The Speech Trek Committee has completed its recruitment for Elk Grove High School students to compete in the contest with this year’s topic: “How can communities, organizations and citizens of all ages help protect and expand voting rights?” The contest will be held on Feb. 18, 2023 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. We hope to conduct it IN PERSON at Cosumnes River College, Room Winn 150, COVID-19 pandemic conditions permitting.
We hope to see you there!
The Speech Trek Committee has completed its recruitment for Elk Grove High School students to compete in the contest and has stimulated significant interest in this year’s topic: “How can communities, organizations and citizens of all ages help protect and expand voting rights?” The contest will be held on Feb. 18, 2023 – mark your calendars! We hope to be conducting it in person at Cosumnes River College, COVID-19 pandemic conditions permitting.
We are now looking forward to the Speech Trek Challenge that will be held via Zoom on Jan. 21, 2023 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 pm. Members will have a chance to discuss the topic in advance of the contest to pique their interest. There will also be an opportunity to hear from scholarship recipients. Look for the Eventbrite registration announcement arriving in your email in mid-December and several times in January. We hope to see you there for a lively discussion of this important topic! Please register on EventBrite using this <link>. Once registered, you will receive the Zoom link two days prior to the challenge event.
We look forward to holding the Speech Trek Contest in person this year (as long as there are no COVID-19 complications) on Feb. 18, 2023 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Cosumes River College, Room Winn 150. We hope to see you there!
The Speech Trek Committee has completed its recruitment for Elk Grove High School students to compete in the contest and has stimulated significant interest in this year’s topic: “How can communities, organizations and citizens of all ages help protect and expand voting rights? The contest will be held on Feb.18, 2023. We hope to conduct it in person at Cosumnes River College, COVID-19 pandemic conditions permitting.
We are now looking forward to the Speech Trek Challenge that will be held via Zoom on Jan. 21, 2023 from 10:30 am to 12:00 pm. Members will have a chance to discuss the topic in advance of the contest to pique their interest. There will also be an opportunity to hear from scholarship recipients. Look for the Eventbrite registration announcement that will arrive in your email in mid-December and several times in January 2023. We hope to see you there for a lively discussion of this important topic!
Speech Trek is getting into full swing with our busy fall season. All nine campuses in the Elk Grove Unified High School District participate in our public speaking contest. Now is the time we recruit students to participate by distributing our promotional materials and having students sign up for workshops scheduled for November, which Shari Beck and Ann Arneill will be conducting. At these workshops, we inform students about the contest rules, present the topic, give them resources for researching the topic and provide public speaking tips. Once the students who decide to participate have completed their speech drafts, we will give them feedback on their speeches. The topic this year is very timely: “How can communities, organizations and citizens of all ages help protect and expand voting rights?” The contest will be held on Feb. 18, 2023. We hope conduct it in person at Cosumnes River College, COVID-19 pandemic conditions permitting.
Don’t forget about the Speech Trek Challenge that will be held via Zoom on Jan. 21, 2023. Members will have a chance to discuss the topic in advance of the contest to pique their interest.
Speech Trek, AAUW’s public speaking contest, is in its 16th year. The very timely topic for
2022-23 is “How can communities, organizations, and citizens of all ages help protect and expand voting rights?”
We work with the nine high schools in the Elk Grove Unified School District and recruit students to compete in the contest that will be held this academic year on Feb. 18, 2023. We hope to hold the contest in person this year at Cosumnes River College.
Students deliver 5-to-6-minute speeches extemporaneously for cash prizes ranging from $200 to $500. The local winner can go on to the statewide competition to compete for a prize of $1,500.
The committee is currently busy planning for student recruitment and scheduling workshops. We hope for a successful year.
On Jan. 14, 2023, we will hold the Speech Trek Challenge, designed for AAUW members to attend to discuss the topic in anticipation of the student contest.
Tech Trek, under the new leadership of co-chairs Mary Miller and Lori Franz, is busy planning 
for a great new year.
After a short hiatus and the COVID slow-down of Tech Trek activities, our branch committee is actively making plans for funding, recruiting and selecting participants for the 2023 camp at UC Davis.
Nurturing and encouraging girls in the STEM fields is an important part of the AAUW mission as we support the education of women. Our branch continues to be proud of the impact we have had in our local community through opportunities provided for many campers over the years.
Do you have a fondness for STEM or simply a desire to increase educational opportunities for young women? The Tech Trek Committee welcomes your enthusiasm, ideas and support!
The Speech Trek Contest season is drawing to a close. We have one final event that we urge you all to attend: the May 21, 2022 branch meeting where our first-prize winner, Maren DeMille, will deliver her speech on the topic:
“Has the US lived up to its pledge of liberty and justice for all? Would requiring the study of diversity, equity, and inclusion in a high school setting help ensure liberty and justice for all?”
