Programs & Public Awareness

The Commission on the Status of Women acts as a centralizing force within Cambridge addressing women's issues, providing information, and technical assistance. Learn more about the highlighted projects and programs the Commission has worked on.

Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project

History helps us to learn and understand who we are. Each time a girls opens a book, hears a story, or visits a museum with few to no recognizable faces or experiences, she is by definition taught that she is "less than". The dreams and aspirations of girls and young women are compromised when history does not tell the whole story. The Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project was established in 1996 to recognize and celebrate the historical contributions of Cambridge women and currently boasts more than 400 women and women’s organizations in its database. This phenomenal database captures the lives of well-known and not-so-well-known women who have made significant, lasting contributions to the city in the past and present. The website is dedicated to Cambridge women and women’s organizations, which are organized alphabetically as well as by topic (i.e., by a woman’s occupation or area of interest). Designed to be a work in progress and always seeking to add to its database, the Project encourages nominations.
Pictured at Right: Women's Mural in Harvard Square.

Memory Lane: Women’s History Walks

Designed to promote health and wellness as well as an interest in the well-known and little-known sites of Cambridge women’s history and inspired by the Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project database, the Commission created a series of self-guided walking routes that each explore a different Cambridge neighborhood. Created for men and women of all ages and abilities to complete at their own pace, walks can also be completed while on lunch break. Many residents and employees have taken advantage of getting outside, getting some exercise, meeting some new faces within the city, and learning more about Cambridge women’s history. The walking routes are also available through the Cambridge Public Health Department, Community Development Department, Cambridge Walks, and the Cambridge Office for Tourism. Download the pdf for each walk: Area IV, Cambridgeport, Riverside and Cambridgeport, Mid-Cambridge.

Promtacular

The Commission sponsors this popular initiative for CRLS young women prior to prom season. The workshops focus on healthy relationships, dating, issues of consent, as well as expectations and pressures for girls to look a particular way. Promtacular’s aim is to help girls learn about positive self-image and positive self-regard, all through the lens of prom.

5th Grade Girls’ Sports Day

In consultation with health and fitness experts, the Commission determined that girls at the fifth grade level are at an ideal developmental stage to begin making the choice to incorporate physical activity into their later adolescent and adult lifestyles. In 1997 the Commission planned its first 5th Grade Girls’ Sports Day for all Cambridge Public Schools. Now an eagerly anticipated annual event, the day is organized in collaboration with the School Department’s Health, Physical Education, and Athletics Department and represents a unique citywide attempt to direct girls toward physical activity as a way of life. Research has shown that girls who participate in organized sports and other forms of physical exertion on a regular basis are at a substantially reduced risk for teenage pregnancy, smoking, obesity, and osteoporosis.

Film Screenings

As part of our effort to educate, inform, and spark productive dialogue among citizens, the Women’s Commission hosts free film screenings for the public. Screenings are often accompanied by a Q+A session with the Director or include a discussion panel for post-film analysis. Past films include: A Moment in HerStory, The Invisible War, The Supreme Price, The Gray Area, Left on Pearl, and Untouchable. Discussion topics have ranged from the role Cambridge women played in the greater U.S. women’s movement to the role of women in government building in Nigeria.

WAM! Film Festival

Held at the historic Brattle Theater in Harvard Square, the Commission sponsors Women, Action and the Media’s (WAM!) annual Boston Film Festival. Promoting and supporting films made by and about women, WAM! brings attention to the women who are writing, producing, directing, or appearing in roles (not created by men) in film.

Women in Cambridgeport, 1865–1975

Under the umbrella of the Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project, two local historians collaborated to create a large four-panel display highlighting the important contributions Cambridgeport women made to the vibrancy of the community from 1865 to 1975. Originally displayed at Cambridgeport History Day in 2013, the panels showcase women’s participation in industry, business, social organizations, education, the arts and philanthropic movements. These panels provide a small glimpse into the vital impact women have had on Cambridgeport and continue to underscore the need to “write women back into history.” Download PDFs of: Panel 1, Panel 2, Panel 3, and Panel 4.

Filament/Firmament

A public art piece resides at the main branch of the Cambridge Public Library thanks to the collaborative efforts of several City departments. Filament/Firmament, by local artist Ellen Driscoll, incorporates etched glass, text, woven cable, and textile imagery into a skylit atrium linking the old and new buildings into a permanent installation. The public artwork developed out of a comprehensive research and outreach effort coordinated by the Women’s and Historical Commissions and the Cambridge Arts Council. During the early planning stages, important public meetings were held to gather information and remembrances about women’s lives. The exhibit serves as a long-awaited commemoration of the contributions women have made to the life of the city in a creative and artistically interpretive way.

Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project and Filament/Firmament Media Station

The impact of the two-story design on all those who pass through the Filament/Firmament exhibit in the Cambridge Public Library goes beyond the visual. An interactive educational component enhances and enriches the visual experience. A media station provides visitors with an opportunity to access the Cambridge Women’s Heritage Project website. Created by a partnership between the Women’s Commission and the Historical Commission, the interactive site preserves the contributions women have made to the city within a searchable database that is organized alphabetically as well as by topic (i.e., by a woman’s occupation or area of interest).

The GOLD (Girls’ Only Leadership Development) Group

Initiated by Mayor Denise Simmons, the GOLD Group is designed for and open to any CPS 8th grade girl who wishes to develop her leadership capacity through activity-based learning, mentoring models, and reflective practice. Over an entire school year, the girls gain important insight and understanding critical to their leadership development as they set goals, design plans to reach them, work with others to carry out the plans, and assess their progress. The Women’s Commission advises on curriculum components and proudly serve as mentors.