The end of August begins the exciting time of year when freshmen are full of anticipation, moving into college for the first time. Most are greeted with pride and excitement from their peers in high school, though some are greeted with criticism and misunderstanding. I know I was.
My list of college applications was different from most students in my high school. Most were applying to big state or big-name schools, while I was applying to small liberal arts schools, including many women’s colleges. I got into my top choice, Barnard College, the Women’s Liberal Arts College of Columbia University, and couldn’t have been happier. I never questioned my choice, my family never questioned my choice, but many of my peers did. They just “couldn’t get” why I would ever want to go to an “all-girls’ school.” Everyone had to share his or her two cents.
“Are you a lesbian?”
“I don’t think I could ever handle not being around guys.”
“Why would you want to do that to yourself?”
“Aren’t you going to miss boys?”
“I just don’t get it.”
What’s not to get about wanting to go to one of the country’s top liberal arts colleges to receive an open-minded education in a strong feminist community to teach the next generation of strong female leaders? I found myself getting really defensive about a choice that I was already confident about.
“Really it’s not all girls, Columbia guys are around all the time.”
“It’s just like girls’ dorms across the street.”
“Well, I’ll be in New York City, so I’m not that isolated.”
“I’m going to school to get an education, not to find a husband.”
My defenses correlated with the concerns of my classmates, especially my female classmates: what about boys? But that shouldn’t really be the concern of choosing a college, should it? I was honestly frustrated that so many of my female classmates were so concerned with being around men. And not only that, but they questioned my sexual identity, something I’ve always been very confident and assured about. To move past that aspect, I further defended the educational standpoint of women’s colleges. I emphasized how they’re very individualized, they help students strive to succeed, and they focus students' growth in a strong feminist community.
“But if society is becoming more liberal and we want equality among the sexes, why do women’s schools even matter? They’re not relevant anymore.”
This question really got me thinking and drawing up an argument immediately. Yes society is more progressive than it has been in the past, and I understand that if men and women are to be equal in the work force, then men and women have to work together to have equal education, but that does not mean that women’s colleges are any less relevant. In fact, that makes them even more so.
Women’s colleges were originally founded with the intent of educating women. Sounds redundant, I know. But this was during a time when only men could attend college and universities, specifically Ivy Leagues like Harvard and Columbia. As a result, the Seven Sister Schools were founded to give an equal educational opportunity to women, Barnard College being one of them. This all happened on the cusp of the big feminist movement everyone learns about in history textbooks, “Votes for Women” and all that, Barnard College being founded in 1889 for example. So this whole push for women’s educational rights came around the same time as the push for equal voting and working rights, establishing a progression in the fight for equality of the sexes.
Once Ivy Leagues changed their admission policy to accept both men and women, they absorbed some of the Sister Schools, five still remaining independent. While society has definitely come a long way regarding gender-based issues in the past century, there is still not complete equality. Women are definitely more prominent in the workforce, more than half of universities are women (if you’re at a women’s school it’s 100 percent), and women are successful and respected in the public eye as leaders in fields such as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and politics. However, there is still the wage gap. How can a woman earn just over three-quarters of the amount a man earns who did the exact same work for the exact same position? Until that wage gap closes, there will not be complete equality among the sexes and the fight for feminist education continues.
The most important aspect of a women’s college education is the individualized attention students receive to ensure their success. This is vital to education systems as a whole and is lacking in public school programs. Even the best school systems in the country don’t entirely focus on every individual equally. Graduating high school from an affluent community, I noticed that the school system emphasized sports as a means to a college education, especially among the male students. Local newspapers gave all the attention to male student athletes for their accomplishments, and instead put the reserved female students in the back corner for their academic accomplishments. If young women continue learn in this kind of educational setting, they will believe that their successes are secondary and have less value. In lower income communities too, school systems aren’t as strong and education is de-individualized, pushing women’s education to the back burner.
Attending women’s colleges gives young women opportunities to receive individual attention in their education with professors that truly care about their success. When professors invest their time in young women at small liberal arts colleges, young women will realize and recognize their potential and their worth. They will assert that their voice can never be taken away from them. They will work to show their strength and prove that they are capable of anything. They will learn that their thoughts and opinions have value. They will become the next generation of successful leaders. Oftentimes, being in a classroom dominated by men would not teach young women to raise their voices and communicate their ideas, but continue to hold them back. When the attention is focused on young women, they will build confidence in themselves and be able to communicate in mixed-gender situations and workplaces in the near future. Receiving a strong, feminist-based education is a very important step in asserting a woman’s worth regarding gender equality.
Still not convinced that women’s colleges are relevant? Would some real-life examples be convincing? Many influential women in society today and throughout history are alumnae of women’s colleges. They could not attribute their professional success to anything other than the strong education they received at women’s colleges, giving them the extra boost they needed to grow and succeed. For instance, Hillary Clinton and Madeline Albright both graduated from Wellesley College. Anna Quindlen, Zora Neale Hurston, and Martha Stewart are all graduates of Barnard College. Margaret Mitchell, Julia Child, and Nancy Reagan are alumnae of Smith College. The list continues on. I could give a mini-speech about each notable alumna of women’s colleges and how successful they are because of their education, but then that would be a really long article.
I understand that attending a women’s college is not for everyone, but it is exactly what I needed and exactly what other young women in this country need. The Sister Schools have provided me a place where my voice can be heard, my mind can be opened, and my knowledge can be broadened, and I know it can provide that for other young women too. As long as women need to be respected, appreciated, and heard, women’s colleges will always be relevant.
