Branches and Twigs
Redlands Branch, AAUW
April 2015
www.aauw-redlands-ca.org
Issue 09, 11 Issues Annually
AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, and research
The President’s Corner – Bessie Reece
WOW! It is impossible to count the number of women and girls’ lives
we have touched just during the past month. Our STEM conference
was a great success as always and served some 600 girls. “Elect Her”
brought some 50 young women together from the campuses of the
University of Redlands and Crafton Hills College. The Scholarship
Committee selected six deserving women who are returning to college
to receive scholarships. Our CHAT program brought in several new ESL women who
will be meeting with members to assist in improving their English skills. The Pass
Area Group will be selecting three or four girls to attend Tech Trek. These are just
some of the things we have done during this one month period! All of these projects
could not be possible without the support of all our members. Congratulations on a
job well done.
~Bessie Reece, President
April Branch Meeting:
“Not Every G.I. is a Joe: Caring for Women Veterans”
Lisa Roybal is a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner who has dedicated over
twenty-five years of her career to women’s health and their care. She was
commissioned by the United States Navy in 1984, immediately after receiving her
B.S. in Nursing from Loretto Heights College in Denver, Colorado. During her
twenty years of service, Ms. Roybal was assigned to eight duty stations, and had
twelve appointed jobs. One of the highlights of her career was serving aboard the
USNS Comfort during Operation Desert Shield. Comfort is the second Mercyclass hospital ship to join the U.S. Navy’s fleet.
In 1998, Ms. Roybal received a Master of Science in Nursing from Pacific
Lutheran University in Parkland, Washington. With her extensive background in
all aspects of women’s health care, Ms. Roybal has held the position of Women
Veterans Program Manager for VA Loma Linda Healthcare System for the last
ten years. She retired from
the Navy in 2004, but not
from her devotion to serving
the
women
veteran
population as a program
manager and provider.
~Viktoria Norberg
March Branch
Meeting Information
When
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Social
9:00 a.m.
Brunch 9:30 a.m.
Program 10:15 a.m.
Where
University of Redlands
CASA LOMA
Menu- Country Buffet
Cranberry and orange
juice; scrambled eggs with
shredded cheese on the
side; home-fried potatoes;
bacon; biscuits and gravy;
seasonal fresh fruit;
pumpkin bread; coffee/tea
Cost
Members & Guests: $16
Reservations
The reservation deadline
for the April 4th meeting is
Sunday, March 29, 2015.
Please call 909-362-4955
or email
[email protected].
Reminder: a reservation
made is a reservation paid.
Members and guests
are always welcome at
all branch meetings.
There is no cost to
attend the program at
10:15 a.m. Chairs will
be available.
2014-2015
Branch Meetings:
Saturday, 5/2 brunch
Saturday, 6/6 brunch
Calendar
Wed. April 1
1:00 PM
9:00 AM Social
9:30 AM Brunch.
10:15 AM
Program
Bridge
Branch Meeting
“Not Every G.I. is a Joe: Caring
Sat. April 4
for Women Veterans”
Speaker: Lisa Roybal
Mon. April 6
7:00 PM
Bridge
Tues. April 7
7:00 PM
New and Prospective Member
Coffee and Dessert
Wed. April 8
1:00 PM
Bridge
Sat. April 11
6:30 PM
Duplicate Bridge
Sun. April 12
6:00 PM
California Cuisine
Date Change
Host & address will be sent by email
Mon. April 13
6:30 PM Social
AAUW Board Meeting
7:00 PM Meeting
First Congregational Church
Adult Literacy Program
Mon. April 13
6:00 PM
Volunteer Orientation
AK Smiley
Assembly Room
Fri. April 17
6 PM Reception LUNAFEST Film Festival at Esri
7 PM Films
Joint scholarship fundraiser
with Zonta Club of Redlands
Sat. April 18
7:00 PM
Bridge
Evelyn O'Prey
792-2189
Reservations:
[email protected]
Redlands Branch number
909-362-4599
Nancy Earney
793-9133
Heather Abushanab
793-4016
Nancy Earney
Louise Schumann
Kim Roman
[email protected]
Bessie Reece
793-9133
792-9141
793-1989
