“We talked, not in a professional capacity but about our personal circumstances and really learned a great deal from each other,” she said.

Much of the Colloquium focuses on this kind of personal interaction.

“You should talk, listen, learn and soak up as much as you can from this place and from each other,” said Holly Taylor Sargent, senior associate dean of external affairs for the Kennedy School. Sargent has raised more than $2 million for the program.

In an address to the women, Sargent yesterday encouraged the women to take action—in keeping with the mission of the Colloquium.

“Shake the place up a little bit. You’ve joined a revolutionary fight here—it’s the same here as in any other country,” she said. “The number of women elected tomorrow will be woefully small—we have to keep hold of the ground that we have gained.”

Indeed, Sargent said the Kennedy School itself is a place where women need to extend their influence.

“There are lots of old songs about the sons of Harvard. We’re singing new ones,” she said.