Throw a Big Net, Catch Them, and Keep Them!

After months of planning, the Indiana Girls Collaborative Project overcame numerous obstacles — such as having a limited number of volunteers, locating a venue, and obtaining commitments from relevant speakers — to hold its annual conference on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis, on September 22.

As the AAUW liaison, I was able to appreciate how the spirit of collaboration prevailed, enabling the Indiana Leadership Team and Champions Board to hold its third statewide conference. Being a part of this effort demonstrated to me that collaboration around science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) has the potential for bringing together an array of individuals who may have never met or imagined new ways of working together.

The net was cast widely across Indiana and brought together formal and informal educators from middle and high schools, colleges and universities, nonprofit directors and staff, and foundation, government, and business leaders. Planners, presenters, and attendees (a total of 78) participated as listeners and contributors during a full day of sessions focused on gender equity, closing the education gap, STEM programs and projects serving girls, funding, resources, and reaching underserved girls.

The conference was an intense seminar filled with lots of new, interesting, and exciting information. I observed the audience becoming more engaged after hearing the multiple speakers and panel presentations that generated comments, questions, and brainstorming ideas from the interactions and connections made. There was definitely a buzz in the room that continued throughout the day, including during the speed-networking activity I facilitated. Each pair of participants introduced themselves, their projects, and their needed resources then switched and moved on, forming a new conversation. Each person gave her best two-to-three minute elevator speech and collected business cards from potential future collaborators. In the midst of this, I heard someone call out to the crowd that they had made a collaboration on the spot! This was a perfect motivator to encourage the group to pursue new conversations.

The best part of the day was meeting local university student volunteers — young women who have ventured into the STEM fields and expressed their excitement for the careers they will be entering. I was moved by a Latina senior whose family emigrated from Honduras when she was in elementary school. She is majoring in chemical engineering and spoke positively about her father’s support and her college experiences and internships. Many other student volunteers engaged in informal conversations and answered our questions about how they chose their particular STEM majors. We heard stories about how they were supported or mentored by parents and teachers and what a difference it has made for their future prospects. The young college students exuded confidence, poise, determination, and excitement to soon graduate.

I heard some inspiring stories and learned about numerous STEM resources and organizations that are available for Indiana girls and young women. This conference helped me realize the importance of pursuing the hard work of collaboration as a means to increasing STEM equity and confirmed my resolve to continue making my personal contribution to this effort.

This post was written by AAUW STEM Liaison Geraldine L. Oberman, Ph.D.

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Tech Trek in the Spotlight

CBS News turned to AAUW member Marie Wolbach, founder of AAUW of California’s Tech Trek Science Camp for Girls, for an insider’s perspective on getting girls engaged in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. This is an important topic that has been in the news again recently since three girls won the Google Science Fair.

Marie Wolbach, AAUW member since 1976 and NGCP liaison since 2005, appears in a CBS News segment on Tech Trek and girls in STEM.

Tech Trek got its start 13 years ago when Wolbach applied for a Community Action Grant from AAUW to open a science camp for girls on the Stanford University campus in the summer of 1998. Now Tech Trek camps are hosted on a number of campuses throughout the state and are regularly attended by over 800 girls a year.

The girls who attend the camps are each nominated by a math or science teacher and come from diverse backgrounds, reflecting California’s demographics. Many of them come from homes where English is not the primary language and have parents who did not attend college. The girls live on a college campus for a week and get a taste of what it is like to be a student and the excitement of pursuing a dream. They not only get a chance to perform hands-on experiments, they also work with girls from previous camps who come back as counselors and meet real-life female role models in STEM fields, many of them former campers and great examples of what a girl can do when she is given the right tools.

CBS contacted Wolbach and went to film parts of the segment at the Tech Trek camps at the University of California, Irvine, and Stanford. With all her experience, institutional knowledge, and involvement, Wolbach was a fantastic representative to interview, and her comments were included in the final segment that aired on the CBS Evening News.