951-8452950
Katherine Gifford
798-7565
Trudy Waldron
ext. 4138
[email protected]
Heather Abushanab 793-4016
Tickets are $35.00 Tickets available
from Heather or PURCHASE ONLINE:
www.lunafest.org/redlands0417
Louise Schumann
792-9141
California AAUW
Sat. April 18 Annual Meeting
Bessie Reece
951-845-2950
Sun. April 19 AAUW Leadership Day Manhattan Beach Marriott
Mon. April 20
1:00 PM
Sally Vaughn
793-0891
Bridge
Wed. April 22
12:00 PM
Ellen Schollenberger,
794-3620
I Am, Therefore I Think
Amazing Women
Sharlene Lund
862-1222
Facilitator: Sharlene Lund
afternoon at
Reading and the Rainbow:
Thurs. April 23
1:00 PM
"Life After Life"
Pat Kruger
792-8666
evening at
Afternoon Host: Carol Buchanan
Lynne Reasoner
793-5231
7:00 PM
Evening Host: Kathryn Brown
Mon. April 27
7:00 PM
Cindy Perkins
209-777-2747
Bridge
Tues. April 28
9:15 AM
Janice Belden
793-6223
International Affairs
Mitten Building,
Janet Landfried presents
Reservations
862-1466
Redlands
Micronesia/Melanasia
Barbara Pike
Mondays
9:00 AM
Mary Jane Auerbacher
792-8546
Recorder Group
Dates vary
Erica Wilson
797-7938
Hiking our Hills and Mountains
[email protected]
UP-COMING
Sat. May 2 Brunch
[email protected]
Branch Meetings
& Sat June 6 Brunch
Reservations required for meals
Redlands Branch number 909-362-4599
Thurs. May 21
Page 2
7:00 PM
appetizers
8:00 PM play
ADULT LITERACY Theatre Benefit
"Rumors" by Neil Simon
Footlighters Theater 1810 Barton Rd.
Katherine Gifford
Trudy Waldron
[email protected]
798-7565
ext. 4138
April 2015
Branch Officers:
B&T Submission:
President: Bessie Reece (951-845-2950), President-elect: Janice Belden (793-6223),
Program Vice President: Cathryn Oltman (794-8011), Membership Vice President:
Heather Abushanab (793-4016), Recording Secretary: Sue Wallace (798-4347),
Hospitality: Toni Momberger (335-0506) & Judith Brandt (544-0207), Treasurer:
Melissa Walker (790-5281), Communications: Leslie Priest (289-4614)
The deadline for the May
newsletter will be April 5th.
Send your articles to the editor
via email to
[email protected]
or by mail to Bessie Reece.
From the Membership VP
Time to Renew!
It is time to renew your membership for the 2015-2016
year! Membership renewal includes the following dues:
$49 national, $20 for the state and $25 for the branch for
a total of $94. Please renew before June 30th so that we
can prepare the yearbook over the summer. It is simple
to renew on-line by following these easy steps:
 If you have questions or need help, call AAUW
Member Hotline (800) 326-2289
 Go online to http://www.aauw.org/
 Click “Login” at the top of the page, enter your
member id and password, or click “need to register”
if it’s your first time logging in to the national site.
Member ID is in Yearbook. (Registering will require
a few extra steps, including confirming via email
before proceeding.)
 Click on Member Services Database (MSD) toward
the bottom of the page.
 Click on "Enter the MSD" (green rectangle)
 Click on “Enter Member Services Database”
 Click on “Renew My Membership” at left
 You will be asked to pay dues by credit card.
Prefer to renew by check?
 Please update your Yearbook:
Connie Binkley
30560 Palo Alto Drive
Redlands, CA 92373
909-794-6107
[email protected]
Kate Pretorius
1324 Prospect Drive
Redlands, CA 92373
(c) 951-809-1733
[email protected]
Layla Thomas
466 Green Orchard Place
Riverside, CA 92506
(c) 909-213-7869
[email protected]
Diana Teeter
949 Riley Way
Redlands, CA 92374
909-792-3021
[email protected]
Make your check payable to AAUW and mail to PO
Box 7678, Redlands, CA 92375-0678. Please update
any changes/corrections to your contact information for Welcome!
the yearbook by emailing corrected information to Welcome back to Connie Binkley and Kate Pretorius
who both re-joined AAUW this month after a brief
[email protected]
time away. We are glad to have you back! Our
newest members are Paula Gooderum, Layla Thomas
and Diana Teeter. Paula has already gotten started by
Tax season is here. We are all working on our
helping out at the STEM conference a few weeks ago.