Maren has gone on to win fourth-place Honorable Mention in the statewide AAUW contest with 13 other branches competing.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the many branch members who contributed to Speech Trek in 2022. We appreciate our long-standing contributors and welcome the many new contributors this year. Because of your generosity, we can award $1,075 in cash prizes to our winners each year. Donors include Ann Arneill, Kathleen Asay, Alice G. Bauer, Shari Beck, RosaLee Black, Jean Bonar, Margaret Brown, Jane Cooley, Deborah Dunn, Judy Foote, Lori Franz, Cheryl Fuller, Joan Hammond, Marlys Fredrickson Huez, Elizabeth Jordan, Catherine Locke, Mary Miller, Elaine Moody, Susana Mullen, Vicki L. Nicholson, Bonnie Penix, Diane Petersen, Ann Rhodes, Georgia Richardson, Marianne Rorden, Elizabeth Rose, Sandi Schoenman, Barbara Smith, Hedda Smithson, Diana Squire, Anna Storey, Ruth Werner, Shirley Wheeler, Linda Whitney, Sandra Winter and Gloria Yost.
We hope you will join us in a monthly equity conversation learning about how racism affects us
all, and what actions we can take to attract diversity to our branch and become better people in the process. Each month, we read a section of our selected book then meet to discuss what we have learned, along with exploring other issues related to race and equity. We will meet the second Wednesday of each month from 7 to 8 p.m. on Zoom. This is a joint CHAR/Sacramento activity. Others are welcome as well.
The Zoom meeting code is 737 420 3780 or you can join using this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7374203780
We will be discussing chapters 6 and 7 of the book, “The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together” by Heather McGhee on April 13 at 7 p.m. We have found it to be an enlightening read thus far. If you have questions and to RSVP, please email Charmen at charminme@yahoo.com.
Maren DeMille, a sophomore from Pleasant Grove High School, is the first-place winner of this year’s Speech Trek Contest. She was awarded $500.
Maren will present her speech at the May branch meeting on the topic,
“Has the US lived up to its pledge of liberty and justice for all? Would requiring the study of diversity, equity, and inclusion in a high school setting help ensure liberty and justice for all?” She argues that the United States has not lived up to its pledge and that introducing a diversity, equity and inclusion curriculum into high schools could help ensure liberty and justice for us. Join us at the May branch meeting to hear her very interesting speech!
On Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022, the Speech Trek Committee held its Speech Trek contest via Zoom with great success. A full audience listened to five high school students from three Elk Grove Unified School District high schools speak on the topic: “Has the US lived up to its pledge of liberty and justice for all? Would requiring the study of diversity, equity, and inclusion in a high school setting help ensure liberty and justice for all?”
First-place winner was Maren DeMille, a sophomore at Pleasant Grove High School, receiving $500. Second-place winner, Yasmin Haidari, a senior from Laguna Creek High School, received $300. The third-place winner was Marielle Geresola, a junior from Sheldon High School, who received $100.
The Sacramento Branch’s winning speaker is entered in the AAUW CA Speech Trek semi-finals. If Maren DeMille makes it into the top three, she will be invited to compete in the finals for $1,500. She will also be presenting her speech at the May branch meeting — something to look forward to because she is a very dynamic speaker.
Virginia Kidd, Ph.D., communications professor emeritus at CSUS; Mark Hoffman, a Toastmaster club member; and our very own Liz Jordan judged the event. AAUW member Kathleen Deaver served as timekeeper for the contest. Thanks to branch members Kim Rutledge and Karen Burley for technical assistance.
The 15th Annual Speech Trek contest will be held on Feb. 19, 2022 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. via Zoom. The link will be sent a few days before the event to those who have registered through EventBrite. You can still register to attend by going to this link. (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/aauw-sacramento-speech-trek-tickets-246451943397 ).
Students from the Elk Grove Unified High School District will participate. The topic this year: “Has the US lived up to its pledge of liberty and justice for all? Would requiring the study of diversity, equity and inclusion in a high school setting help ensure liberty and justice for all?” Students will deliver 5- to 6-minute speeches for cash prizes. We hope to see you there!
The Speech Trek Committee just hosted the Speech Trek Challenge where AAUW members had stimulating discussions about the topic in small groups after hearing a background presentation orienting them to the subject. We encourage members to attend this event every year as a lead-up to the contest.
Get out your calendars and schedule Feb. 19, 2022 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. to attend the Speech Trek Contest to be held via Zoom. Eventbrite registration will be posted soon. The Zoom link will be sent out to registered attendees closer to the contest date.
Students from the Elk Grove Unified High School District will be participating in our public speaking contest. The topic this year is “Has the US lived up to its pledge of liberty and justice for all? Would requiring the study of diversity, equity, and inclusion in a high school setting help ensure liberty and justice for all?”
We hope to see you there!
You can stimulate your interest in the contest by participating in our Speech Trek Challenge on Jan. 15, 2022 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. via Zoom. Register on Eventbrite here to receive the Zoom link for this event.
At the Challenge, members will be discussing their ideas about this important topic. The Speech Trek Committee will provide some background information, and then participants will break up into groups to discuss the topic. The gathering will end with breakout groups briefly summarizing their discussions for the group. We hope you will be interested in previewing this topic with us.