Smith to Examine Women’s Leadership at Otelia Crowell Day

As Smith College celebrates its 24th annual Otelia Cromwell Day on Tuesday, November 5, the college will host the ideal keynote speaker for addressing issues of civil rights, racial diversity and women’s empowerment.

Dr. Julianne Malveaux, a renowned labor economist, noted author and celebrated commentator, will deliver the event’s main address with a speech titled “Ain’t I a Woman,” exploring the importance of women’s colleges in developing leaders.

The keynote event will begin at 1 p.m. in Sweeney Auditorium, Sage Hall. Related workshops, open to all, will follow the keynote (see schedule below). Otelia Cromwell Day is open to all in the Smith community; afternoon classes are canceled to facilitate attendance.

Julianne Malveaux has been described by Cornel West as “the most iconoclastic public intellectual in the country.” Her contributions on issues such as race, culture, gender and their economic impacts, through numerous public appearances and articles, are helping to shape 21^st-century opinion nationwide.

Malveaux served as president of Bennett College from 2007 to 2012, the oldest historically black college for women. Under her leadership, the college focused on four key areas: women’s leadership, entrepreneurship, excellence in communications, and global awareness.

Smith College’s annual Otelia Cromwell Day, named for the first African-American graduate from Smith College, in 1900, reflects on issues of social justice and injustice with particular focus on diversity and racism in the United States. The theme of this year’s celebration is “The Journey from Civil Rights to Social Justice.”

The daylong event will conclude with an evening performance by Bamidele Dancers and Drummers, directed by Marilyn Sylla, a lecturer on the Smith dance faculty, featuring dances, rhythms and songs from Africa, the Caribbean and Brazil.

Otelia Cromwell, the first African-American woman to earn a doctorate at Yale University, was a professor and chair of the English Language and Literature Department at Miner Teachers College in Washington, D.C. The author of three books and many articles, Cromwell received an honorary degree from Smith in 1950.