Layla is a member of the Adult Literacy’s CHAT
tax returns - a bit of good news –
program. Diana has retired from teaching in the Lake
$46 of our AAUW dues are tax deductible.
Arrowhead area and is happy to be out of the
mountains in the winter!
April 2015
Page 3
From the Membership VP
Congratulations to our contest Winners!
As part of the AAUW’s National Shape the Future
Campaign, our branch gets to award 5 free National
memberships for 2015-16. In January, we announced a
friendly competition to see who could recruit the most
new AAUW members and who could invite the most
people our branch meetings. Congratulations to our
winners Jan Barnett, Kay Dobbertin and Toni
Momberger! Jan Barnett recruited three new members
to our Redlands Branch. Kay and Toni each brought
five guests to branch meetings this year. Our remaining
two memberships will be awarded during a drawing at
the April Branch meeting. Anyone who has recruited a
new member to our branch between September 2014March 2015 will be entered into the drawing.
New and Prospective Member
Coffee and Dessert
We will hold our spring get together for new and
prospective branch members on April 7 at 7 PM. If you
have a friend who should be invited to this event, please
let our membership team know right away by emailing
their
name
and
contact
information
to
[email protected]. New members are
invited to get to know the board and our interest group
chairs better at this informal event. Put the date on your
calendar and look for your invitation in the mail shortly.
Coffee, tea and dessert will be served.
~Heather Abushanab,
Membership Vice President 793-4016
[email protected]
Member News
In sympathy and friendship, we send our condolences to
Dorothy Nordquist on the loss of her brother.
What can YOU do to reduce
AAUW-CA costs?
Redlands STEM Conference
Many thanks to all of you who helped make this year's
STEM Conference so successful. Over 150
members contributed their time, talent, and treasure in
support of the conference. Both speaker and host
evaluations reflect positive feedback and comments!
Many girls felt the conference helped them think
about STEM and their futures. I am so thankful for all
of our volunteers who so actively support closing the
gender gap for our girls. Our new speakers reported
they would like to return next year and
thoroughly enjoyed their time at the conference. I am
so grateful for all of our veteran speakers who remain
so dedicated to the goals of the conference and stay
the course each year! Once again, Bon Appetit and
the University of Redlands Event Staff were gracious
and efficient, providing us with outstanding service!
My deepest appreciation to the STEM Committee who
contributed hundreds of hours to ensure that the
conference runs so smoothly. They are an amazing
group of dedicated individuals who make sure that we
can have a lasting effect on so many lives. I send out
my heartfelt thanks to all of our members for this
outstanding branch project. Together we make the
future brighter for all! Please check out our website
for photos of the conference. http://aauw-redlandsca.org/stem-forum/ It is an amazing one day event
that lets you see the future in action!
-Margee Fuller Chair Chair 2015
STEM Committee: Heather Abushanab, Katy Ahearn,
Patty Ahearn, Mary Jane Auerbacher, Ratna Ayu,
Sheron Bealer, Diane Bennett, Kathryn Brown,
Linda Browning, Kay Dobbertin, Chelsea Glynn,
Margee Fuller, Phyllis Limbourne, Valesca Lopez,
Dorothy Nordquist, Cindy Perkins, Marcia Pifer,
Kathy Presnell-Best, Leslie Priest, Linda Rowland,
Ellen Schollenberger, Marilyn Shankar, Anne Viricel,
Melissa Walker, Susan Willis, Erica Wilson
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Page 4
April 2015
Local Scholarship Committee
Friday April 17th, 2015
Esri Auditorium
BRIDGE SCRAMBLE
Congratulations to our committee on another successful
Bridge Scramble Day. We had 32 players and gave
away 16 door prizes plus special gifts for the first and
second place winners. Lunch was yummy as were the
snacks and drinks for the entire day. Special thanks to
Louise Schumann who contributed all the drinks plus
snacks and organized the bridge part of the day. Many
thanks to Renate Beltz, Ann Harding, and Patty Ahearn
for their contributions and for taking care of the set up
and serving. Thanks, too, to Susan Satzger, Dorothy
Nordquist, Jan Jacobson for their contributions to our
meal and to Susan Shodahl for the grapes and some of
the door prizes. I am so lucky to have such great help.
