The group of women met at Cape Town Campus, Ships, 6th floor Admin building.
CPUT ladies that attended the HERS-SA 2014 Academy kick started the program with a presentation of their experience at the Academy.
The Academy brought together 65 awesome women from various HEi sectors to engage in gender equity, women empowerment and an overview of institutional issues. This platform was useful for raising awareness of legislative frameworks around gender discrimination, theorisations of women leadership models and gaining an overview of institutional responses to admissions, diversity and research development and support.
Participants were also able to attend various workshop-type sessions on specialised topics of interest. This helped to add an individualised aspect to the programme and allowed participants to gain insight or develop some competency in areas they were possibly less familiar with.
A key but underestimated element of the Academy was the opportunity to network with other women in different disciplines, institutional types or roles and positions.
Thereafter, Bernie September spoke to the the ladies. Her insightful presentation “From the kitchen to the boardroom, claiming your personal power” had many ladies nodding in agreement. There is an old adage “a woman’s place is in the kitchen” and a man, says Bernie,” is most comfortable in a boardroom”. Mrs September spoke eloquently about how woman can claim their space at the table. The following points are very helpful in claiming your space in the boardroom.
Women must support other women
Work at becoming effective and successful
Gain the support of your team and other colleagues (males and females)
Become educated in all things gender
Know where you want to go, and voice your dreams
Activate personal mastery and embark on your own personal transformation
Don’t just fill a seat at the boardroom table; move them around and stack them up and down.
Bernie September “from the kitchen to the boardroom, claiming your personal power”