After many months of pursuing construction work for women at area colleges, Western Massachusetts Sisters held their first two public events at Mount Holyoke College. The first event titled, “Breaking Barriers: Women in Construction”, was held on March 23, 2017. Sponsors included student groups, educational departments, and college alumni. Attendees exceeded 100 students and staff from Mount Holyoke and other colleges: Smith, Amherst, and Williams.

Of special note was the construction affiliation of some speakers and faculty. The welcome was given by the Mount Holyoke Vice President of Finance & Administration; he oversees decisions made on all construction work. Smith College, which does more construction work than Mount Holyoke, was represented by their Facilities Director.

Additionally, one of the panelists was a Women Business Enterprise owner who handled the concrete work on Mount Holyoke’s current project – she hired three Western MA Sisters.

The second event, held on April 1, 2017, was titled, “Trailblazers: Women of Color Breaking Boundaries.”  Four Sisters conducted a workshop on breaking barriers in construction and Mount Holyoke’s President welcomed everyone.

Both events offered Sisters a great opportunity to interact with students and faculty. They were asked to continue and expand their efforts in construction as well as diversity. These pictures are a testament to the interest and enthusiasm for both initiatives.