This piece is part of a series of profiles highlighting women power-players on Salve’s campus. These are made in collaboration with the Female Empowerment Organization for the upcoming Women’s Empowerment March taking place on Saturday, April 6 at Wakehurst Lawn.
Kristen Medlicott, a sophomore and the president of the Female Empowerment Organization, is one of the driving forces behind this weekend’s Empowerment March, although you won’t hear her taking too much credit for it. Kristen cites the collaboration of twenty student clubs and organizations involved in the march including SRU Mosaic. When she isn’t focused on the FEO’s events and initiatives, she has plenty to keep her busy, including the Navigator Leadership Program, being a FYT Mentor, and her studies as a nursing major.
“I am a woman, I am empowered, I am myself, and I am capable of doing anything.”
Kristen has had her fair share of hardships throughout her life, including mental health battles, eating disorders, and an abusive relationship. However, looking back, she realizes that coming to Salve Regina allowed her to “start over” to “take a breath and move forward, one step at a time, figuring out the path” she wanted for herself. This path included joining FEO and becoming the president of the organization during her first semester as a sophomore. The club allowed her to make new and like-minded friends, as well as become more involved on campus.
“With my position at Salve, I want to encourage this female-majority campus to be involved, and to push themselves to be great. It is about working together and fighting for what you believe in. We have the power to make change, and I want to use my position at Salve to encourage others to do so.”
Although Kristen acknowledges all the great things that FEO has recently accomplished, such as organizing the Empowerment March, working with the Women’s Resource Center in Newport, and joining together with other clubs, such as the Black Student Union, she recognizes that there is still work to be done through FEO. She hopes to see “more collaboration, commitment and congruence on this campus after the march” and expresses concern that many students and even professors at Salve do not always respect the foundations of mercy that the university is built upon, especially when it comes to the critical concern of women. As for FEO specifically, Kristen is always looking to expand and diversify the club’s membership, and wants to make it known that all are welcome.
Kristen believes that being an empowered woman is simply someone who is unapologetically themselves, strives to be their best self, and works hard for what they believe in.
“I think what is important to realize now is that the Present is Female. We are the past, present and future, and we empowered women who can change this world for the better. I encourage every female to do what makes them happy, to do what will push them to be their best selves, and to do what motivates them.”
