A little more on student out-of-class life

I’m coming to the end of the information students sent me about the groups to which they’re connected.  Here are two more entries that show how some groups provide both intellectual and social activities.

Althea and Amy:
Global Women is dedicated to promoting a community among Fletcher women students through activities and events that support and advance the role of women in the field of International Affairs.  Global Women annually runs a program through which Fletcher women mentor Tufts undergraduate students in the departments of International Affairs, Peace and Justice Studies, and Women’s Studies.  In addition, Global Women organizes a Phenomenal Women Speakers Series to highlight the experiences of women working in international affairs; arranges panels with Fletcher Women alumni at the Fletcher Career Trips in New York and Washington, D.C.; and hosts several social events.

This November, Fletcher Global Women and the Fletcher Gender Equality Project partnered with the Harvard Women’s Law Association to put on an excellent panel in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325.  Also in November, the Phenomenal Women series hosted Prof. Ayesha Jalal, who both teaches at Fletcher and is the Mary Richardson Professor of History at Tufts University, and Elizabeth McClintock, a Founder and Managing Partner of CMPartners, and current PhD Candidate.

Rizwan:
One of the things Fletcher Students in Security (FSIS) does is to sponsor an annual program we like to call “Military 101.”  In conjunction with the International Security Studies Program’s military fellows — mid-level U.S. Army and Air Force officers spending a year in residence at Fletcher — we organize a series of presentations, with each installment featuring a different aspect of the United States military, from presentations on the four services (Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps) to topics like Joint Strategic Planning System and Unified Command.  This series allows Fletcher civilians (most of us) a deeper understanding not only of the U.S. military, but of military organization, culture, objectives, strategy, and tactics.

Additionally, this year FSIS is hosting a series of Thesis Dinner nights, at which students engaged in research related to security studies can present their thoughts and work to a small group of peers and receive feedback — all over a delicious dinner at someone’s house.  Late this term, we arranged a tour of the Seabrook Nuclear Power Station in New Hampshire for a small group of students interested in nuclear energy.  Finally, to have a little fun and decompress before final exams, FSIS will be squaring off against the International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution (INCR) group in a friendly yet competitive game of laser tag!

Next term, we will be continuing the Military 101 series and hosting a Social Hour.  We will resume our topical discussion groups, which range from counterterrorism to human security to cybersecurity.  We also hope to arrange a student panel to discuss the resiliency and future of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is still the cornerstone of the international nonproliferation regime.

Finally, until this year, FSIS was called Fletcher Women in Security, and was the local chapter of Women in International Security (WIIS).  Though the name has been changed to be more inclusive (especially since all FWIS activities were open to the entire Fletcher community anyway), FSIS retains its focus on and commitment to the advancement of women in traditionally male-dominated security fields.