Southern Highlights
Volume 10 Number 1 September 2011
Shaping the World One Woman at a Time
Alexander and Liz Richardson, Co-Presidents
Co-President’s Column
Welcome back to AAUW, and if you are new we especially welcome you! Our lives seem to become busier all the time, so we appreciate you taking time to share with us in this great organization.
Thank you for helping me attend the national convention in June in Washington D.C. The nearly 800 high energy delegates gathered for four days, listening to inspiring speakers, brainstorming in workshops, participating in special interest groups, and lobbying our senators. What a thrill to get a note after the convention from Amy Klobuchar’s assistant saying Amy has agreed to co-sponsor the Campus SaVE Act. Protection for our young women on college campuses is a continuing concern, and this program will help strengthen that safety.
The 2013 national convention will be held in New Orleans June 9 – 13. Wouldn’t you love to be the one our branch sends? To be that lucky person all you have to do is volunteer to be our next AAUW chair!
Kari Bain and Nel Zellar, program co-chairs, have been working hard on putting together programs for the coming year beginning with a potluck dinner at Christ Episcopal Church on September 13. Read more about this in a separate article. This is a time to reconnect with members who you may not have seen during the summer, and to bring a guest.
Some of our small groups have continued to meet during the summer which shows strong interest in these activities. You are invited to join any of these groups.
Our house tour is coming up quickly since September 25 has been set as the date, not our usual first Sunday of October. Co-chairs Gerry Rustad and DedaRae Graber will update us on this scholarship fundraiser.
We’ll see you at our September gathering!
Liz Richardson
Co-President
September Program
We will gather on Tuesday, September 13th at 6:00 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church, 301 3rd Ave NW. Join us for our annual kick-off potluck! Please bring a main dish, salad or dessert to share. Plates, silverware and beverages will be provided. A committee member from Vision 2020 – a group gathering ideas to help keep Austin a vibrant, growing, great place to live – will speak to us following the meal. The committee would like input from our group. Their goal is to develop 10 projects to work on for 2020. Please bring along a guest/s who may be interested in joining AAUW!
Dani Heiny, Sue Howard & Nel Zellar
Program Committee Co-chairs
Tour of Homes Set for September 25th
Thanks to the hard work of Sue Grove and Sonia Larson, we now have 4 great homes to showcase in our Scholarship House Tour on Sept. 25 from 1:00-5:00. They are the homes of Dick and Belita Schindler, Rick and Suzie Bross, Scott and Kaye Perry, and Dan and Treasure Ransom.
Hopefully by now you have received an envelope with 4 tickets that we would like each member to try to sell. If you haven’t received yours yet, call Gerry Rustad (433-3718) or DedaRae Graber (433-7897). Also call them if you need more!! The tour is earlier this year so we had to get the tickets to you before our Sept. meeting.
Thanks also to Carolyn Bogott, Peggy Benzkofer, Dorothy Krob, and Ellen Stark, who have agreed to be chairs for the homes. If they call you to help out, we hope you will be able to.
DedaRae Graber and Gerry Rustad, Co-chairpersons
Wine & Cheese Social for New Members
A Wine & Cheese Social will be hosted by Sue Grove & Marsha Kuehne on August 31st at the home of Sue Grove (2301 15th Ave SW) beginning at 4:30 PM. Please invite someone you know to attend and come along to learn more about what our chapter has to offer! RSVP to Sue at 433-5464 or Marsha at 433-7823 or Barb at 437-8704
AAUW Roots of Foundation
“I could not, at any age, be content to take my place in a corner by the fireside and simply look on. Life was meant to be lived. Curiosity must be kept alive. The fatal thing is the rejection. One must never, for whatever reason, turn one’s back on life.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
The 17 women who founded our organization in 1881 lived this truth even though they had never heard these words. The women were college graduates with great potential in a world that seemed reluctant to let them succeed. They were determined to make their own pathways and refused to wait for someone to do it for them. Thus, they founded the Association of Collegiate Alumnae in Boston. Forty years later, the organization would merge with the Southern Association of College Women to become the American Association of University Women. From the beginning, our mission has always been to provide education and opportunities for women.
With our founders in their minds, each AAUW branch and state takes pride in and upholds the AAUW legacy. Each individual member has added her or his own unique contribution to the national goals of AAUW. I hope you find ways to celebrate those contributions during your state and branch events
Diane Ludwig, AAUW St. Louis (MO) Branch
Small Groups
These groups are open to any member wishing to attend.
