May 10, 20223 min read

The Future is Female

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead

I have had the opportunity to photograph several college cap and gown sessions in the last few months. These women are in the health and sciences field, and I am confident that each one will go and change the world.

Lizzie graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa in December 2021. Lizzie took Advanced Placement classes while in high school in West Des Moines and was able to graduate high school and Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) with an associate degree simultaneously. She entered her first semester of college as a junior. She was able to complete her undergraduate degree in only two and a half years.

Lizzie received her bachelor's degree in Environmental Sustainability and Resilience and a minor in Policy. She graduated with Summa Cum Laude distinction. Lizzie is headed to Iowa City in the fall to get her master's degree at the University of Iowa. Her long-term goal is to help corporations lessen their carbon footprint.

Lizzie was accepted into the University of Iowa Planning and Public Affairs Master's Program in Urban and Regional Planning. She is slated to complete the master's program by May 2024. She is currently working a summer internship with the City of Waukee is their Stormwater Department.

Emily is graduating from Iowa State University in May of this year. She is studying Kinesiology and Health. She followed in the footsteps of her older sister, Hannah, many cousins, and even her dad by attending ISU. Emily and I worked together to curate a Pinterest board for inspiration photos.

The bulk of Emily's classes take place at the Forker Building, so we started our campus tour and photos there. Emily has two roommates that have lived together for the last three years, one even accompanied us for photos. Janessa was the official keys and bag holder. After a few quick snaps at Forker, we walked to central campus. Emily had envisioned photos in front of Curtis Hall, but several architecture majors were sketching the building, and we didn't want to disturb them. So, we headed west and grabbed some photos in front of Beardsley. We joked about the different Iowa State traditions, such as campaniling and streaking from Curtis to Beardsley at midnight. Emily did not participate in either tradition, she noted that Covid ruined a lot of those fun traditions.

Then we headed to the Campanile. Fun fact, Iowa State's Campanile was built to honor Margaret MacDonald Stanton, Iowa State's first dean of women. The bells chime every quarter hour with Westminster Quarters.

After the campanile pictures, we headed to the Memorial Union (MU) for photos near the zodiac and a wardrobe change. We snapped some quick pictures by Lake LaVerne. Emily posed for some photos near the zodiac.

I especially love that Emily is wearing her dad's vintage Iowa State crewneck. He passed it down to her, her sophomore year.

Emily is headed to Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science to study physical therapy. Emily would like to work in a generic care facility or a women's health clinic.

Maridith is the third graduate that I photographed. She's also the oldest, but you wouldn't know it looking at her. This mother of four just graduated from midwifery school through Frontier University. As a Certified-Nurse Midwife (CNM) Maridith will have the ability to care for women of all ages throughout their lifetime.

Maridith was able to complete the majority of her glasses online, but did clinicals in Iowa. While we were planning the photos, she reiterated that she wanted to do cap and gown photos like she was 22 years old. We had a lot of fun using her midwifery books as props.

We stepped outside of her home to take some additional images. She even had a bottle of champagne. We had talked about going to the local bar and taking a shot in celebration, but opted to stay local.