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Women in leadership: Students eager to take the lead

A new generation of young, full of potential female leaders will be in the audience at next Tuesday’s (Sept. 27) Women in Leadership event.
McMath students
McMath secondary students Dayna Finkelstein (left) and Carol Wang believe the divide between men and women in the workplace will be erased during their generation’s time in the workforce.

A new generation of young, full of potential female leaders will be in the audience at next Tuesday’s (Sept. 27) Women in Leadership event.

But judging from two the News got a chance to speak with this week, it appears they are already well on their way to being front and centre in their own secondary school-based community.

Carol Wang is a Grade 12 student and vice president of the McMath secondary student council, which is made up by a majority of female students; a total of 17 of the 21 on the executive are females.

“It’s a recent development,” Wang said, adding that, back in the 1990s, the school’s council was made up mostly by males. Things evened off at the turn of the century. And in the last six years or so, the numbers of females has been on a steady rise.

The reason?

“A lot of the time I think that has to do with how girls are, in general, more willing to participate in school events,” said Dayna Finkelstein, a Grade 11 student who is a member of McMath’s Interact Club, a youth wing of the Rotary Club. Finkelstein said she was keen to be among the 90 or so female students from Richmond’s 10 secondary schools who will be attending the Women in Leadership event.

“I’m interested in feminism and talking about how women should be more involved and empowered in leadership opportunities,” she said. “And after hearing about this event it made me think there would be a chance where we could all get together and learn how women can step up and advance into higher roles in society.”

When asked if they believed the concept of a glass ceiling for women is worn out, especially for their generation, Wang said she felt the term is more of a simple cliché than reality.

“I see a lot of women today taking up a lot of the responsibilities. And I think the glass ceiling concept is outdated.”

Finkelstein had a different view.

“I feel like it has changed, somewhat, but we are still living in a patriarchy. It’s not equal yet,” Finkelstein said. “I think that in some ways women are still scared of stepping up and realizing their potential. But I think we are going in the direction where women will step up and speak their minds without being called out, and do what they want to do without their gender being called into question.”

While their viewpoints may vary, both said they were eager to be part of the event, which is hosted by the Richmond Chamber of Commerce.

“I really excited. I don’t really know what to expect since I have never been to a conference like this before,” Finkelstein said. “But I am interested in what I can learn from the guest speakers.”

“I’m mostly interested in how the panelists can empower us in terms of how we can take on a bigger role for our generation as not just leaders, but specifically as female leaders,” Wang said.