Morning Book Group
Please feel welcome to join the A.M. Book Group. Our group meets the third Thursday of each month at 9 a.m. at Jerry’s Other Place unless otherwise announced. We will be meeting on September 15th and discussing The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is the choice for the October 20th meeting. Come and bring your suggestions for future book discussion choices. To be included in the reservation at Jerry’s Other Place, please call Lois McConnell at 433-8101. We have fun and read good books. Join us!
Evening Book Group
Evening book group will be discussing the book Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese on Monday, September 12th at 7 PM at the home of Rae Dawn Rao (1001 22nd Ave SW). Please RSVP to rao_raedawn@yahoo.com or 433-0983. All AAUW members welcome!
Just Come
The “Just Come” Noon Lunch Group will meet on Friday, September 2nd at 11:30 AM at the Jerry’s Other Place. Please call Sandy Folk at 433-9150 or email scfolk@charter.net by August 31st if you plan to attend. Any member of AAUW is welcome.
Travel Group
The AAUW Travel Club will be meeting at the home of Pat Purcell (604 – Oakland Place NE) on Thursday, Sept. 8th, at 2:00 P.M. Pat is sharing her 1949 European Travel Adventures! That’s 62 years old! This will be a great learning experience! Pat has MANY surprises to share….including her 1948 bicycle. How exciting to hear and learn about how some things have changed over the years! We invite you to join us. Please RSVP to DedaRae Graber via email or phone (433-7897) if you plan to attend. Hope to see you there.
PUBLIC POLICY UPDATE
Welcome back to AAUW! It is my privilege to serve as public policy chair for the coming year. Who we are and what we stand for are embodied in the public policy statements which help to keep us focused. Besides Social Security, one of the significant issues emphasized at AAUW’s 2011 Capitol Hill Lobby Day was campus violence. AAUW supports “vigorous enforcement of…civil rights laws pertaining to education;” and “freedom from violence and fear of violence in homes, schools, workplaces and communities.”
Breaking the Silence Campus Sexual Violence Elimination (SaVE) Act (S.834/H.R.2016) was introduced by Senator Robert Casey (D-PA) and by Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY). It updates the federal Jeanne Clery Act. Hostile campus environments may include sexual harassment, sexual violence, and sexual assault. AAUW has monitored this concern for many years. Ten years ago its research showed that 83 percent of girls and 79 percent of boys reported some degree of sexual harassment. The U.S. Department of Justice has done more research and reported that 28 percent of women are targets of attempted or completed sexual assualt during their college years. They are four times more likely to face assault than other age groups. Policies have been inadequate, making it difficult to address the problem.
The aforementioned act is a turning point in the way the country will address sexual and intimate partner violence on college and university campuses. College aged women deal with stalking, intimate partner violence, 20 to 25 percent of rapes or attempted rapes. Briefly, it will do the following: (1) Provide more safety by written notification of options such as reporting a crime to law enforcement, helping to avoid a hostile environment, and enforcing restraining orders; (2) Transparency by reporting crimes on campus and make disciplinary actions clear and and providing information about supporting agencies; (3) Accountability, (4) Education about precautions and awareness; (5) Collaboration between the U.S. Department of Justice, Education and Health and Human Services.
Anyone who is interested in campus safety can go online to check out the policies of colleges and universities regarding how violence against students is addressed. AAUW, along with over 20 diverse nonprofit organizations are vigorously supporting this legislation.
Eveyln Guentzel
Public Policy Chair
Resolution To Hold Biennial State Convetion
A resolution to hold a biennial state convention was submitted by the St. Cloud Area Branch at the 2011 state convention. We were asked to get your feelings about changing from an annual to a biennial convention.
This is what the implementation would involve: “The state board of AAUW of Minnesota will establish a special committee to examine the economic and organizational values of a biennial state convention and will identify the necessary bylaws changes to make such a change workable. This special state committee will report its findings with recommendations to the 2012 state convention of AAUW of Minnesota for further action by the voting members at that convention.
