As expected, this year’s Sisterhood Celebration will look different from past years. While we have enjoyed each other’s company over dinner at previous celebrations, this academic year we will come together virtually on February 22, 2021. In arriving at this year’s theme, the Sisterhood Celebration planning team drew inspiration from this quote by Sonya Renee Taylor:

“We will not go back to normal. Normal never was. Our pre-corona existence was not normal other than we normalized greed, inequity, exhaustion, depletion, extraction, disconnection, confusion, rage, hoarding, hate and lack. We should not long to return, my friends. We are being given the opportunity to stitch a new garment. One that fits all of humanity and nature.”  

Instead of a featured keynote speaker this year, the planning team would like to hear from 3–4 voices in the community. In this spirit, the 2021 Sisterhood Celebration will provide the community with an opportunity to share their stories and speak to the realities of how this past year has impacted them. Given the theme, “Normal Never Was,” we seek to create a radical vision for what our communities could be and thoughts on how to get there.

The Council on the Status of Women’s Sisterhood Celebration committee is seeking students, staff, faculty and alum to speak to the challenges faced since we gathered in February 2020 for the 35th annual Sisterhood Dinner. These 5-minute “TED Talk” style segments will allow for members of the campus community to share their stories, speak to the Sonya Renee Taylor quote, and provide a place to start as we rethink normal in a shared space.

While we encourage creativity and for you to speak from your own experiences, we offer the following ideas as topics you could touch upon based on your own experience. Please note, these are not mutually exclusive, and topics are not limited to the following:

• the pressure of uncertain work and work environments;
• trying to manage and the pressure to work, teach children, and/or connect with partners; 
• living with racism in our daily interactions, on our social media feeds, and within our institutions;
• rethinking productivity;
• changing social outlets and connections;
• impacts on mental health, wellness and well-being.  

There is a 5-minute limit to your story, but that does not mean that you need to take five minutes to tell it. We are looking for creative ways to hear your story, which can include a poem, song, presentation or the typical TED Talk format.  

Please note that if you are unable to record on your own, time will be available for you to come to campus and be recorded by our staff. The committee is also open to brainstorming ideas regarding presentation.     

How to Apply

Applications will be accepted through Dec. 6 and must include two items:

1. Up to 1,000-word summary write-up
2. 1–2 minute sample video that should highlight either a short segment of your story or give the committee an outline of what your story will encompass
   

The planning committee anticipates selecting 3-4 story submissions to be fully recorded and presented during the Sisterhood Celebration on February 22, 2021.

Contact the planning team at sisterhooddinner@ncsu.edu if you have questions.

For more information, visit go.ncsu.edu/sisterhood.