“By now you’ve all seen the Women’s History Month calendars with the tagline, writing women back into history. You’ve noticed how many programs are happening campus-wide that are directed to, organized by and centered around women. History helps us to know and understand who we are.”
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By now you’ve all seen the Women’s History Month calendars with the tagline, writing women back into history. You’ve noticed how many programs are happening campus-wide that are directed to, organized by and centered around women.

History helps us to know and understand who we are. Unfortunately for women, their histories are often invisible or overlooked. The National Women’s History Project (NWHP), one of the originators of this nationwide and annual monthly celebration and present champion of women’s accomplishments, strives to write women back into history. Subsequently, this is this year’s 30th anniversary theme.

The NWHP is in charge of choosing the annual theme, coordinating nationwide observances of the celebration, producing educational materials, and choosing which women to honor for their work. In accordance with this year’s theme, the NWHP is highlighting themes from previous years, recognizing different areas of women’s lives, challenges and achievements, from the arts to the sciences to politics.

The project believes that recognizing women’s achievements in all disciplines has a significant impact on young women’s self-respect, as well as greater respect fostered among boys and men, greater achievement by girls in school, more stable communities and even less violence against women.

They assert, (t)he impact of women’s history might seem abstract to some, and less pressing than the immediate struggles of working women today. But to ignore the vital role that women’s dreams and accomplishments play in our own lives would be a greater mistake.

We draw strength and inspiration from those who came before us- and those remarkable women working among us today. They are part of our story, and a truly balanced and inclusive history recognizes how important women have always been in American society.

Within the last year there have been several important figures worthy of writing into our histories.

These types of women-and several others like them working within our local, state and national communities- are women we can draw strength and inspiration from. Women who have paved new avenues for us and created new possibilities. These are women we should tell our children about when they ask us who important female figures were during our time. These are women, histories and achievements worth celebrating. Knowing where we are and where are going first rests on knowing where we’ve been and how we got there.

For more information about the NWHP and our leading ladies in history check out www.nwhp.org. And of course, for more active participation in The University of Akron’s Women’s History Month celebration, check out the calendar, go to an event, learn your herstory, celebrate women.

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