In 1980, former president Jimmy Carter issued a Presidential Proclamation for National Women’s History Week for the week of March 8. Later, in 1987, Congress expanded the celebration to a month, making March National Women’s History Month.

At Bakersfield College, Women’s History and More (WHAM) organizes a wide array of events that will feature guest speakers, movie screenings, plays, and more on topics pertaining to women. These events are open to the public.

This year, WHAM’s first event begins Feb. 28 with Clemantine Wamariya. It will take place in the Levan Center at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., with a live cast to Delano at 2 p.m.

Wamariya will talk about her memoir “The Girl Who Smiled Beads,” recounting when she fled the Rwandan massacre and migrated through seven African countries.

March 11 will comprise of the film screening of “Served Like a Girl” at the Levan Center at 6 p.m.

The film is a documentary directed by Lysa Heslov and it depicts the lives of several American women who served in the United States military and were wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The movie features their lives transitioning back into civilians and the hardships that come with it.

There are also affiliated events arranged by BC President Sonya Christian and Oliver Rosales, that will feature guest speakers like Shannon Grove and Stacy K. Sowards.

Three women who hold various positions are scheduled to speak March 1 in the Levan Center at 10 a.m. about women in leadership.

Shannon Grove, a California State Senator; Gloria Cannon, the first African-American judge in Kern County; and Blanca Cavasos, the first female minority to hold the title of Superintendent for the Taft Union High School District, are going to speak. Former senator Jean Fuller is expected to be the moderator for this event.

Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication at the University of Texas, El Paso Stacey K. Sowards will discuss her book “Si, Ella Puede!” at the Levan Center on April 10 at 6 p.m.

Her book is on the legacy of Dolores Huerta, a civil and labor rights activist who was also a part of the Delano Grape Strike in the early 1970s.

For more information on events happening at BC for Women’s History Month, search for WHAM on the school’s website.