaboration with medical providers and public health practitioners. 12:20 to 1:15 p.m. in room 124, Lewis Katz Hall, Dickinson Law.
April 2 — Panelists at “A World on Fire: Intersectionality or Identity Politics in the Workplace,” will represent each of the co-sponsoring student organizations: Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, Black Law Students Association, Latinx Law Student Association, OutLaw, and Women’s Law Caucus. Join us for an engaging conversation about our intersectional identities and their roles in the workplace and legal profession. A dessert reception in Ridge Commons will follow the panel. 5:30 to 7 p.m., Apfelbaum Family Courtroom and Auditorium, Lewis Katz Hall, Dickinson Law.
PENN STATE DUBOIS
March 27 — The Office of Student Engagement and Professor Jackie Atkin's Women's Studies 106N class, Representations of Women and Gender in Art, Literature, and Popular Culture, will host a poster presentation of students' work about woman artists, past and present, to educate viewers about how women and gender are portrayed in women's art. 12:15-1:15 p.m., campus library.
PENN STATE ERIE, THE BEHREND COLLEGE
March 25 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. 10:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m., 107 John M. Lilley Library, Penn State Behrend.
PENN STATE HARRISBURG
March 12 through July 9— Penn State Harrisburg’s library and archives will hold an exhibit, "The Sounds of Suffrage: Sheet Music from the American Woman Suffrage Movement," which will include ten rare and previously unexhibited examples of sheet music, from the Alice K. Marshall Women's History Collection, that bring the "sounds of woman suffrage" to the Penn State Harrisburg community. Penn State Harrisburg Library.
PENN STATE LEHIGH VALLEY
March 26 — Penn State Lehigh Valley’s Black Student Union is hosting K-Love the Poet, an internationally renowned spoken-word artist and motivational speaker. For more information, email Pam Fleck, assistant director of student affairs, at paf5197@psu.edu. 12:15 p.m., Room 135, Lehigh Valley campus.
PENN STATE COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, HERSHEY
March 12 — Dr. Judith Bond, Evan Pugh Professor Emeritus in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, will speak on “Women in Research: Moving Forward.” The event is sponsored by Penn State Commission for Women in Hershey and includes a Zoom webinar option in addition to the in-person presentation. See details here. Noon, College of Medicine Room C3860.
March 13 — “A Celebration of Women in Science,” a full-day symposium sponsored by the Office of the Vice Dean for Research and Graduate Studies at the College of Medicine, includes panel discussions and TED-style talks. Keynote speaker Dr. Angela Gronenborn, Rosalind Franklin Professor and Chair and distinguished professor of structural biology at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, will speak over lunch at 11:30 a.m. See details here. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Hershey Country Club, 1000 E. Derry Road, Hershey.
March 26 — A National Library of Medicine webinar, “Rise, Serve, Lead… and Publish: Including Women Physician’s Writings in Rise, Serve, Lead: America’s Women Physicians,” will feature the lives and accomplishments of three female physician-scientists. The webinar will be available via livestream and recorded for later viewing. See details and get webinar link here. 2 p.m., online.
PENN STATE SCRANTON
March 26 — University Libraries Women’s History Month Wiki Edit-a-thon event. The goal of this edit-a-thon is to celebrate women's history month by editing Wikipedia pages for important women in history. No prior experience needed, just drop in for as long you'd like. 10 a.m.–2 p.m., Room 105 Penn State Scranton Campus Library.
PENN STATE WILKES-BARRE
March 1-20 — In celebration of Women’s HERstory Month, quotes from influential women throughout history (HER-story) will be displayed across campus.
March 30 — "The Vanishing Voter" — 100 years ago, women won the right to vote in the U.S. by one vote. Sen. Lisa Baker will be hosting “The Vanishing Voter,” an interactive presentation illustrating the importance of a single vote. Audience members will be assigned roles as candidates, campaign managers and voters and through these roles will act out the voting process. The ‘workshop’ is designed to initiate discussions about why people choose to vote or don’t; why they choose the candidates they do; and perceived barriers to voting. The event is free and open to faculty, staff and students and community with limited seating; to attend reservations are required by contacting jackiewp@psu.edu. 12:05–1:20 p.m., Academic Commons.
March 16 — "A March in March" — Celebrating the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote. Faculty and students will march across campus wearing yellow rose pins. The march will end at the Nittany Lion where the 19th Amendment will be read by various women from campus. 12:05 p.m.-1 p.m., will start in front of the Student Commons and will travel across campus, ending at the Penn State Wilkes-Barre Nittany Lion shrine.
PENNSYLVANIA COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
March 16-20 — The 2020 Women’s History Month theme is “Valiant Women of the Vote.” Stop by these passive displays to learn more about the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote, and get information on registering to vote. Bush Campus Center, Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center, Klump Academic Center.