#AccelerateAction

By Loren Deutsch

March 8 is International Women’s Day. It is a day to celebrate women and their social, economic, cultural, and political achievements. #AccelerateAction is a global call for gender equality and acknowledges the need to accelerate women’s equality. We celebrate March 8 to ensure diverse talent, economic empowerment, and equal access to education, healthcare, employment, and pay.  We shouldn’t need an annual reminder to celebrate women or to uplift and accelerate action for equality, but we do, and I participate fully.

At the end of 2010, I started Loren Academic Services (LAS). It was years after I had started my private practice and doing what I loved as an educational therapist, clinical social worker, and teacher. When my practice grew into LAS it did so for a few reasons. There was a growing demand for executive functioning support and integrative academic coaching, undeniable reasons for representation and diversity in medical and general education, a rapid increase in burnout, and a growing demand to remove the culture of silence and stigma associated with learning disorders and psychological problems.

As the demand for support exceeded my capacity, I embarked on a new chapter: developing a comprehensive training curriculum and building a team of dedicated scholastic managers and medical coaches. Those early days were a whirlwind of excitement and exhaustion. Long nights were spent drafting curriculum and writing training modules, while days were filled with teaching and providing integrative academic support. It was a labor of love, fueled by the desire to reach more individuals, and 15 years later, I am running an exciting woman-owned business.

Because we live in a time of uncertainty it is more important than ever to celebrate and support one another. In light of Internal Women’s Day, I have included a brief list of how to accelerate action for women’s equality and a few resources for more information.

• Promote economic empowerment
  • Equal pay for equal work
  • Enforce pay equity and transparency
  • Provide paid maternity and paternity leave
  • Support unpaid care work

• Enable education and skill development
  • Provide equal access to quality education
  • Provide lifelong learning opportunities

• Increase women’s leadership and representation
  • Increase women’s participation in leadership roles
  • Create pathways for women in executive positions
  • Amplify women’s voices in local and global decision-making

References

International Women’s Day Resources

International Women’s Day Videos

Accelerate Action Theme

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