Monthly Archives: February 2019

Speech Trek Contest on February 16 by Ann Arneill

AAUW Sacramento Branch Speech Trek Contest
Saturday, Feb. 16 from 9 a.m. to noon
Consumes River College, Winn Center Room 150
Parking is $2

Up to 11 students from all the high schools in the Elk Grove school district will be competing for prize money and gaining invaluable public speaking experience. They will be speaking on a very timely topic: “How can we—students, parents, faculty, communities, and organizations such as AAUW—eliminate violence aimed at our schools? What actions can we take to prevent another tragedy from taking place?” Come out to support these talented students and hear their unique perspective on this topic.

Click on this link to register for free on Eventbrite.

Presidents’ Message by Liz Jordan

Dear Friends:

Liz Jordan

As a past member of the Speech Trek Committee, I hope we see lots of members supporting the efforts of the young speakers this month at CRC, Winn 150, on February 16, 9-12. Please note: Everyone pays a $2.00 parking fee at Los Rios Community College parking facilities. The outdoor parking lot closest to the Winn Center takes cash only. The nearby parking garage will take cash or credit card.

If you feel discouraged after listening to the news about schools and students, please come watch these young people step outside their comfort zone and speak their truth. It takes courage and lots of preparation, and they will inspire and give you hope for the future. This speech contest is like Tech Trek, a mission-based program, and one of our most positive contributions to our community.

Recently, I attended a meeting of the 100th Anniversary committee and it was inspiring. This committee has been working hard for over a year already, researching those wonderful articles about the history of our branch through the decades. Each one of those articles takes hours to research and write. I don’t know about you, but I’ve learned a lot about how important AAUW has been to the Sacramento area, as well as, how we have influenced state government.

Donna Holmes

The 100th Anniversary Committee has arranged an exciting meeting on March 30th at the Center for Sacramento History, 551 Sequoia Pacific Blvd from 10:00 – Noon where we can learn about Archiving, our own AAUW archives, and other first-hand evidence about the history of our community. The committee is also planning our BIG Party on February 29, 2020, at Northridge Country Club.

Board Briefs January Board Meeting, Jan. 7, 2019 By Cherril Peabody

Here are the highlights of the January AAUW Sacramento Board meeting:

  • Co-President D. Holmes reported that the AAUW Work Smart program, geared to women who are working, has recently been updated to make the online training more user-friendly. Holmes encouraged board and branch members to take the online training for both Work Smart and Start Smart, the AAUW program for recent women college graduates, in order to become training facilitators for both salary negotiation programs.
  • Holmes asked the board to consider sending a college student to the AAUW National Conference for College Women Student Leaders, which focuses on leadership skills. Some board members felt that the branch should only send someone who is willing to play a role with our branch or with the CSUS AAUW affiliate upon her return. After discussion, it was decided to seek input from other branches that have sent students to the conference to see if they felt it was worthwhile and to make a presentation about the conference at a branch meeting and seek input from members.
  • Program Co-Director D. Dunn provided a review of upcoming branch programs. The IBC luncheon is set for Jan. 26 at Plates. The Speech Trek contest will be held at Cosumnes River College on Feb. 16. In anticipation of the 2020 100th Anniversary event, the branch will meet on March 30 for a presentation and tour at the Center for Sacramento History, where our branch archives are stored. The Author’s Luncheon and branch election are scheduled for April 27 at Plates. Officers will be installed at the May 18 branch meeting, with other activities to be announced.
  • Yost gave an update on the ongoing work of the Sacramento Branch 100th Anniversary Celebration committee. The celebration will be held on Feb. 29, 2020, in the Northridge Country Club Ballroom. Committee members have been researching branch history through meeting minutes, newsletters, yearbooks and other materials in our archives and writing articles that are appearing in Capital Ideas. Long-time members have been asked to share their experiences, too. A publication that includes this information will be issued. Yost asked board approval to request a $5 per member donation at the March meeting to cover the cost of an honorarium requested by the history center. She also asked to have a donation line included in the 2019-20 branch renewal form to assist with other Celebration expenses. Both requests were approved.

Read here for your Printable Articles, Branch Birthdays, Interest Groups, and Book Groups!

 

Lastly, our state legal Advocate, Shannon Smith-Crowley shared the following event on February 6 for interested members:

 

Long-Run Effects of the EITC on Women’s Earnings

Join UCCS on Wednesday, February 6 at Noon for a talk by Distinguished Professor David Neumark, Director of the Economic Self-Sufficiency Policy Research Institute (ESSPRI) at UC Irvine, on “The Long-Run Effects of the EITC on Women’s Earnings. ” To register, please click here. (Free, not Keto friendly!) Lunch served. (1/28)

https://uccs.ucdavis.edu/events/2019-February-6-Neumark

Save the Date for the Authors Luncheon on Saturday, April 27 by Deborah Dunn

The 2019 Authors Luncheon will be held on Saturday, April 27 from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm at Plates Café, 14 Business Park Way, Sacramento. We are very pleased to return to Plates Café for the 2019 Authors Luncheon. Plates Café and Catering is an employment learning program for formerly homeless mothers with children, which provides women with the opportunity to learn the skills needed for working in the culinary and hospitality industries. AAUW Sacramento is pleased to support this valuable program.