We're looking forward to another fun day next year!
By the way, our net profit for the day is $871.04.
Next fundraiser -- Lunafest is Friday April 17th.
We're thinking about another wine day in May.
More to come...
~Pat Belk, Chair
6PM Reception, 7PM Films
$35 general admission, $20 students
3rd Annual Event
Lunafest is a traveling film festival dedicated to
promoting awareness about women’s issues,
highlighting women filmmakers, and bringing women
together in their communities. This is our third year
teaming up with Zonta Club of Redlands to bring
Lunafest to Redlands.
All proceeds from this
LUNAFEST will benefit Zonta and AAUW’s
educational scholarships for women and girls in the
community as well as the Breast Cancer Fund.
Our Lunafest begins at 6PM with a wine and hors
d’oeuvres reception in the Atrium of the Esri
Headquarters building located at 380 New York
Avenue in Redlands, CA. The reception is catered by
the Esri Cafe. At 7PM, we proceed to the Esri
Auditorium to view the films. After the viewing, there
will be a short discussion of the films facilitated by a
film expert.
Purchase your tickets at:
www.lunafest.org/redlands0417
Prefer to order your tickets by mail? Use this order form. Please mail by April 1.
Friday, April 17, 2015 Esri Auditorium
6:00 pm Hors d’oeuvres | Wine & Beer
Showtime 7:00 pm
Seating is limited.
Please Mail your ticket order by April 1, 2015
Please send me ________tickets $35 each; __________student tickets $20 each _______donation
Enclosed is my check for _______, made payable to
Zonta Club of Redlands.
Name_______________________________________ Phone__________________________________
Address______________________________________City_____________________ Zip___________
Mail to Zonta Club of Redlands, P.O. Box 7785 Redlands, CA 92375-0678
April 2015
Page 5
Reading and the Rainbow
What if you could live again and again, until you got it
right? “On a cold and snowy night in 1910, Ursula
Todd is born to an English banker and his wife. She dies
before she can draw her first breath. On that same cold
and snowy night, Ursula Todd is born, lets out a lusty
wail, and embarks upon a life that will be, to say the
least, unusual. For as she grows, she also dies,
repeatedly, in any number of ways.” The
novel repeatedly loops back in time to describe
alternative possible lives for Ursula. Later iterations of
her life take Ursula into World War II where she works
in London for the War Office and repeatedly witnesses
the results of the Blitz.
This is the story told in Life After Life, a novel by Kate
Atkinson, that was named one of the 10 best books of
2013, by the New York Times Book Review.
Join in the discussions of Life After Life at either of
Reading and the Rainbow’s April 23 meetings. Carol
Buchanan will host the 1:00 p.m. afternoon meeting.
Kathryn Brown will host the 7:00 p.m. evening
meeting. No reservations are needed.
Adult Literacy
Imagine not being able to read....
Would you like to know more about the Redlands
Adult Literacy Program?
Join us at an Orientation on April 13th at 6:00 PM at
the A. K. Smiley Public Library Assembly Room.
Attendees will learn what is involved in becoming a
tutor with the Adult Literacy Program. Information
includes:




Tutor/learner teams set their own meeting
schedule.
Tutors and learners share a commitment to
meeting at Smiley Library weekly for 11/2
hours for six months.
Teams also meet at Lugonia Elementary
School, Clement Middle School and Family
Service Association.
There are currently over 80 tutor-learner pairs
and we continue to have many requests for
tutoring help.
~Pat Kruger & Lynne Reasoner, Co-Chairs
[email protected] & [email protected] If you are interested in volunteering and attending the
Orientation, please email: [email protected] or call:
909.798.7565, ext. 4138. Learn more about the
Redlands Adult Literacy Program by visiting the
www.akspl.org, under Adult Services.
International Affairs
After completing the Orientation, you may attend
Tutor Training on May 11 th, at 6:00 PM at the A. K.
