Women's History Month 2024

Women’s History Month is celebrated from March 1 through March 31. The month of March commemorates the many contributions and achievements made by women.

Women’s History Month first began in 1981 as Women’s History Week when Congress passed Pub. L. 97-28. President Ronald Reagan celebrated Women’s History Week during the week of March 7, 1982, according to womenshistorymonth.gov.

Women’s History Month was petitioned by the National Women’s History Project and was passed in March of 1987. Congress has since passed additional resolutions between 1988 and 1994 to proclaim March as Women’s History Month.

Since 1994, every president has issued annual proclamations declaring the month of March as Women’s History Month.

Each year, International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8.

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Triton Campus Events

The Triton College Library Will Be Highlighting Women Sharing Their Stories

March 11-15

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Triton College Library is hosting Triton Women Share Their Stories, March 11-15, 11 a.m., in the Triton College Library Upper Commons.

Five Triton College representatives will share their stories:

Monday, March 11 – Dr. Kennedi Strickland-Dixon, ’92, Triton Adjunct instructor
Tuesday, March 12 – Cassandra Hutchinson, Web Systems Analyst
Wednesday, March 13 – Kristine McCall, Director of the Cernan Earth and Space Center
Thursday, March 14 – Shelley Tiwari, Director of Faculty Development and Student Success
Friday, March 15 – Dr. Jodi Koslow Martin, Vice President of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs

Co-sponsored by the Heritage Committee, this is the second consecutive year the Triton College Library will host Triton Women Share Their Stories. The event is open to the public.

“When a wise woman speaks, smart people listen and learn from her,” – Gift Gugu Mona, Woman of Virtue

For more information, contact librarians@iz4beh.net.

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Women Alumni Spotlight

Gina Gallo Zivojnovic

During the COVID pandemic, Gina Gallo Zivojnovic of Elmwood Park found inspiration to reach her academic goals. Like so many other Americans, she thought it would be a great time to finish her associate degree while at home with her two sons, Dominic and Carmine.

“I knew that Triton was the perfect place to help me reach my academic goal,” said Zivojnovic.

Three years later, Zivojnovic is a Triton graduate and now proudly serves as a member of the Triton College Alumni Association Council.

Zivojnovic grew up in Chicago and attended the George Rogers Clark Elementary School. As a teenager, her family moved to Berwyn where she graduated in 1999 from Morton West High School. After high school, she started taking classes at Triton College, but never obtained her degree.

“I always knew that I wanted to finish my associate degree, but never felt like it was the right time,” she noted. “During the pandemic, I felt I had a real opportunity to go back to Triton. It was a wonderful experience.”

Zivojnovic received her Associate in Arts degree in English, graduating in September 2022. She feels grateful for her time at Triton and the many opportunities it provided for her.

“As a member of the Triton College Alumni Association Council, I want to meet others who have had similar experiences,” she said. “I want to stay involved in the Triton community. Triton has given me a great opportunity and I want to share that opportunity with other people.”

Zivojnovic works at Elmwood Park High School as a library aide. Both Zivojnovic and her husband are very involved in the Elmwood Park community and participate in many village events.

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Alumnae Wall of Fame Recipients

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The Triton College Women’s Basketball Team Celebrated its 50-Year Anniversary

The Triton College women’s basketball team is celebrating its 50-year anniversary this year. A special celebration was held in February, when the college welcomed back basketball alumnae. According to those gathered, the celebration brought up feelings of camaraderie and nostalgia.

“It was an amazing experience to be a part of the first women’s basketball team at Triton College,” said Virginia Hodges, a member of the college’s inaugural women’s basketball team. She played from 1974-1975.

In addition to Hodges, alumnae from the past five decades attended the celebration. The anniversary marks a significant milestone for Triton, considering Title IX was passed in 1972, allowing congressional law to give financial support to women’s sports. The first Triton College women’s basketball team was founded in 1974.

Growing up in Maywood, Hodges said she played basketball “with all of the boys in the alley,” which ignited her love for the sport. After graduating from Proviso East High School, she wanted to attend Triton because it was a convenient college to earn her associate degree.

“It feels really good to be back here celebrating the 50th anniversary,” she said.

Becky Hull Davis of Brookfield, who played for Triton from 1991-1993, reflected on the legacy of her late father, Coach Dan Hull.

“The friendships that I made as a basketball player will be with me forever,” she said. “I still stay in touch with my former teammates. It was great to see everybody” at the Feb. 3 celebration.

Coach Hull’s wife, Mary-Margaret Hull of Brookfield, said her late husband “genuinely loved basketball,” which is what made him such an influential coach.

“He was competitive and enjoyed every minute of it,” she noted.

Former players Alondra Chavarria of Franklin Park and Candace Madison of Maywood both expressed gratitude for Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach Tim McKinney.

“Coach Tim was the reason why I wanted to play basketball at Triton College,” said Chavarria.

Madison had similar sentiments.

“Coach Tim advocated for me,” added Madison. “He believed in me and trusted me with this program. I hope that I’ve made him proud.”

Coach Tim’s guidance paid off. Chavarria tallied 1,029 career points, earning her the title of the second highest scorer in Triton’s women’s basketball history. Chavarria also won Triton’s Female Athlete of the Year in 2016 and 2017.

Madison was named Triton’s Female Athlete of the Year in 2015 and is the fourth all-time highest scorer with 980 career points.

“It feels amazing that I’m a part of history,” noted Madison.

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Women's Athletics at Triton