Campus women take their place
By Laurie Drukier
The University of Calgary’s new Women’s Resource
Centre opened Oct. 18 in space renovated on the third floor
of old MacEwan Hall with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, guest speakers,
and a career and community exhibition.
The renovation, part of the U of C's 40th anniversary Take
Your Place project, was made possible by a donation by Sheila
O’Brien, BA'69,
the president’s special advisor on student life, and
her husband Kevin Peterson, BA'72.
“To say I’m passionate about the Women’s
Resource Centre would be an understatement,” O’Brien
says. “This project
brings together all the things I think are essential to a complete
university experience: a place for collaboration, support and
kindness; the chance for students to put their learning into
practice in a real situation; and real support for their efforts
from the community.”
Take Your Place is an experiential
learning project involving more than 20 EVDS students who are
redesigning campus lounge and study spaces to make them more
comfortable and functional for students. O’Brien leads
the project steering committee and made the work commitment
a personal one.
“University is about the whole experience, in the classroom and beyond,” she
says. The Women’s Resource Centre was on the university’s wish
list for a very long time, and she and Peterson—both U of C alumni and
long-time Calgarians—say they are delighted to help make it a reality.
The centre will offer a range of programming aimed at developing
volunteering and leadership skills, ranging from practicums
for women’s studies students, to lectures and seminars,
as well as recreational opportunities.
The new space is custom designed by graduate students Livia
Antalikova and Georgia Houston who made deliberate choices
to make the space suitable for meeting, research and support
activities.
They dispensed with the idea of an imposing and, some would
say, masculine boardroom table, for example. Instead, they’ve
furnished the centre’s meeting space with lounge chairs
with adjustable writing tablets. Overall, the space has a clean
and functional design with a more intimate feel than a typical
office space.
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