AAUW members are doing amazing things, and it was phenomenal to have such a spotlight shone on Tech Trek and Wolbach’s story. Wolbach and her fellow volunteers celebrated additional good news this year when Tech Trek was honored as a finalist for the Breaking through Barriers Awards, which were announced at the 2011 AAUW National Convention.

AAUW supports opportunities for women and girls in STEM fields in many ways. Our most recent research report, Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, continues to make the news, and in an effort to support local programming around girls in STEM, AAUW has been a partner in the National Girls Collaborative Project for the last five years.

The NGCP website has a searchable program directory with more than 2,200 different programs for girls in math and science run by various organizations, companies, and school systems, including over 80 programs from AAUW members and branches. These are only some ways that AAUW is promoting STEM — find us on Facebook and Twitter under AAUW STEM and make sure to tell us about STEM programs in your area.

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STEM Grantees Front and Center in Kentucky

Learning about electricity while developing leadership skills, self-confidence, efficacy and content knowledge were goals of the Meadowthorpe is Serving Sisters (MISS ) mentoring program. MISS Electricity was one of the mini-grant programs members heard about at the recent AAUW Kentucky Convention. Members were given presentations by the recent National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP) mini-grant winners in their home state.

On April 29, at the Kentucky State Police Central Laboratory, Kentucky members gathered and learned about the grant programs and the accomplishments of the girls who were a part of them. Poster boards brought by grant administrators provided visual impact for those in attendance.

The MISS Electricity program gave girls Snap Circuit, Jr. educational kits and had them learn from university faculty. The presentation showcased not only what the fifth grade girls learned, but how they took the information to the fourth graders in their school and taught them valuable lessons about electricity. Watching the presentation, Kentucky member and AAUW NGCP Liaison Ellen Nolan thought to herself, “I wish I had an opportunity like that when I was young!”

The “Wonders of Water” camp was also featured, which brought girls to a local pond where they watched aquatic life hatch and grow and used real testing kits to measure aeration and pollution. Scientists helped the girls understand the results of the testing and identify the aquatic life. There was a second grant given out that focused on water safety and quality, “Wolf Run Water Watch” had girls examine two streams that have been marked as polluted by the state water agency. Female scientists helped lead the girls on field expeditions and discussed their careers and how they positively impact the community. The grantee reported that the girls were extremely engaged in the activity and many commented that they had never done anything like it before.

Kentucky members were able to see how these programs directly affected the girls in their communities and how the grant from NGCP allowed for the purchase of equipment that would not have been accessible otherwise. These types of programs are allowing girls to be exposed to careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math and bringing these careers to life! These projects were great opportunities for girls to see how working in a STEM field can allow them to help their community and have careers where they learn something new every day.

Learn more about AAUW and NGCP visiting our website, Facebook page or following us on Twitter @AAUWSTEM

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AAUW Fosters STEM Collaboration in Texas

In January, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) stakeholders from across the state of Texas converged to share research and best practices in STEM education, career and college preparation, and outreach at the Bridging Research and Practice conference in Austin, Texas.

Why was this event important for Texas? Because, so far, this has been the only confluence of these previously isolated groups. Traditionally, K–12 STEM educators, universities, business interests, and informal educators work in disconnected pockets. This conference brought all these groups together to share and understand their points of intersection and how each can be leveraged for the good of all.

The University of Texas, Tyler. Ingenuity Center; Girlstart; the Texas Girls Collaborative Project; the University of Texas, Austin, Women in Engineering Program; UTeachEngineering; the Austin Children’s Museum; Techbridge; and the Texas High School Project were just a few of the entities that gathered to better serve the vision of STEM as a national and state priority.

AAUW played a vital role in how this conference came to be. Work with the National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP)created and fostered collaborations, and my logistical work as a liaison and AAUW’s resources were the linchpin of the interwoven alliances at the conference. Making sure the kids had a great time and learned a lot was part of my job.

There was a poster session for kids to display their science projects, and they could take workshops such as Release the Power of the Sun, the Viscosity of Motor Oil, the Intelligent Mailbox, and Biofuel. The conference was a success; over 370 attendees and many Texas children walked away thinking about STEM.

