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Program News

• AAUW Fund
• Branch Development
• Communications
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

• Finance
• Governance
• Nominations and Elections
• Public Policy

• Speech Trek

As Sandi Sees It

Sandi Gabe, President, AAUW California, statepresident@aauw-ca.org

AAUW GOES BACK TO SCHOOL

Pop quizzes, fire drills, and Star Pupil Awards were a hit at the AAUW California Annual Event on Saturday, April 27th. If you were unable to attend, you can still go back to school by watching the recording on the AAUW California website homepage.

Congratulations to the following honorees:

• State Named Gift Honoree: Jane Niemeier
• Equity Champion: LA County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell
• President's Award: Mary Isaac
• 18th Speech Trek Competition Winner: Addison Horn from the Auburn Branch
• Gov Trek Winning Team: Vote Eliana

Petaluma took the honor as the top Branch Activity of the Year award winner for their program on gun violence and protection. They were joined by representatives from Napa County and La Mesa-El Cajon. Their presentations sparked interest in audience participants. See a full list of submissions on our website HERE.

SHARE YOUR PASSION WITH AN AAUW CALIFORNIA COMMITTEE

Are you looking for a way to share your talents and interests across California? Any member of AAUW California in good standing is eligible to serve and may submit an application to be considered for appointment. Members are selected and appointed for a one-year term by the board of directors. Applications are due May 31, 2024.

Committee members will be invited to participate in an all-day, in-person planning session on Saturday, August 24, 2024 in San Diego, California.

NEWS FROM NATIONAL YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS

The May Membership Matters edition was full of useful tips for the end-of-year transition.

• FY25 National Dues Year is Open! Finance officers can begin processing memberships for FY25 now! Renewal notices are on the way.
• The College/University Member Toolkit was released.
• It's time to update your officers on the Community Hub.
• The February 1 Member Count Report 2024 has been posted.
• Finance Officers can submit their 990-N online on the Community Hub.
• The national election closes May 15th at 12 pm E.T.

BRANCH PRESIDENTS, MARK YOUR CALENDARS.  THE BRANCH OFFICERS REPORT (BOR) UPDATES BEGIN SOON.
Julika Barrett, Office Manager, office@aauw-ca.org 

Each year, outgoing branch presidents (or their delegates) gather at their computers to enter their new branch officers. It’s nearly time for the 2024-2025 updates. Later in May you will receive an email with your login information. For now, please add these key dates to your calendars:

• June 3rd: Begin entering new and returning officers into the BOR.
• June 3rd to 6th: Attend Office Hours on Zoom on any of these four days from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, if needed. There will be BOR demonstrations and Q&A. Register for a session HERE.
• June 18th at 7:00 pm:  Attend the Branch Officer Report (BOR) preparation webinar (if needed). Register HERE.
• July 31st: Complete updates.

 Be sure to: *REVIEW*
                      *UPDATE*
                      *VERIFY*

Committee News

AAUW FUND TOP

Karen Vanderwerken, AAUW Fund Committee chair, aauwfund@aauw-ca.org

STATE NAMED GIFT HONOREE ANNOUNCED!
It's an honor to present Jane Niemeier with the 2024 State Named Gift Honoree!

• She is an active dual member of the San Diego and the La Mesa-El Cajon Branches.
• She serves as the San Diego IBC liaison.
• She has served in most branch positions including President, Treasurer, and Program Chair.
• She was the 2021-2023 State Nominating Committee chair.
•  She served as the 2014 AAUW California Convention Chair. 
• She served six years on the AAUW California State Board as Co-President, Program Chair, and State Oversight Committee.
• She has been appointed a director to the AAUW California Special Project Fund (SPF).

Congratulations, Jane, and thank you for your leadership.

Another big shout-out to 54 branches that nominated Branch Named Gift Honorees to 127 members!

Be sure to vote in the AAUW National election by May 15th.

What I need to know: Jane Niemeier was named as the State Named Gift Honoree and 54 branches named their own Branch Named Gift Honorees. 

What I need to do: Begin planning now to ensure that your branch raises sufficient donations to AAUW Fund to be eligible to award Branch Named Gift Honorees. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, members should know whom the state has honored and why.

BRANCH DEVELOPMENT TOP

Sharyn Siebert, Director, Branch Support branch@aauw-ca.org

Sigrid Moranz, Director, Leadership, leader-dev@aauw-ca.org

Marsha Swails, Director, Membership, membership@aauw-ca.org

GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES!

2024 Branch Activity of the Year (BAY) Winners!
We received 20 submissions from 16 branches, and all were wonderful ideas. Click HERE to see the summaries of all the entries.