Our April 28th meeting will feature Janet Landfried
Smiley Public Library Assembly Room.
who will speak on Micronesia/Melanesia. Janet is a
~Trudy Waldron, Katherine Gifford, Co-Chairs
world traveler and a very interesting speaker and often
writes for the Daily Facts about her trips. The meeting
will be held at the Mitten Building at 9:15. A breakfast
buffet will be provided.
Just a reminder--our March 24th meeting--Susan Keen
will speak about Ireland. Susan was born in Ireland and
attended University there before moving to the United
States.
If you are interested in attending either one of these
meetings please call Barbara Pike at 909-862-1466 by
the Thursday before the meeting.
~Janice Belden, President Elect
793-6223, [email protected]
Page 6
April 2015
Mother's Day Tea
Join your AAUW friends to celebrate Mother's Day with
Tea Time at The Eating Room on Friday, May 8, 2015,
from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. Enjoy a pot of Tea, Finger
Sandwiches, Scones, Devonshire Cream and Jam, and
Sweets from Martha Green's Dough'lectibles Bakery.
Invite
your
guests,
Grandmother, Mother, and
Daughter to join us (Not
recommended for small
children).
Redlands Adult Literacy
Theater Benefit May 21st
Have you heard the rumor? The Redlands Adult
Literacy Program/CHAT is planning a literacy benefit
at the Footlighters Theater on Thursday, May 21 st.
Join us for an evening of fun as you enjoy a
performance of “Rumors,” a classic farce written by
Neil Simon. Invite your family and friends to join you
for appetizers at 7:00 p.m. on the Footlighters patio,
followed by the performance which begins at 8:00
p.m. Tickets are $25.
This is the second benefit held by the Redlands Adult
To RSVP call Laura @
Literacy Program/CHAT. Last year’s benefit was an
909-792-5400 (credit card
evening filled with
required).
Cost $20.
food, friendship and
The Eating Room
laughter. We hope this
107 E. Citrus, Redlands
year will top last year’s
~Judy Brandt
event and we would
Hospitality Vice President
love to have a sell-out
performance.
Please
help support adult
literacy
in
our
community by buying
a ticket, making a
donation to help defray
reception costs, or
Program Committee
donating a gift card to
Calling All Members
help with gift baskets.
Over
two-thirds
of
adult
learners
in our program are
It is time to think about monthly programs for the 20152016 year. First of all I’d like to invite everyone to women – you can help change their lives by helping
become a member of the Program Planning Committee. them improve their reading and writing!
We meet only a few times during the spring and summer
months, then get to sit back and watch the wonderful If you have any questions or wish to make a gift basket
donation, please contact Katherine Gifford or Trudy
presentations unfold.
Waldron at (909)798-7565, ext. 4138. Thank you for
I am planning on the first committee meeting the first your support!
part of May or even the last part of April. The meetings ~Trudy Waldron, Katherine Gifford and Renate Beltz
are very informal and can be during the day, or the
evening or both depending on the committee’s desires.
If you would like to join us, or I f you have ideas for
programs (even if you can’t attend a meeting), please
AAUW National Convention
contact me at [email protected] or call me at 909335-0506. I’m looking forward to another a astonishing
June 18–21, 2015
year of learning.
Join us in sunny San Diego
~Toni Momberger, Program Vice President
http://convention.aauw.org/register/
April 2015
Page 7
College University Partnership Program
Thanks to the support of the Redlands Branch of AAUW, The University of Redlands,
Crafton Hills College, AAUW, and Running Start, the initial Elect Her Campus Women
Win workshop was a huge success! The walk-in registrants helped boost attendance to
close to sixty college women, and even a few men joined in, including a professor from
Crafton Hills College.
Susannah Wellford, President and Founder of Running Start, was our Facilitator, and as she moved through the
agenda while encouraging the attendees to run for office, she made it clear that this is in their future. Under her
tutelage they defined their campaign message, networked with each other as well as local elected officials,
defined their campaign strategy, built a campaign team as well as their “elevator speech”, a brief bio prepared in
advance to promote their cause should they meet up with an official they need to impress instantly.
Invited guest speakers were San Bernardino County Supervisor Janice Rutherford who was the keynote and
focused not only on why it is important for Women to Move into Leadership, but that they can do the job, even
with a family. It is all a matter of priority setting, and managing how you want to do it; is that not the sign of a
good leader? One needs also to be aware of those around you encouraging you to proceed, and take advantage o f
their offer, moving forward.