Many breakout sessions focused on how critical women’s participation is in the educational and professional arenas of STEM fields. The conference marked the activation of a widespread effort to educate Texas stakeholders on the issue of STEM gender equity. The conference also featured a luncheon keynote by Christianne Corbett, AAUW senior researcher and co-author of Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

Many attendees expressed appreciation for this long-overdue enterprise. Bringing everyone to the table in Texas and making significant strides toward the awareness of gender equity issues within the STEM education community would not have been possible without the efforts of AAUW. Our work toward encouraging STEM education has enabled critical local events like this one to happen, and our work (along with several partners) in building NGCP has been a national effort.

To find out more about AAUW’s STEM efforts and to access resources to get kids interested in STEM at home and in your community, visit www.aauw.org/ngcp.

This post was written by National Girls Collaborative Project Liaison Kristian Trampus.

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We Need You for the 10 for 10 Campaign!

Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (Girl Day for short) in 2001 was the first national call to professionals to get more girls focused on engineering and technology. The founding partners — the Society of Women Engineers, MentorNet, IBM, the Association for Women In Science, Women in Engineering ProActive Network, and the National Engineers Week Foundation — especially advocated for women engineers to get involved in this effort.

Ten years later, this project continues every year during National Engineers Week, encouraging thousands of women engineers and community members to reach out to more than 1 million girls and young women in grades K–12 to give them firsthand experiences with engineering.

In October, an ad hoc planning group made up of the National Engineers Week Foundation, the National Girls Collaborative Project, and Girls RISEnet hosted a networking and celebratory reception called Celebrate the G in Engineering. Building on the member interest of the event, the group decided to launch the 10 for 10 campaign in connection with Girl Day 2011, and AAUW is joining in on the engineering enthusiasm!

The 10th anniversary of the first Girl Day is today, February 24, and it’s a great opportunity to get involved with girls in your community. The objective of 10 for 10 is to reach 10,000 10-year-old girls with positive engineering experiences in one year. The program will run for 10 weeks and will conclude on Mother’s Day, May 8, 2011. The National Engineers Week Foundation will host a database to collect information and count the number of girls reached.

Here’s how you fit in: AAUW will join nine other national organizations to reach the 10 for 10 goal. So, if your AAUW branch works with girls and engineering programs and is already hosting or is willing to host a program around engineering, please contact stem@aauw.org and let us know how you are getting involved in this project!

Here are some ideas on how to do so:

1. Contact a local school and have your branch visit a classroom or perform an activity around engineering — you can find great activities at our partner site www.howtosmile.org.
2. Offer to host a special program at your local science center.
3. Work with a local Girl Scouts troop to help girls earn technology-related badges.
4. Host a role-model luncheon.
5. Organize a fun event field trip. Find ideas at www.mydiscover-e.org or www.engineeringsights.org.
6. Participate in the Global Marathon for, by, and about Women in Engineering and Technology this March. Find details at www.globalmarathon.net.
7. Sign the Engineer’s Pledge on Facebook and “like” our AAUW STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) page while you’re at it!
8. Visit these engineering sites and introduce young students to them: www.engineergirl.org, www.gettech.org, www.engineeryourlife.org, and www.wieo.org.
9. Enter your activities and 10 for 10 efforts in the National Engineers Week Foundation national database.
10. Use the free Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day kit or place a public service announcement in your local movie theater.

Host your events between now and May 8, and let us know about your experiences with Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day!

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Igniting the Spark: From Tech Trekker to eBay

Tech Trek Reunion speakers and former campers Asha Trim (on left), with undergraduate degrees in biology and Computer Science/Information Systems currently pursuing a MEd to teach middle school science, and Kate McGrath (on right), who is now graduating from Stanford majoring in biology and music.

