Education is important for young women (and for everyone) not just because it informs immediate decisions to be made, but because it opens up a world of possibilities. Women have just as many gifts and abilities as men, so who can say that they don’t deserve the same opportunities. We celebrate men of the past who invented new things and explored new frontiers, but who says these same discoveries couldn’t have been made by women if they had been given the chance? Likewise, how many wars and tragedies of the past could have been avoided if women were educated and elevated to positions of leadership?

The most crucial part of an education is helping a student discover her passions. Yes, all students need basic foundations in reading, writing, math, science, and so on, But eventually every student needs to decide how she will make her mark on the world. Whether fashion or physics, medicine or math, law or languages, every student needs to finds how she can best fulfill her potential.

Not allowing girls an education is never justifiable. Even in those societies that feel that women must serve primarily as care givers, parents are their children’s first teachers. Uneducated parents aren’t providing the best possible environment for their children, so even the most basic societies need to see that educating both genders is necessary.

The first step in solving this problem is helping cultures and nations see that their survival and success is dependent upon the educational progress of their women. In the past, groups such as the Nazis have forbidden education, knowing that cultures that do not educate their children are cultures that will lack the necessary decision making abilities and tools to survive.

For me, an education has helped me see that desire and drive can help any student to find success. We can’t all be president or astronauts, but we find work that fulfills our passions and contributes to the lives of others.