From a global perspective, the statistics are indeed grim, beginning with genital mutilation and female infanticide. HIV drugs only reach half the mothers in need. Only 19 percent of parliamentary members worldwide are women. And although women now earn more than half the doctoral degrees in the United States, they remain woefully underrepresented in engineering, science, and math.
"In the 21st century, it is astonishing and inconceivable that little girls are dying for lack of nutrition when their brothers are being adequately fed," said college president Jane McAuliffe, "that there are these cultural and religious practices that are so barbaric."
So McAuliffe resolved last year to use her influence and connections to address such inequities. The timing was no accident, given the approaching anniversary.
As it turned out, the international conference McAuliffe organized and opened with remarks Thursday began in the same week as two other major conferences focusing on similar issues.
"I think we will look back at this fourth week in September as a turning point in the history of women's education," McAuliffe said on the Main Line campus.
Earlier in the week, former President Bill Clinton's Global Initiative met in New York to strategize about empowering women and girls.
And the United Nations summit on millennium development goals ended Wednesday with the launch of a $40 billion plan to save the lives of 15 million women and children over the next five years.
Although the number of women's colleges in the United States has declined from nearly 300 in the 1960s to 60 today, academic leaders such as McAuliffe say the remaining single-sex schools play a vital role not only for American students but on the global stage.