Last month in San Ramon, AAUW of California hosted its first ever Tech Trek reunion. Over 100 former campers and dozens of AAUW members and parents celebrated the event by networking and hearing from motivational guest speakers and Jill Birdwhistell, who spoke about Why So Few?, AAUW’s latest research report. Organized by Tech Trek founder and AAUW NGCP Regional Liaison Marie Wolbach, the reunion also featured inspirational speeches from former trekkers, like me, who have STEM majors or degrees. I spoke to the women about the new social media initiatives being created to bring Tech Trek alumnae together.

Tech Trek came at the perfect time in my life. In 7th grade girls are surrounded with gender stereotypes, such as boys are better at math, science, and technology. This included letting the boys raise their hands in class to answer a math or chemistry problem, even though the girls had the right answer all along. I believed this myth until Tech Trek opened my eyes. Not only do I excel at these subjects, I really enjoy them too!

I am dyslexic, and learning to spell was a real struggle at a young age. Tech Trek gave me the confidence to tackle new challenges and to fearlessly approach difficult subject matter.

A few months before Tech Trek, I attended a workshop by Carol Bartz, then-CEO of Autodesk and currently the CEO of Yahoo!, who encouraged girls to embrace male-dominated fields. She told us that of all the company CEOs in the Bay Area, less than five were female. A few of these CEOs were heads of women-oriented companies, such as breast cancer research and female athletic gear.

Her speech and its alarming facts challenged me to break the mold and embrace math and science. Tech Trek was the ideal experience, because I was surrounded by young women just like me, who weren’t afraid to stand out.

After Tech Trek I chose to attend an all-girls high school in San Francisco. Freshman year I jumped at the idea of taking computer programming and honors biology. I went on to take college-level biology classes and labs in high school and was able to utilize my computer design skills on the newspaper as editor-in-chief.

At UC Berkeley, I was always in the front row of a 500-person lecture hall, and I never looked back. I was always eager to raise my hand to participate, a confidence fostered in an all-girls environment. I took graduate courses at the School of Information and completed a research paper on the use of technology in the 2008 elections.

Now I work at eBay, and, although I am on the communications side of the business, I still embrace technology and science. When I need to write about a complicated technology, I take a step back and approach the problem like a fun puzzle waiting to be solved, just as I first learned at Tech Trek.

This post was written by Amanda Coffee, 1999 Tech Trek Stanford Camp.

This post is the third in a new series highlighting great AAUW-led science and math programs for girls. Interested in connecting with other AAUW members interested in STEM? Join us on Facebook or search for “AAUW” in the NGCP Program Directory.

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Get Involved with National Lab Day

This Wednesday is National Lab Day, a nationwide initiative established last fall by President Obama to build local communities of support that will work together to get students interested in science, technology, engineering, and math. AAUW is a strong supporter of this initiative, and many of our members have already signed up to participate. If you haven’t had a chance to do so yet, there’s still time! Visit the National Lab Day website to join in this exciting new initiative and help break through barriers for women and girls in these fields.

More than 3,200 teachers have already registered, and roughly half of these teachers have posted projects. Projects are taking place in all 50 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Professionals in the field have jumped in too, with more than 2,600 scientists, engineers, technicians, and mathematicians volunteering in K–12 classrooms.

Are you a math, science, or engineering teacher? Are you a professional scientist, engineer, college student, or professor? Are you a volunteer who wants to assist with a project? If so, National Lab Day is for you. This is also a great event for a branch to get involved with; simply gather a group of members from your branch to volunteer at a project in your area.

AAUW members and supporters are critical to the success of National Lab Day. To participate, simply visit www.nationallabday.org/groups/aauw and click on “Teachers,” “Scientists and Techies,” or “Volunteers.” Then fill out the form. Please select American Association of University Women (AAUW) as the professional organization. You can also see what projects have already been entered. If you are a volunteer, this is a great way to sign up for already existing projects. If you are a teacher, click on projects to get ideas about the types of projects teachers are doing.

If you’re able to help, let us know which projects you’re supporting. Tell us about successful connections made, and share pictures from your event.

While Wednesday is the first ever National Lab Day, it is more than just a day. It’s a nationwide movement to bring together science, technology, engineering, and math professionals and teachers to provide high-quality, hands-on, lab experiences for students. It’s about all of us working together to give children access to well-equipped labs and to the professionals who can inspire them.

