Throughout the month of March, Xaverian College has been celebrating International Womenâs Day and Womenâs History Month with a series of activities led by influential women across Greater ĂÛÌÒֱȄ.
Focused on this yearâs theme, âAccelerate Actionâ, each event has provided staff and students with an opportunity to share their experiences and give advice on how to step forward in solidarity and take swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality.
To kick start activities earlier this month, women across the College community were invited to come together and share words of wisdom that would have helped inspire their younger selves.
On 7th March, to celebrate International Womenâs Day, the College partnered with numerous talented women from across the local community to share their impactful stories.
The first of many guest speakers was Dr Audrey Short, Clinical Lead in Genetics at Saint Maryâs Hospital. Her experience spans many years with specialist training in clinical genetics, specialising in prenatal genetics, as well as paediatric and adult genetics. Her talk took a deep dive into women in medicine and to inspire young women to become the future professionals taking up the many different roles that are available in medicine and health care.
Manuella Bushidi, Xaverian Alumni (Class of 2022) returned to share her journey into the world of work over the last few years, and it was a talk not to be missed. Manuella is an Intern at LandsecU+I and since leaving Xaverian has had the opportunity to delve into the property development industry, travelling the country and building connections, all whilst running her own hairdressing business.
Trixia Mercado, Assistant Accountant at Places for People, was also keen to share her journey with current students, commenting: âI applied for so many jobs after graduating, and received so many rejections, but this made me more confident, and I managed to get an interview at Places for People (PFP), the UKâs leading Social Enterprise, where I had the opportunity to study a two-year graduate programme. After this, I progressed to be an Accounting Assistant, whilst studying towards ACCA qualifications. This paid off, and I am now a fully-fledged Accountant! I also joined an âinternal flight pathâ, designed for those aspiring to senior leadership roles, and this has really improved my skills and given me the opportunity to manage my own team. My next goal is to become a Management Accountant. My advice to young women would be to say âyesâ to opportunities, be better â not bitter, always be keen to learn and do things you love, be kind and most importantly just keep going!â
Celebrations ended this week with the Inspiring Women Awards ceremony, introduced last year, which highlighted female students who have shown exceptional resilience, courage, fortitude, leadership, passion and kindness.
Marsell Mackintosh and Helen Parkin, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Co-Leads at the college, said: âAt Xaverian College we believe that celebrating International Womenâs Day is not just about acknowledging the achievements of women, but also about fostering a culture of equality and empowerment. Hereâs to all the women who lead, empower and make a difference, not just today but every day!â
To keep up-to-date with the Collegeâs DEI (Diversity, Equality and Inclusion) activities, visit their website or follow them on Instagram.
As one of the largest providers of post-16 education in the region, Xaverian College offers an extensive range of A Levels in addition to several BTEC courses. Visit xaverian.ac.uk to find out more.