Southern Highlights
Volume 11 Number 6 March 2013
Shaping the World One Woman at a Time
Marijo Alexander and Sue Grove, Co-Presidents
Co-President’s Thoughts
What a great AAUW year this has been so far! Our programs have been excellent and the small groups have been busier than ever. The Great Decisions Group has doubled in size, the knitting group is meeting regularly on Saturday mornings, the book groups are going strong, Travel Group keeps sharing adventures, and First Friday lunch is well attended. I encourage everyone to take part in as many of these groups as you can. They give us an opportunity to get to know each other in small group settings.
I am so looking forward to our Women’s History Month endeavors. Judging the projects at the high school is really rewarding and fun, so if you are available on February 28th, talk to Carolyn or Peggy about helping. We are thrilled to be having Lisa Maatz, Director of Public Policy and Government Relations for AAUW as the keynote speaker at the Women’s History Assembly at Austin High School on March 8th. Please attend if you can. Lisa is an amazing woman and a wonderful presenter. AAUW is lucky to have her on staff!
Thank you to everyone who has started to bring items for our Silent Auction basket for the State Convention in April. Since it is in Rochester, I highly recommend that you go to it if you possibly can. You get a feeling for what a powerful organization AAUW really is. Thank you for all you do.
Think spring!!!
Sue Grove
Co-President
March Program
Have you ever wondered what Austin, MN will look like in year 2020? Even though it’s still seven years away, for some of us it’s right around the corner. To help shape our imagination on what Austin’s bright future will look like in year 2020, joining us is our friend Laura Helle, who serves as the Director of Vision at Vision2020Austin.
The mission of Vision2020 is to inspire our community to collectively create a vision for a greater Austin through a city project process where all ideas are welcome and the best are brought to life.
April 18, 2013 will mark the anniversary of the 10 vision statements revealed that would create 10 projects to develop in our community. Laura will share with us each of the 10 projects and how they’ve developed over time as well as some of the events and initiatives that have been rolling out in our community over the past year.
Please join us on March 12, 2013 at Riverland Community College, room C107 at 6:30 p.m.
Kari Bain amp; Yesenia Mendoza
Program Committee Co-chairs
Small Groups
These groups are open to any member wishing to attend.
Morning Book Group
Please join our book discussion on Thursday, March 21at Olivia’s at 9 AM. Our book selection is The Shoemaker’s Wife by Adriani Trigianj. Please call Lois McConnell at 433-8101 with questions or suggestions.
Evening Book Group
We will be discussing the Page Turners’ selection Safe from the Sea by Peter Geye at the home of Barb Hunter on March 4th at 7 PM. Please RSVP to Barb at hunterbarb41@gmail.com. In April we will be discussing The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig.
First Friday
We will meet at Olivia’s on Friday, March 1st at 11:30 AM for First Friday Lunch. If people are interested who haven’t attended before they can email Dorothy at sdkrob@charter.net. Please RSVP to Dorothy.
Travel Group
The AAUW Travel Club will be hosted by Gail Minerich at her home (1605 – 27th Street NW) on Thursday, March 14th at 2:00 P.M. Gail will be sharing her travel experience to Guatemala with the Hormel Company Mission Trip called “Project Spammy.” Please join us as we learn more about the hunger-relief efforts of the Hormel Company to the children and pregnant women of Guatemala. I know we will all learn a great deal from Gail. Please RSVP to DedaRae (433-7897 or drgraber@charter.net), by Wednesday, March 13th, if you plan to join us. We look forward to seeing you there.
Thank you.
DedaRae
Women’s History Month Activities
We are in our ninth year of sponsoring Women’s History Month activities in cooperation with Austin High School. This year we are working with Honors American History Teacher, Lisa Sanders.
The project contest questions for this year are:
- Explain what the Equal Rights Amendment is. Explain how it impacted opportunities for women in one of the following areas: workforce, social issues or political involvement. Explain the opposition women faced because of it in one of the following areas: workforce, social issues or political involvement.
- Compare opportunities available for women 50 years ago to today. This may be an issue in the United States or in other countries of the world. We will brainstorm possible topics to research as a class. You may then select one of these topics generated from our in-class brainstorming activity to conduct your research on. If possible, interview a local woman regarding the topic you selected and the opportunities that were available or were not available to her and the impact this had on her and her life.
The projects will be judged on Thursday, February 28, between noon and 3 P.M. Any branch members who would like to help with those interviews should contact Peggy
Benzkofer (433-5934 or pjbenzko@gmail.com.
The speaker for the all school assembly this year will be Lisa Maatz, the AAUW lobbyist in Washington D. C. with direct access to the White House. She is an extremely dynamic speaker according to Sue Grove, Carolyn Bogott and Peggy Benzkofer who have all heard her in person. Sue Grove was able to arrange for her to come for which we are very grateful. If members want to attend this assembly, seats are reserved for us in the front middle section. This assembly will be held Friday, March 8 at 10:19 in Knowlton Auditorium.
PUBLIC POLICY NOTES
Evelyn Guentzel
March is Women’s History Month!