For more information on women and girls in these fields, visit AAUW or the AAUW-led National Girls Collaborative Project.

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Roller Coasters and Rockets after School

“I never knew how many things involved science.” —Coronado Elementary School student

The AAUW New Smyrna Beach (FL) Branch is proud to have been the first branch to initiate a science and math program for girls in Florida. As a retired high school teacher, I was anxious to involve my branch in the community. I discovered the chance in an AAUW e-mail describing a girl’s special program in the area of science. With that spark, I connected with Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, which was already running a successful program at a middle school and elementary school in the Daytona area.  Dr. Joanne Detore-Nakamura of the Women’s Diversity Center at Embry offered guidance and leadership — and a great partnership for girls was born.

Our after-school program kicked off in September 2009 at Coronado Elementary. In each weekly session, girls are introduced to science and math terms and then do experiments together to learn the concepts in a fun and engaging way. The girls have “excavated” chocolate chips from cookies to simulate how natural resources like coal are extracted from the earth. Student leader Sarah Matiko came up with the idea to have the girls make their own roller coasters out of pipe insulation, tape, paper clips, and marble “cars.” The girls designed their own roller coasters, testing their ability to create more velocity with the handicaps of loops and hills.

In addition to having fun while learning, the girls also are exposed to young college women who act as role models and share their love of science and math. University student Jennifer MacRae hosted the first club meetings with the help of fellow student leaders. “We like our role models. … They are really fun, and it’s nice to know someone from Embry Riddle,” said one girl.

Since graduating, Jennifer has passed the torch to fellow students Onji Scott and Sarah Matiko, who plan to bring the science students to a grand finale in May with a launch of student-made rockets.

The program has met with a roaring success and the school staff, principal Jeri Murphy, and science teacher Liz Sokerka are looking forward to receiving more eager students into the program next year.

The students are psyched for next year — as one little girl summed it up: “We like being able to express our girl science stuff!”

The AAUW New Smyrna Beach (FL) Branch program is one of more than 160 collaborative projects for girls awarded mini-grants through the National Girls Collaborative Project network.

This post by Donna Cowart, former New Smyrna Beach branch president and creator of the Girls Growing program.

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The Sky’s the Limit for Girls in Science

With the release this week of AAUW’s latest research report, Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, and the release earlier this month of the most recent issue of Outlook, which also examines the underrepresentation of girls and women in science and technology, the AAUW office is abuzz with excitement. So I think it is fitting that today we honor Ada Lovelace, considered by many to be the first computer programmer, with this first post in what is to become a regular series spotlighting AAUW programs encouraging girls in science and math.

Last weekend while I was at the National Science Teachers Association conference learning about great programs like AAUW grantee, Aim for the Stars, and watching girls try out robots at an indoor track, more than 150 seventh grade girls attended the Seventh Annual “Explore Your Opportunities – The Sky’s the Limit!” conference, the purpose of which was to encourage them to continue in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. Sponsored by the New York, Westchester, and Manhattan branches of AAUW, the Explore Your Opportunities (EYO) conference was held at the College of Mount Saint Vincent in the Bronx. This new venue for EYO provided excellent lab and computer spaces for the girls who attended, and more than 100 volunteers worked as workshop leaders, classroom assistants, and as subjects for the “Mystery Women” game to keep the conference moving smoothly.

Activities at the conference included “Brain Games,” in which Jenny Libien, a physician and assistant professor of pathology at SUNY Medical Center in Brooklyn, showed the girls the intricacies of Alzheimer’s disease, which affects more women than men. While some girls worked with the team from Estee Lauder in “Hands-on Cosmetic Chemistry,” others made a “Blizzard in a Bottle” with Denise Beautreau, laboratory manager at Mercy College. The students also played the “Mystery Woman” game, identifying women in finance, architecture, engineering, and science, throughout the day.