Congratulations to the three winning branches for their excellent programs:

First Place
Petaluma: Normalizing Safety: Gun Violence Prevention

Runner Up
Napa County: Tech Trek 25th Anniversary Celebration

Runner Up
La Mesa-El Cajon: Is the Judicial System Fair and Unbiased?

Branch Development Peer Group Meeting
Join us for the final session of our three-part series “Touching The Hearts of Our Volunteers.” It will be on Tuesday, May 14th, at 7:00 pm. We will again be hearing from Barry Altland, this time on rewarding and recognizing our volunteers. Click HERE to register. 

If you missed Parts 1 or 2 you can click HERE to watch the recordings of the Branch Development Peer Group sessions on YouTube.

Be sure to register HERE for the upcoming College/University Peer Group Meeting on Thursday, May 9th at 7:00 pm.

B2B Bonus: Quick Tips for Things to Try

Be sure to apply for an AAUW California committee position. Most positions take 5 to 10 hours a month. We need you! Click HERE for more information.

What I need to know: The Branch Activity of the Year (BAY) award(s) went to the Petaluma, Napa County, and La Mesa-El Cajon branches. There are two upcoming peer group meetings: Part 3 of Touching the Heart of Our Volunteers and the College/University Peer Group.

What I need to do: Be sure your branch leaders are aware of the upcoming peer group meetings. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, members might be inspired by the programs of the winning BAY branches.

COMMUNICATIONS TOP

Dawn Johnson, Director, Communication Committee chair, communications@aauw-ca.org

THIS IS YOUR BIG CHANCE!
If you want to be a mover and a shaker, join a state committee and have a say in the things that affect your branch. There are openings in all the committees, but we are unabashedly asking you and your fellow leaders to be a part of the Communications team. There are plenty of roles that could use your talents. Consider helping in either the technology arena if you love geeky stuff or as part of the creative services/editing group if you love to dabble with words and correct people’s grammar. Take a look at all the intriguing possibilities HERE and complete the simple application right away!

The Communications Committee will be under new leadership next year, so this is a great chance to get in on the ground floor and contribute your ideas. It’s a fun, active, creative group with plenty of impact. Just do it!

What I need to know: The state Communications Committee has openings for people with technical or writing/editorial skills. The deadline to apply is May 31st.

What I need to do: Be sure to distribute information about committee openings. Don’t be shy about encouraging branch members who would enjoy serving on this type of committee.

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, branch members can–and should–consider joining a state committee to keep this organization vibrant.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION TOP

Charmen Goehring, Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, diversity@aauw-ca.org

LIVING OUR MISSION OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION

Thanks to all of you who surveyed your branches with the environmental scan, shared the information, and gave your comments last month about the draft strategic plan. The document is in a final review with the editing team and will be available very shortly for a soft launch to our branches once the board of directors approves it. We hope branches embrace the plan to grow and strengthen the branch and membership. 

This is a good time to give a shout-out to the idea of one person making a huge difference. As I mentioned during the Annual Event, AAUW Berkeley president, Karen Weinstein, learned about Mary Church Terrell and her involvement in the fight to integrate AAUW. She spent nearly two years lobbying AAUW to include Terrell on the national website as a Trailblazer. She then enlisted the Oakland Branch to join with her branch in hosting Terrell biographer, Alison Parker, in Oakland for a talk. 

Collaboration with a wide range of local organizations (The African American Museum and Library of Oakland, Oakland/Berkeley LWV, Emerge California, Berkeleyside (newspaper), YWCA Berkeley, The National Women’s History Alliance, and several chapters of Delta Sigma Theta—an historically African American sorority) contributed to the success of the event.

From this, they worked with me to create a statewide webinar about Terrell with Alison Parker. That successful webinar has now been viewed by members and branches across the country. And National included references to Mary Church Terrell in a webinar they presented a couple of months ago. An idea that started with one woman created inclusion ripples across AAUW. Let’s continue and create some waves!

Our next peer group chat will be May 21, 2024, at 5:30 pm. We plan to share the new DEI Strategic Plan with you as well as review how the peer group worked and look forward to next year. Please register for the meeting HERE. Be thinking about specific topics you are curious about.

B2B Bonus: Quick Tips for Things to Try

The new DEI strategic plan will help branches infuse concepts of equity and inclusion into their branch practices while helping to grow and diversify their membership!

What I need to know: The new DEI Strategic Plan will be unveiled with branches soon. 

What I need to do: Be sure your DEI coordinator is aware of the upcoming peer group meeting. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, the new DEI Strategic Plan should be shared once the final version has been approved and released. Encourage members to watch the recording of the Mary Church Terrell webinar HERE.