The last Congress was one of the least productive in history and the first one to fail to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. The Senate recently did reauthorize it. The VAWA was also introduced in
the House of Representatives but action has not been taken. The new version expands protections to vulnerable communities—Native American women, immigrant women, and LGBT.Therein lies the resistence on the part of some House conservatives. Stay tuned. AAUW has fought long and diligently for support for the VAWA.
April 9 is Equal Pay Day, the symbolic day on which women’s earnings “catch up” to men’s earnings from 2012. Because of the wage gap, almost three extra months are needed to accomplish that. This is the
50th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act passed in 1963. AAUW hosts special events and distributes resources that celebrate progress made and continuing needs.
Minnesota is Celebrating State Employment Equity Day on April 9 at the State Capitol. The equity act was passed in 1982. We can celebrate Minnesota’s achievement and maintenance of equal pay for work of equalvalue for men and women in state government employment. A proclamation has been submitted to Governor Dayton.
Black History Month reminds us of leaders from the African-American community. One of those leaders was Minnesota’s Nellie Stone Johnson who was born in 1905 and died in 2002. She was an activist for civil
rights, labor, among other groups. She was the first black woman to hold citywide office when she was elected to the Minneapolis Library Board in 1945. She served on a national committee for contract
negotiations and was a member of the Minneapolis Central Labor Union Council. She earned a living at Nellie’s Shirt amp; ipper Alterations the the Lumber Exchange building in downtown Minneapolis.
From the Pay Equity Coalition comes this announcement: “We’re Celebrating!” Equal Pay Day! April 9, 2013.
In 1982 the State Employee Pay Equity Act was passed 30 years since the law’s implementation, the state of Minnesota has achieved and maintained equal pay for work of equal value for men and women in
state government employment. A proclamation has been submitted to the Governor for signing and there will be a reception at the Capitol.
There’s still work to be done to extend pay equity.
New Members
Members and Prospective Members: Now is the time to encourage a prospective new member to join AAUW. Any member who joins after January 1 is eligible to join for a reduced rate of $32.50. This covers national dues of $24.50 + $4.50 state and $3.50 local dues. Please contact Barb Hunter (440-4923) hunterbarb41@gmail.com or Kathy Kester (437-2065) kkester@isd500.k12.mn.us for more information.
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Financial Report
There are no financial transactions to report this month.
AAUW Board Meeting Minutes
February 12, 2013
AAUW Board met at the Riverland Community College. Present were Marijo Alexander, Carolyn Bogott, DedaRae Graber, Sue Grove, Barb Hunter, Dorothy Krob, Ruth Monson, and Mary Kay Wilson.
Secretary’s report was approved.
Program updates are as follows: “Vision 2020 Update” by Laura Helle at Riverland, Room C107 on March 12, “Women’s History Month Winners” at Riverland, Room C107 on April 9, Spring Banquet at the Historic Hormel Home on May 14.
Mary Kay reported that, as of February 1, our official 2012-2013 membership count was 62.
Carolyn is looking for people to serve as judges for the Women’s History Month projects on February 28, noon to 3:00 p.m. at Hastings Gym. On Friday, March 8 (10:19 a.m. to 11:23 a.m.) the Director of Public Policy for AAUW, Lisa Maatz, will be the Women’s History Month speaker at an assembly at AHS, Knowlton Auditorium. AAUW members are encouraged to attend.
A nominating committee is being formed to secure recommendations for three elected positions: Treasurer, Membership Vice President and Program Vice President. Ruth Monson has agreed to serve another term as Secretary. Barb Hunter, Kari Bain and Marcia Kuehne have agreed to serve on the nominating committee.
The State Convention (“Women’s Health, Women’s Wisdom”) will be held April 26-28 in Rochester. The deadline for registering for the State Convention is March 15. The National Convention (“Leading Across Generations”) will be held June 9-12 in New Orleans.
Marijo requested help for writing our Mission in Motion application. Sue Grove will work on this along with the program VPs Kari and Yesenia.
Newsletter items are to be submitted to Rae Dawn on or before the last Friday of the month. Agenda items are to be submitted to Marijo and Sue on or before the first Tuesday of the month.
The next Board meeting will be March 12 at Riverland, Room C107 at 5:45 p.m. Members will gather at 6:30 p.m. for social time, and the program will begin at 7:00 p.m.
Meeting adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Ruth Monson, Secretary
Bits and Pieces – Via AAUW Washington Update
- Watch the Academy Awards this Sunday to see if The Invisible War, a documentary about sexual assault in the military, takes home a golden statue. The plaintiffs from two of the lawsuits that AAUW supports through our Legal Advocacy Fund case-support program, Cioca v. Rumsfeld and Klay v. Panetta, are featured in the film.
- This week we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Betty Friedan’s manifesto, The Feminine Mystique, which exposed the “problem without a name” by launching the second wave of feminism and raising consciousness about women’s inequality.
- Last Friday was the deadline for states to tell the federal government how they want to proceed with the state-based health insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act. Twenty-six states chose to let the federal government run the exchanges, which are set to open October 1, while 17 states and Washington, D.C., chose to run the exchanges themselves and seven states chose to partner with the federal government in running the exchanges.
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
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Austin, MN 55912