Forty-five California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) students along with 15 faculty, staff and administrators were part of the Inaugural CSUDH Women’s Retreat: Dig Deep and Blossom that was held on Friday, March 21 through Sunday, March 23 at the American Jewish University.
Aimed to inspire, connect, provide resources and build a sisterhood on campus, the retreat included activities focused on teambuilding, reflection, empowerment circles, and community building. Personal and reflective discussions addressed varied topics from culture, identity, social media, self-image, leadership, sexuality, community and communication. Students were asked to explore their individual ideas that have shaped them and deconstruct them to use as stepping stones.
“The Women’s Retreat has definitely made a great impact on my life and I am beyond grateful for the opportunity that the Women’s Resource Center has provided me with,” said senior RaNysia Fleming-Hooks. “After the retreat I have been able to communicate with others more effectively both in my personal and professional life… Attending the retreat has also allowed me to gain a sense of self value and revealed to me that others may view you in a greater light than the light you view yourself in.”
The Women’s Retreat was part of the CSUDH Women’s Initiative, which also included the CSUDH Women’s Conference: Students as Architects of Their Own Lives that was held on March 7 on campus. Designed to inspire women to examine their lives with a focus on career exploration, economic empowerment and personal growth and development, the Women’s Initiative is a component of the campus-wide Leadership Education Advocacy & Development (LEAD). Both conference and retreat encouraged students to be part of an open dialogue and commit to move in the direction of fulfilling their dreams.
Ultimately, the Women’s Retreat is one of the many steps forward CSUDH is taking to support and develop students to be stronger individuals and leaders, according to Sonja Daniels, associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students.
“The retreat followed a very successful women’s conference and provided a supportive learning environment around topics our students needed to dialogue,” Daniels said. “We look forward to continuing these conversations through events and programs from our Women’s Resource Center. It was also great to see the personal connections students made with each other.”