More details regarding the author, presentation topic, menu and registration process will appear in the March newsletter. In the meantime, please reserve the date on your calendar for one of our most popular annual Branch events. Branch officers for the 2019-20 year will also be elected at this meeting.

Funds and Leadership by Kathleen Asay and Danielle Metzinger

Kathy Asay

As the song says, “What the world needs now…” is more women in leadership positions. As a member of AAUW, you’ve seen the opportunities for leadership growth for branch members. Maybe you’ve taken advantage of them yourself. Have you noticed that AAUW Funds also has programs for leadership training and experience? As we did in November with Fund #4337, the Public Policy Fund, we’re here to share with you #4339, the Leadership Programs Fund.

The official summary of #4339 is that it “supports programs that develop women’s potential to lead in their schools, communities and country.” There are three specific programs:

  • #2505 The acclaimed National Conference for College Women Student Leaders, an intensive three-day conference held annually to develop leadership skills, networks and ambition.
  • #2515 Campus Action Projects help campus leaders deliver ongoing programs to address gender-based issues in their community, focused on leadership training and support for women leaders.
  • #2522 Elect Her teaches the skills women need to run for student government, increasing the number of women in decision-making on campus, and introduces them to a national network of women who are running for and holding public office.

Danielle Metzinger

From campuses to communities to the world, AAUW supports and encourages women to take charge, to make a difference for all women and girls, for all people.

In closing, note that Feb. 14 is the deadline to recommend candidates for this year’s Named Gift Honorees. If you have a suggestion, please contact us.

AAUW and The Seismic 1960s by Georgia Richardson

Branch membership topped 1,000 as Sacramento AAUW tackled issues in ‘Seismic ’60s’

Vietnam War protests, the civil rights and women’s movements, and voting rights marches contributed to social change in the Seismic ’60s.

John F. Kennedy became president in 1960. His administration dealt with school integration, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the space program.

President Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society of 1965 brought social entitlements, including Medicare and Title 9. Richard Nixon was elected President Nov. 5, 1968.

The culture of the 1960s included the introduction of the birth control pill and the founding of the National Organization for Women (NOW) on June 30, 1966, with the stated purpose of “bringing women into full participation in the mainstream of American society.” In 1963, Betty Friedan published “The Feminine Mystique.”

In California, Ronald Reagan was elected governor in1967. He signed the Therapeutic Abortion Act in an effort to reduce “back door abortions.”

Sacramento’s population grew 34 percent during the 1960s, and AAUW’s Sacramento Branch membership grew as well. The branch began the decade with 952 members and ended with 1,134. Neighborhood coffees were held to welcome new members.

AAUW’s Educational Foundation funded women in graduate studies. Activities to raise funds included the three-day Used Book Sale, Capital Puppeteers dental hygiene shows, rummage sales, cookbook sales and home tours.

The Sacramento Branch’s executive board consisted of elected and appointed officers and three members-at-large. There was one paid executive secretary.

Community involvement during the decade included staffing phones for the annual KVIE auction, interacting with business and nonprofit entities to provide refreshments, and endorsing candidates for City Council and school boards.

Branch members participated in the annual Breuner’s table settings contest, winning a $75 prize, and served as volunteers at the KCRA Public Affairs program-sponsored measles clinic. In 1968-69, Channel 10 honored AAUW as an Organization of the Month.

In 1964, Anita Miller represented AAUW on the governor’s Status of Women Commission. In 1968, AAUW was one of 25 organizations that launched the Community Commission for Women.

In the mid-1960s, the Association did some reorganizing and started the following Program Areas: cultural, community problems, education, and world problems. Study Topics for the program areas were two years in duration:

  • The 1963-1965 Study Topics were Science-Bridging the Gap Between Science and Laymen; American Family in a Changing World; Expectations in Education; and Occident and Orient.
  • The 1965-67 topics were Education: Antidote to Poverty; Law and Citizens; Revolution in Modern China; and Science: A Creative Discipline. During this time, the Creative Leadership group was formed and from it came the AAUW booklet “Leadership Can Be Learned.”
  • The 1967-69 topics were Society’s Reflection in the Arts; Growing Gap Between Rich and Poor Nations; Testing Values in a Changing Society; and Politics of Public Education.

 

Exploring Our Interest Groups by Cherril Peabody

Great Decisions has been a popular interest group for many years, but it is not exclusively an AAUW interest group. It is a program of the nonprofit Foreign Policy Association, which publishes the annual briefing booklets used by all the Great Decisions groups. The groups meet from January or February through October in members’ homes to discuss the international issues presented in the booklets.

Our branch has three Great Decisions groups, one of which is not currently accepting new members because of space considerations. The other two would welcome new members and are just getting started with this year’s topics. GD I meets on the third Monday at 7 p.m. The current chair of that group is Cathy Locke.  GD III, chaired by Marlys Huez, meets on the third Monday at 1 p.m. Please contact the chair if you are interested in joining one of the groups. GD II, chaired by Joan Hammond, is currently full.

Here are the very timely topics for 2019:

  • Refugees and Global Migration
  • The Middle East: Regional Disorder
  • Nuclear Negotiations: Back to the Future?
  • The Rise of Populism in Europe
  • Decoding U.S.-China Trade
  • Cyber Conflicts and Geopolitics
  • The United States and Mexico: Partnership Tested
  • State of the State Department and Diplomacy