We also were fortunate
to have Kara Van
Stralen,
Legislative
Assistant to U.S. Senator
Cory A. Booker. Ms.
Stralen not only shared
The
Importance
of
Message, she shared
with the attendees many
tips about creating and
presenting
political
messages which was
very interesting. Crafton
Hills College President
Cheryl Marshall shared
thoughts about networking as the attendees
moved into the final
session, networking with Mayor Paul Foster, Mayor Pro Tem Jon Harrison, City Councilwoman Pat Gilbreath,
Gloria Harrision, AAUW Member, and Donna Ferracone, Trustee of Crafton Hills College, all who ran for office
and shared their experiences in politics. If you know these people please take the opportunity to thank them for
their time.
Kathy Toister and I would also like to express our gratitude to the Elect Her organizers of 2015: Ericka Paddock,
Rebeccah Warren-Marlatt, Esmeralda Vazquez (NCCWSL Attendee 2015), all from Crafton Hills College,
Denise Davis, Chelsea Glynn (NCCWSL Attendee 2014), and Jennifer Nelson, all from University of Redlands,
and Jessica Kelly of the Leadership team at AAUW, as well as Donna Lilly the national Elect Her interface from
California. It takes an entire team and we did it with your support so thank you very much!
~ Sheron Bealer, Co-Chair
College University Partnership Program
Page 8
April 2015
Elections
There will be two elections going on in the same
time period, beginning in April – AAUW
California and National AAUW. As an AAUW
CA member, you are entitled to vote in both.
Watch for email messages with your personal voting codes. You will not receive these messages if your contact
info is not correctly listed in the MSD.
Click HERE to go to the Candidates Page on the state website. Some candidates have posted videos!
Be sure your contact information is correct in the national membership records. You can change it in
the Membership Database (MSD) on the national website.
Harriet Tower, Chair, Nominations & Elections Committee, [email protected]
Public Policy Program – Celebrate Equal Pay Day with Action!
Equal Pay Day is April 14th – that’s when we celebrate every April.
It is a day which is symbolic when women’s earnings (78 cents to
men’s dollar) finally catch up to men’s earnings from the previous
year. Equal Pay Day is a powerful occasion to raise awareness and
organize action around the gender pay gap in our communities.
The Public Policy Committee will be hosting a table at Crafton Hills
College on Equal Pay Day, April 14th. We will be on campus at the
same time as the student elections are being held and thus we will
have a lot of opportunity to hand out AAUW information regarding
Equal Pay. With AAUW’s literature handouts, we will be emphasizing the need for women to be in a position of
strength to negotiate for equal pay.
Be looking for an Op Ed piece on Equal Pay written by Heather Abushanab, which we expect to be printed in the
Redlands Daily Facts close to April 14th.
Also, Jan Barnett and other members are sending a written Proclamation to the City of Redlands asking the city
to proclaim Equal Pay Day.
~Kathy Toister, Public Policy Chair
In Celebration of Equal Pay Day – April 14th 2015:
AAUW’s fight for Equal Pay
By Heather Abushanab, AAUW Membership VP
On April 14th of this year, we will mark Equal Pay Day, the symbolic day when women’s earnings catch up to
men’s earnings from the previous year. The male/female pay gap is not a new phenomenon, and significant
progress has been made to eliminate it, but the gap still exists and much still work needs to be done.
Since 1894, the American Association of University Women (AAUW) has been studying the pay gap issue and
advocating for pay equality. In 1894 very few women held college degrees and the pay gap was thought to be
largely a cause of lack of opportunity for women in education and the work force. AAUW collaborated with the
Massachusetts Bureau of Statistics and Labor to analyze the pay of college educated women, finding a large pay
gap and illuminating the discrepancy even for educated women. In 1913 an AAUW study comparing the pay for
April 2015
Page 9
Federal government employees found women were paid 78% of what men were paid. During World War II pay
equity became a bigger issue for the entire country, as women became a key part of the war economy. The US
Labor Bureau urged companies to increase women’s pay, but this appeal was largely ignored. In 1945 the first
bill asking for pay equity, the Women’s Equal Pay Act, was introduced by Rep Chase Going Woodhouse, an
AAUW member. From 1945-1963 a piece of equal pay legislation was introduced into every session of
congress, and in 1963, John F Kennedy, surrounded by AAUW women, finally signed into law the Equal Pay
Act. This law bars companies from
arbitrarily paying women less than
men for the same work. At that
time, women were making a mere
$.60 cents for every dollar a man
earned, and AAUW had been
working for Fair pay for 70 years
already.