“This event has deep personal meaning for me,” said conference co-director Wilma Gitchel. “If I had known one woman who was working successfully in a nontraditional field, I would have taken courage to pursue my dreams. My goal is to provide young women with role models so that they can have the confidence that I lacked in my youth.”

As Wilma notes — and Why So Few? supports — parents and other adults are essential to increasing girls’ confidence in their abilities and changing their negative attitudes toward math and science. Not only did the girls at last weekend’s conference learn new skills, but the nearly 50 parents and educators who also attended learned a new way to help girls with math in an origami workshop conducted by Karen Wellington, a public school math coach.

There are more than 70 AAUW-led programs like EYO in the nationwide program directory of the National Girls Collaborative Project, and even more still to be included. If you are interested in sharing information about your AAUW-sponsored science and math career day, award program, club, or camp with AAUW members nationwide, please contact an AAUW NGCP regional liaison. We’d love to hear from you!

This post was written by Nicole Callahan, AAUW program associate-STEM, with contributions from Lorrin Johnson and Wilma Gitchel, co-directors of Explore Your Opportunities.

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Equity Issues in the News – January 30 – February 16

January 30–February 16

AAUW Leader Joins Advisory Committee of Health Care Think Tank

AAUW Executive Director Linda Hallman now serves on the advisory committee of the prestigious, invitation-only Health Sector Assembly, the health care think tank that includes bipartisan health constituencies and represents employers, consumers, government, foundations, industry, economists, academics, and selected providers. Hallman’s involvement with HSA began when she was executive director of the American Medical Women’s Association. Described as the “who’s who of people in health care,” the HSA brings together the nation’s major players to release an annual consensus document designed to move the health care dialogue forward. While there is no shortage of proposals regarding how health care reform should be achieved, AAUW is most concerned that any enacted reform provides access to quality and affordable health care for all Americans. Visit AAUW’s Position on Health Care to learn more and to download the summary statement of the 2009 Health Sector Assembly.

AAUW Op-ed on Pay Equity Still Generating Buzz

“For Women, What a Difference a Year Almost Made,” the op-ed co-authored by AAUW Executive Director Linda Hallman and pay equity activist Lilly Ledbetter, continues to receive attention. First published on January 29 on the popular news site The Huffington Post, the op-ed, which calls for wider support of the Paycheck Fairness Act, the “essential companion legislation” to the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, later was published on the United Steelworkers’ website and referenced on BlogHer.

AAUW Legal Advocacy Fund Supported Case against UC Davis Moves Forward

The Associated Press (Tuesday, Feb. 9)

A lawsuit filed by three female wrestlers can move forward thanks to a recent ruling by the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Since 2005, AAUW has offered financial and organizational support to the case, and we signed an amicus brief for the 9th Circuit appeal. Plaintiff Christine Ng told the Associated Press, “We are thrilled. We wanted our day in court, not only for us, but as an opportunity to stand up for all girls and women trying to participate in contact sports where stigmas against women remain strong.” The story has been featured in the Central Valley Business Times, Inside Higher Ed, and on the AAUW Riverside (CA) Branch website. Read more about the case on the AAUW website and on AAUW Dialog.

Wanted: Women for Student Government

Washington Post’s Campus Overload Blog (Tuesday, Feb. 16)

Maggie Luttrell, who was featured on AAUW Dialog and attended the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders in 2008 and 2009,  offers advice for college women who are running for or thinking about running for student government office. In her guest blog post for the  Washington Post, Luttrell wrote: “I ran for student body vice president, and I was the only female running for an executive seat. When I was out riding the bus system, loitering in the dining halls, walking in between classes, I was a walking billboard.”

Campaign College Travels to New Orleans

Loyola University (Thursday, Feb. 11)

Loyola University in New Orleans has issued a press release to announce that it will host a Campaign College training session on Saturday, February 20. Campaign College is a campus-based program that addresses the disparity between the high percentage of women in colleges and universities and their low representation in student government by encouraging women to run for campus leadership positions.