Please let either Liz or Marijo know your thoughts so we can forward our recommendations to the committee.
| AAUW Monthly Financial Report | ||
| July and August 2011 | ||
| Period:7/1/11-8/31/11 | ||
| Opening Balance: | $2,729.50 | |
| Income: | ||
| Library Book Sale | 2,363.00 | |
| Dues Received | 195.00 | |
| House Tour Tickets Sold | 240.00 | |
| Total Income: | $2,798.00 | $5,527.50 |
| Disbursements: | ||
| Printing House Tour Tkts | 80.69 | |
| House Tour Insurance | 75.00 | |
| National Dues | 98.00 | |
| State Dues | 27.00 | |
| Total Disbursements: | $280.69 | |
| Closing Balance 11/30/10 | $5,246.81 | |
| AAUW Monthly Financial Report | ||
| May and June 2011 | ||
| Period:5/1/11-6/30/11 | ||
| Opening Balance: | $4,055.12 | |
| Income: | ||
| Dinners-May Meeting | 397.21 | |
| Dues Received | 3,120.00 | |
| Total Income: | $3,517.21 | $7,572.33 |
| Disbursements: | ||
| State Convention | 350.00 | |
| May Program | 50.00 | |
| Gifts | 51.44 | |
| Room Rental-May Meeting | 233.20 | |
| Dinner-May Meeting | 423.19 | |
| National Convention | 1,000.00 | |
| National Dues | 2,303.00 | |
| State Dues | 432.00 | |
| Total Disbursements: | $4,842.83 | |
| Closing Balance 11/30/10 | $2,729.50 | |
AAUW Board Meeting
July 12, 2011
AAUW Board Summer Retreat was held at the home of Liz Richardson. Present were Marijo Alexander, Kari Bain, Peggy Benzkofer, DedaRae Graber, Evelyn Guentzel, Barb Hunter, Marsha Kuehne, Ruth Monson, Rae Dawn Rao, Liz Richardson, Gerry Rustad, Laura Tjomsland and Mary Kay Wilson.
Secretary’s report was read and approved. Mary Kay presented the 2010-11 budget and proposed budget for 2011-12. Motion made and seconded to approve proposed 2011-12 budget. Motion carried.
Mary Kay asked for 2 volunteers to help with the 2010-11 audit. Marijo offered to help and Sue Grove will be invited to help.
Mary Kay reported that 16 people have not paid their membership dues. These names were passed on to the membership vice-presidents.
Motion was made and seconded to change the treasurer’s name and address (for bank statements) to:
Mary Kay Wilson
608 4th Avenue N.W.
Austin, MN 55912
Motion carried.
Marijo requested that monthly board meetings be changed to take place the same evening as the monthly general membership meetings. Motion made and seconded to hold board meetings on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. in the same location as the program meeting. Motion passed.
Marijo requested that the reading of the minutes and the treasurer’s report be discontinued at the general monthly meetings, since this information is available in the monthly newsletters. Motion was made and seconded to discontinue the reading of the minutes and the treasurer’s reports at the general membership meeting. Motion passed.
Discussion took place regarding serving refreshments at the monthly general meetings. This item will be tabled until the general meeting in September.
Marijo distributed and discussed a draft of the 2011-12 Board and Member Meeting Schedule.
Marsha Kuehne will check on the new member wine and cheese gathering.
Peggy gave an update on Women’s History Month plans. They are still looking for ideas for a speaker.
DedaRae and Gerry reported on the fall house tour. Four homes have been selected, and the chairs for each home are looking for volunteers to help. The tour will take place on Sunday, September 25, 1:00-5:00 p.m. Tickets will cost $15. Each AAUW member will be asked to be responsible for 4 tickets.
Liz reported on her trip to the National AAUW Convention in Washington, D.C. in June. She thanked AAUW for helping to send her to the convention.
Small groups reported. Newsletter items should be submitted to Rae Dawn by the last Friday of the month.
Next month’s agenda items should be submitted to Liz and Marijo by the first Tuesday of the month. Motion to adjourn was made and seconded. Motion carried.
Respectfully submitted,
Ruth Monson, Secretary
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Mission Statement: AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research.
Vision Statement: AAUW will be a powerful advocate and visible leader in equity and education through research, philanthropy, and measurable change in critical areas impacting the lives of women and girls.
Southern Highlights Editor: Rae Dawn Rao
rao_raedawn@yahoo.com
Minnesota State Website:
http://www.aauwmn.org
The Pine Editor: LouAnne Hoppe
Association Website:
Association e-mail: info@aauw.org
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AAUW Southern Highlights
1001 22nd Ave. SW
Austin, MN 55912