Photo by Keira Burton
College is a time where young women are under immense pressures: getting the perfect grades, having the best relationships, finding the perfect blend for extracurricular activities that will enhance their resumes, and of course, having the fun “college experience” everyone always raves about.
This pressure is easily dismissed by those who have transitioned to the so-called “real world:” the time after college when of course we are all have everything together. Except, we don’t. For most of us, the transition from college to life after is full of anxiety. What is a 401K? Will I have to have roommates until I am 35? How will I ever make enough money for the life I want? Will everyone at my new job know right away that I have no clue what I’m doing?
These pressures – the ones we feel in college and immediately after – are exactly why we at Gild are so passionate about working with young women in college. Reaching these women before they enter the workplace and arming them with the tools needed to empower one another in and beyond school is essential to building the next generation of female leaders.
Hosting a Gild Workshop on Campus
Who do we work with?
By and large, the most common groups for us to partner with on campuses are sororities. We love the idea of an organization that already brings women together to support one another and build each other up. However, after working with countless greek organizations on campuses, we also know that at times even the most well-oiled sorority machines need outside help and guidance to build confidence in their membership, or to repair broken relationships and foster mentorship within their sisterhoods.
Outside of sororities, we have worked with any campus organization that has reached out and is passionate about building gender equity!
How does it work?
Sororities and other campus organizations tend to operate on a different clock – a college clock – than most of our workplace clients. Campus events can take place at any time of the week and at any time of day, and are mostly outside of the typical 9 to 5 hour. For that reason, we built an option for campus organizations that is completely flexible: the Self-Facilitated Workshop.
Self-facilitated workshops allow students to gain presentation and leadership skills while engaging their participants, and also allow the organization total control over their experience. Gild Collective prepares all of the curriculum and creative project instruction in a tailored facilitation guide, and makes sure that the leader of the workshop feels 100% confident going in.
What are campus workshops about?
In our work with students, we focus on two main topic areas: Building Confidence and Fostering Mentorship and Relationships. These topics can be applicable in many situations and adapted different groups.
What creative projects can campus organizations do?
The main project choices for campus organizations are the Morse Code Necklace and Colorful Leather Tassel Keychain. Both of these are fully customizable and allow participants to walk away with a personal message that reminds them of the workshop.
How much does it cost?
We know that campus organizations have complex systems for creating and maintaining budgets, as well as requesting money for events like this. We allow all campus organizations a nonprofit discount, and work closely with the event organizers to create an experience that works within their budget.
As we close up the season of back to school and sorority recruitment, we have reflected a lot on the “why” behind our work with these students. For us, it is simple– we want all women to be confident and feel empowered to work toward her personal definition of success. And we know that the best way to do that is to begin before they even enter the workforce.
If you are interested in talking with us or learning more about our campus workshops experiences, please reach out!