Stories of Lee: International Women's Month- Carsen Holaday

"Joy is like a permanent thing and happiness is a temporary thing and Joy is ONLY found in God." - Carsen Holaday

Meet Carsen Holaday from Dayton, Ohio. She is a nursing major and a freshman.

How do you feel about being a woman at Lee? Carsen: Even though it's not like super diverse really at Lee. I feel like womanhood is celebrated, but it's kind of hard because I know a lot of people at this school that think that women are lesser than men and that is just because it has been a staple at the church. However, it's cool that the idea is being changed at the church and throughout the school. You can even see it through the participation of women speaking in chapel and leading worship. The women speakers at chapel make me so excited. It's cool to be around girls that believe in the same stuff I believe in and also girls that believe in completely different stuff.

Do you think Lee University is a good example of how others schools should be like when in comes to women empowerment? Carsen: No, but when it comes to Christian Schools, Yes. Lee has come a long way, For example, Carolyn Dirksen is a Dean now and that's a huge deal Does being a woman at Lee affect your daily life in anyway? Carsen: I am in the nursing program and there are a lot of girls in that program. Also the ratio of girls to boys at Lee is like 3:1. I feel like it's not hard to smile at other girls on campus because as opposed to the high school I grew up in, where girls were against each other and mean to each other. At Lee, I feel like girls here are more welcoming and that's a huge deal for me.

Is it hard being a woman in America?

Carsen: Yes, I feel like there's a lot of pressure but that's changing. I feel like we are in the middle of the change and it is quite exciting. But growing up, my mom was like super old fashioned and very strict, there was a lot of pressure like in the church. I was taught to look a certain way, act a certain way and talk a certain way. .There is a lot of pressure there. As far as jobs go, I feel like it's harder being a girl and people do not even realize it. It's like micro aggressions, they think like "for girls getting employed, questions like does she have a family? And for guys, mostly is whether they are smart or not." I do not think it is an equal playing field...

Do you think we would ever have an equal playing field?

Carsen: I don't quite know, I feel it is hard, because this life is temporary and we are all going to heaven one day so we shouldn't be focused on trying to change this broken world. but on the other hand, we were created to be equal.I feel we are working towards that equality, but there's just a lot of work to be done. There are a lot of stories to be heard and people to be listened to. A lot of the problem is that the guys just do not listen to us!! ..

Tell me what you want the GUYS to hear from you?

Carsen: TRY TO LISTEN instead of TALKING..There are other opinions than yours that matter. At the tunnel of oppression during the discussion, the leader at the talk noticed no female spoke about the issues, which was quite interesting. I feel like women have been taught to keep quiet and let the men talk and that is quite hard for her to wrap her head around. .

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What women do you look up to in life or on campus? Carsen: My mom and Grandma, even though my mom is kind of strict. My mom had two jobs and although I give her a rough time because she puts so much pressure on me, I feel her that she does that because, she never wants me to be as unprepared as she was. I have learnt a lot about life from my mother. My mum is currently raising two teenage boys which isn't so easy to do but she is doing an amazing job. She just got married again and I am so proud of her. . Favorite Bible verse or quote: Carsen: I have like two I like. One of them is Esther 4:14 which is related to women. "Who knows if perhaps you were made Queen for just such a time as this", for her it's saying like this is your time, you were born for this. God is going to use you. . Carsen: Another favorite saying is "and if not, He is still good." I've been learning lately that even if you're sad, you can still find joy. JOY is like a permanent thing and happiness is a temporary thing and Joy is ONLY found in God. That's hard because the world tells you, if you are sad, you're depressed. I feel like you can be sad about stuff but still find Joy in it because of God. I have been reminding myself lately of that because GOD is still good even though the world sucks.