Kent State University's Women's Center celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8 with a poster presentation to allow international students the chance to highlight women in their home countries and a service project to aid Days for Girls.
The poster presentation, held at the Center for Undergraduate Excellence, was followed by a panel discussion of students, faculty and staff talking about women’s issues and successes across the globe.
The events were organized by the Women’s Center to shine a light on women’s successes, further international understanding and give back to those in need, said Cassandra Pegg-Kirby, director of the Women’s Center.
The program gives international students, faculty and staff the opportunity to share what their lives are like in their home countries and discuss what challenges and opportunities they face there, she said.
“We have these other countries sharing information and breaking down stereotypes that might exist,” Pegg-Kirby said.
Incorporating a service project is part of the Women’s Center’s mission to always include an action component in their efforts.
“I think it’s a perfect service project for International Women’s Day and also on a college campus,” Pegg-Kirby said.
The project aids the international organization Days for Girls, which distributes reusable menstruation product kits for women and girls living in parts of the world where there is no reliable access to monthly supplies. Days for Girls has a local group in Solon, Ohio.
Pegg-Kirby noted the statistics of how, in many underdeveloped nations, girls without the necessary supplies are unable to attend school five days a month, causing them to lose valuable education days; women without supplies lose time at work. The bags also are donated to girls and women in war-torn areas where menstrual supplies are unavailable, she said.
Each drawstring bag includes two pairs of briefs, soap, a washcloth, two reusable liners and reusable cotton pads for inside the liners.
The reusable products are sewn from cotton fabric, which the Women’s Center has been collecting since February and will continue to collect through March 22 along with other needed supplies, including waterproof vinyl material for lining the liners.
As part of the service project on March 8, volunteers spent time cutting materials to make the components of the sewing project.