As part of month-long celebrations for International Women’s Day, schools across the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) hosted a range of initiatives and events to highlight leadership opportunities and a variety of academic and professional pathways.
One such event on March 27 brought together 100 female students for a full day of workshops, panels, and discussions hosted by KPMG. Students and staff from Agincourt CI, Albert Campbell CI, Cedarbrae CI, David and Mary Thompson CI, Lester B. Pearson CI, and Stephen Leacock CI gathered at KPMG’s downtown Toronto headquarters to explore academic and career pathways, including in STEM, finance, and law.
“Being in a room full of women who lead, challenge, and champion each other is exactly the kind of fuel that young women like me need to have in our lives,” said Andrea, a student from David and Mary Thompson C.I. who attended the International Women’s Day celebration. “Seeing these women making moves in their industry made me realize this is literally where I need to be. The energy at KPMG was beautiful and I now feel more empowered to follow my own dreams.”
KPMG professionals in finance, human resources, and technology shared insights from their career journeys and engaged in conversations with students about overcoming challenges and pursuing opportunities in their chosen fields.
“Leading this event on behalf of KPMG was incredibly inspiring. The questions these students asked about education, work-life balance, AI, and how race and religion can shape career experiences were sharp, real, and completely unfiltered,” Vanessa Bahorie and Amanda Bartley, KPMG co-leads. “What makes this day so special is mutual receptivity. We create space for these young women to celebrate who they are and where they are going, and in return they teach us how to support the next generation. This is why this work matters and we one day hope to welcome them into our firm.”
In the lead-up to International Women’s Day, students from neighbouring schools also came together at Second Street Junior Middle School for the annual Possibilities Conference, part of the Young Women on the Move initiative. The full-day event is designed to inspire female students to consider a wide range of career options. This year, participants took part in a hands-on engineering challenge led by the University of Toronto Engineering department, alongside several activities facilitated by Rotman iThink that focus on building critical thinking and problem-solving skills.