On Saturday, March 8th the world is coming together to celebrate International Women’s Day. According to IWD.org, the first International Women’s Day was celebrated on March 19th, 1911, headed by female American activists “as a means to continue promoting the rights of women, including suffrage.”
Now 114 years later, people are once again celebrating this holiday, and RDHS is no exception.
Fortunately, there are many female teachers at River Dell who have demonstrated to students and fellow faculty members the determination, talent, and work ethic of educated women. Mrs. Carney, an RD English teacher, is a prime example.
Mrs. Carney has been working at River Dell for 20 years. Presently she acts as the advisor of the English Honor Society and the AI Committee and as a teacher of English Honors 9 and Medicine and Literature.
Medicine and Literature is a 12th grade English course that combines student interest in the medical and science field with novel and short-story analysis.
Mrs. Carney is the founder of this course, and she formed it to educate students much like herself. In fact, Mrs. Carney was pre-med before she decided to switch her major. At one point, Mrs. Carney even had enough college credits for two majors, however, eventually decided against the medical route.
“I love science. I love medicine. I love biology. I love chemistry. I love all of that, but I also love books,” she shared.
After she became an English teacher, Carney decided to create Medicine and Literature because “it calls to that student that I was and calls to that student [that really wants] to be involved in science,” she explained.
It provides math- and science-oriented students an introduction to the medical field while also adding an English component to it.
Erin Hoogstrate, a senior at River Dell and a student in Medicine and Literature, explained that she enjoys being part of the class. “It’s allowed me to examine the multitude of intersections between social justice and healthcare.”
One of the recent essays discussed in the class was about the Yellow Wallpaper, a short story addressing society’s view on women’s health issues, in which students found parallels between the story and the medical industry today.
Students wrote an essay addressing this topic, specifically the dismissal of women’s medical needs in doctor’s offices and hospitals.
“I was able to observe a number of cases which all demonstrated similar patterns of dismissal, misdiagnoses, and undermined struggles that women face at the hands of the medical field,” explained Hoogstrate. “[It] opened my eyes.”
Erin also shared that she wants to pursue a career in the healthcare industry, therefore, understanding these “issues of social justice…is essential in becoming part of a positive change in the medical world.”
“Women’s rights are not just for women,” Carney explained. “We are a better society when everybody’s gifts and talents are recognized.”