In the 1980’s and 90’s, women’s pay
rose at a steady pace along with the
dramatic increase of women earning
college and advanced degrees, and
the fight for equal pay seemed to be
well on its way.
In 1998, Lily Ledbetter sued Goodyear for 19 years of underpayment with help and support from the AAUW
Legal Advocacy Fund. It was obvious to the courts she was underpaid because she was a woman, however, in
2007 the Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s ruling in her favor because she hadn’t sued when the
discrimination first happened. It had taken 19 years for Ms. Ledbetter to discover she was underpaid. Somehow
she should have sued before she knew! President Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in
2009 as his first act in office, so that the statute of limitation begins when the discrimination is discovered. The
Act overturned a dangerous precedent set by the Supreme Court’s ruling, but did not advance equal pay efforts.
AAUW’s most recent report published in 2012, entitled “Graduating to a Pay Gap,” finds that even just one year
after graduation, women college graduates were making only 82% of the salary that men were earning and further
found that women are paid 7% less than men even when they work in the exact same jobs as men, major in the
same fields, and work the same number of hours. The report discusses the multitude of reasons that a pay gap
persists 50 years after the Equal Pay Act and points out that the gap exists in all fields from the first pay check a
woman earns. One cause among many is that young women don’t know what their skills are worth. They often
don’t know how to negotiate a starting salary and they often gratefully accept the first salary offered. AAUW is
trying to address this particular cause with a negotiation workshop called Start Smart.
Additional legislation is being introduced to strengthen the Equal Pay Act. The proposed Paycheck Fairness Act
will strengthen equal pay enforcement efforts, improve data collection regarding pay, empower women to safely
negotiate fair pay, and strengthen deterrents to stop discrimination before it happens. This and other laws
addressing the pay gap will only be enacted if we elect representatives who have a good understanding of the
issues related to fair pay. AAUW is helping to address the need for understanding law makers, by increasing the
pipeline for women going into politics. Several weeks ago the University of Redlands and Crafton Hills College
held an AAUW sponsored event: an Elect Her Workshop – College Women Win. This workshop was made
possible by a grant from the AAUW Leadership Programs Fund.
As we mark Equal Pay Day this year, let’s take a moment to acknowledge how far our society has come in
overcoming the pay gap for women, but we need to also take note that our work is not at all finished.
On April 14th of this year, we will mark “Equal Pay Day”, the symbolic day when women’s earnings catch up to
men’s earnings from the previous year. In 50 years, we have made some progress, but not nearly enough.
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April 2015
ELECT HER – Campus Women Win
AAUW College/University Partnership
University of Redlands & Crafton Hills College
February 20, 2015
AAUW State Meeting
AAUW California Annual Meeting—Saturday, April 18 (9:00 AM to 3:30 PM) and Leadership Day—
Sunday, April 19 (9:30 AM to 3:30 PM) will be held at the Manhattan Beach Marriott.
The Annual Meeting is a day of collaboration and camaraderie. David Kirkwood, AAUW National
Director, will be joining us as we report on AAUW CA's accomplishments, share thoughts and ideas at the
Funds luncheon, marvel at the Speech Trek 2014-2015 Finalists, and greet the new BOD candidates.
Leadership Day will cover such workshop topics as Facilitating Effective Meetings; Strategic Planning and
Goal Setting; Building a Team, Delegating; Conflict Resolution; and Managing Change, Being a Change
Leader.
~Bessie Reece
Registration
Saturday 4/18 $75* (deadline3/20)
$90* (3/21 - 4/12)
Saturday 4/18 and Sunday 4/19 $135* (deadline3/20)
$150* (3/21 - 4/12)
Sunday only 4/19 $60* (open thru 4/19)
*includes lunch
http://www.aauw-ca.org/index.cfm?go=pages.view&parent=455&pagesid=455
April 2015
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