Women in the military to be celebrated March 19
Kaitlyn Jorgensen
Staff Writer
March is Women’s History Month, and what a better way to celebrate than to discuss the variety of career opportunities for women that lie with our Armed Forces.
Join the Women’s Center along with Maverick battalion Army ROTC and the Veteran’s Resource Office, for a luncheon and an open discussion panel about “Women in the Military.”
The event will take place on Tuesday March 19 from 11-2 p.m. in the Centennial Student Union room 201. Students should register for the event via Handshake by Monday, March 18.
The event will focus on career opportunities for women after college. Options such as enlistment, officer candidate school or contract positions with the US Government will all be discussed. There will be a diverse panel with a wide range of experiences that can help to answer questions ranging from education benefits to life in the military. The objective is to present career opportunities to women students that they may not have considered before.
Jade Hengel, a specialist in the Minnesota National Guard, and an active volunteer at the Veteran’s Resource Center stated, “I think that it’s important for women to be in the military because they are actually able to. It hasn’t always been an option for females to be in the service, and now that it is, I think it’s important not only to help empower women but to help diminish typical gender roles associated with specific jobs-the military being a big one. The military is something that most people can’t see themselves doing, but in reality most people can find a job they will enjoy in it, and they will find themselves in a place they never thought they could make it to, with people they now consider family.”
Kristie Uhren, a simultaneous member of the Minnesota National Guard and an ROTC Cadet stated “Women have and will continue to succeed in the military. Many women hold high leadership roles- and they do it just as well as men. We need women in the military because it increases the diversity of our forces, and oftentimes women can offer a different perspective and insight to certain situations.”
The panel will include Katherine McNair, a U.S. Marine Corp Veteran, Jenna Alm, Sergeant First Class (retired), Teresa Anthony, Sergeant First Class, MN Army National Guard Education Services and Recruiting and Retention NCO.
Uhren is excited to hear from some of our veterans and retired servicewomen. “As someone who is enlisted, it will be interesting to hear from someone who is retired about their military experiences, their re-entry into society, and how they dealt with all those different situations.”
Hengel added, “I’m really looking forward to the diversity of the panel-it should make for a great discussion.”