AAUW-Led Program for Latinas Generates Media Attention in Illinois

Pioneer Local (Monday, Feb. 8 )

Dare to Dream, an AAUW-led program that puts on an annual conference in Illinois for middle school-aged Latinas, was featured in a recent news article. The article said Dare to Dream gives “the girls a positive experience with science and math-related studies to encourage college attendance.”  Dare to Dream, a current Community Action Grant project, is just one of more than 60 AAUW-led programs currently participating in the National Girls Collaborative Project. Visit the Dare to Dream website to learn more.

AAUW of Tennessee, AAUW Maryville (TN) Branch Offer NCCWSL Scholarships

The Daily Times, Maryville, Tennessee (Sunday, Feb. 7)

The AAUW Maryville (TN) Branch and AAUW of Tennessee are offering scholarships to students interested in attending the upcoming 25th anniversary of the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL) on June 3–5 at the University of Maryland, College Park. NCCWSL is a two-and-a-half-day conference designed to enhance the leadership skills of college women students and to promote effectiveness in their work on campus and in the community. To learn more about this exciting event, visit the NCCWSL website.

Join AAUW’s Twibbon Campaign to Close the Wage Gap

AAUW has created the Support Equal Pay Twibbon to keep the wage gap issue at the forefront of debate. (A twibbon is an image that represents a cause and can be overlaid on your Twitter profile image.) On average, women earn just 77 cents to every dollar earned by men. Just one year out of college, working women already earn less than their male colleagues, even when they work in the same field and have the same degree. As women now make up half of the workforce and a larger percentage of breadwinners than ever before, wage discrimination hurts the majority of American families. Get your Twibbon now, urge your senators to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, a much-needed update of the 46-year-old Equal Pay Act, and find out how you can get involved with Equal Pay Day on April 20.

Member Leader in California Extols the Virtues of AAUW

San Jose Mercury News (Thursday, Feb. 4)

The AAUW Los Gatos-Saratoga (CA) Branch will host a discussion focused on the challenges of getting legislation that benefits women and families passed. Gladys Bernyk, branch public policy chair, said, “From the beginning, AAUW has encouraged women and girls to be educated and participate in life. … From the beginning, AAUW has been a strong proponent of education for everyone.”

Secrets of Powerful Women Includes Chapter by AAUW’s Lisa Maatz

An essay by Lisa Maatz, AAUW’s director of public policy and government relations, is included in The Secrets of Powerful Women: Leading Change for a New Generation, a collection of essays written by 24 top women community and business leaders, politicians, and journalists that was released earlier this month. In her chapter, Maatz shares one of the important lessons she learned in elementary school. Support AAUW through your purchase of the book by using this link to the Barnes and Noble website. Also check out Maatz’s latest video, “Using Her Powers for Good.”

AAUW Recognized Again for Funding Efforts to Address Math, Science Gender Gap

The Pacific News Center and WTVA.com this have published articles about the $50,000 in Campus Action Project (CAP) grants to AAUW awarded to 12 institutions across the country for the 2009–10 academic year. CAP grants fund projects that target the barriers women and girls face to entering and staying in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. Announcements about the AAUW awards previously appeared on the Harvey Mudd College website and on Enterprisenews.com.

AAUW Staffers Nominated for 2010 Young Women of Achievement Awards

AAUW Dialog (Tuesday, Feb. 16)

Kate Farrar, director of AAUW’s leadership programs, and Holly Kearl, AAUW Legal Advocacy Fund program manager, were nominated for the 2010 Young Women of Achievement awards, given each year by the Women’s Information Network to women under 35 who have made a difference in their communities. The 17th Annual Young Women of Achievement Awards: Celebrating a Woman’s Nation will be held Thursday, February 18, 2010, at the Carnegie Institution of Washington.

Order the book women across America are talking about.

The Secrets of Powerful Women: Leading Change for a New Generation

Cruise the Adriatic Sea’s stunning coast of Dalmatia, crossroads of ancient civilizations Reserve by March 8 through AAUW Partner Gohagan Travel and save $2000/couple!

Visit Gohagan Travel/AAUW or call 800-922-3088 for more information.

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