A crowd of students sit leaning forward, completely absorbed as sophomore Bellen Woodard shares her story. As a third grader, Woodard noticed that the kids in her class would refer to the peach-colored crayon as the “skin-colored crayon.” This drove her to create the More than Peach project in 2019, which develops crayons that include a variety of skin tones.
“A range of skin tones represent all of us,” said Woodard.
This passion to establish more inclusive spaces for all students has helped her project achieve a global impact so that people everywhere can feel seen, heard, and understood. Woodard has just recently published her new picture book Ballet Brown, which advocates for more inclusivity within the ballet community.
“When we make room for others, the world grows with us,” said Woodard.
Woodard’s work is just one example of how young women today are demonstrating the significance of their role in society and their ability to change the world. Held this year on March 17, the annual Women’s Summit works to promote just this by giving women in leadership positions a space to speak their truth and inspire others to create the change they want to see in the world.
Presenters at the summit included seniors Taylor Helfer, Alisha Kumar, Julia Mendez, Fallon Murphy, junior Yanzila Manzoor, and keynote speaker Woodard. Presentation topics included women in environmental advocacy, women in writing, women in the medical field, and how women can help initiate change in their community.
These presentations pushed students to break out of their comfort zones and realize their hidden potential to create solutions to real problems.
“There are more permanent effects of [helping the community], especially when it is driven by passion,” said Manzoor. •