FINANCE TOP

Kathy Ford, Chief Financial Officer, Finance Committee chair,  cfo@aauw-ca.org

WE WANT YOUR INPUT! 
Don’t miss an opportunity to tell the Finance Committee what you want to know about branch finance. Be sure to complete the survey sent out at the beginning of May. Want to have a bigger impact? You can apply to join the Finance Committee for the new fiscal year starting July 1, 2024. The application process began May 1st and the deadline to apply is May 31st.

The survey is your opportunity to identify the topics that you believe are most important, difficult, and time-consuming for branch finance. There have been three Finance Committee Peer Group meetings this fiscal year to date. The final one will be June 6th at 6:30 pm (watch for the email with the registration link.) Submit the survey to tell us what you want covered in future peer group sessions and what you think is most important for a branch treasurer to know. The survey results will be used to plan future peer group sessions. So, submit your survey by May 7th and get your ideas included.

For those of you who want to provide your financial talents at the state level, apply to join the Finance Committee. We are a small, dynamic group and are looking for additional members who can contribute to that most important goal – supporting our branch finance officers.   We’ve had an opportunity to meet a lot of very knowledgeable branch finance officers during the peer group sessions and would love to have your talents on our committee! Click HERE to learn more about joining the Finance Committee.

There’s an investment sub-committee as well, so check it out.

If you haven’t done so already, now is a good time to create a preliminary FYE 6/30/2025 budget for your current board to approve. The preliminary budget will cover the period between 7/1/2024 and the date your new board approves the final branch budget, providing your board has the guidelines and authority to pay bills until the final budget is passed. Budgeting was covered in the December 7th peer group session for which the recording is posted HERE. 

What I need to know: The Finance Committee has issued a survey for branches to indicate what tasks they find the most important, difficult, and time-consuming. 

What I need to do: Submit your branch’s survey feedback by May 7th to help determine what topics the peer group will cover next year. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, include the information about applying to join the state Finance Committee for your members who like finance and numbers.

GOVERNANCE TOP

Dianne Owens, Governance chair,  governance@aauw-ca.org

THANKS GOVERNANCE CHAIRS! GOOD JOB!
I have received many updated branch bylaws in the last few weeks. I know more will come from those branches that have Annual Meetings in May and June. June 30th is the deadline to send your approved bylaws to me.

If you missed the memo this year, Governance will be in touch with you next fall. 

Have a great summer!

What I need to know: June 30th is the deadline to submit your branch’s approved bylaws to the state Governance chair.

What I need to do: Reach out to the Governance chair if you have any questions about meeting the mandated branch bylaws amendment or adding other revisions.

NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS TOP

Deanna Arthur, Nominations and Election chair, nominating@aauw-ca.org  

A COMMITTEE’S WORK IS NEVER DONE.
Congratulations to the newly-elected and re-elected board members: Michelle Davis Baer, Tracey Clark, Rebecca Gomez, Donna Holmes, Lata Murti, and Deanna Arthur.  These women will serve the state well. 

Because the current chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee has signed on to a new state position, Charmen will need a new chair for this important committee.  Please review the description of the position and submit an application HERE by May 31st or contact Charmen directly at charminme@yahoo.com to let her know you are interested. Sign on in time for the incoming Leadership Team retreat June 22nd and 23rd in Davis so you can get a running start. You know you have always wanted to do work for the state. You can’t resist this temptation.  

What I need to know: There is an opening for a new chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee.

What I need to do: Complete an application online or contact Charmen Goehring, incoming president, if you or someone you know might be interested in the position. 

PUBLIC POLICY TOP

Amy Hom and Melissa Maceyko, Directors, Public Policy Committee Co-chairs, publicpolicy@aauw-ca.org

TITLE IX NEW RULES AND LOBBY DAYS RECAP
HOT OFF THE PRESSES! On Friday, April 19, 2024, the Biden Administration released long-awaited guidance on the application and administration of Title IX. 

The rule changes: 

(1) rework Trump Administration guidance on the handling of campus sexual assault, providing expanded protections for survivors; and 

(2) expand Title IX protections against sex/gender-based harassment and discrimination to protect members of the LGBTQ+ community. Expansion of rights to the LGBTQ+ community via Title IX aligns this federal law with current interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of sex/gender. AAUW National serves in a gender equity coalition supporting these changes.

This year’s AAUW California Lobby Days event, in which we collectively advocated for state level Title IX protections as part of our legislative agenda, was held on April 2nd and 3rd. It was an exciting and action-packed affair. 140 women on 43 teams from 63 AAUW California branches met with 39 Assembly offices and 27 Senate offices. 11 meetings took place in person in Sacramento, 55 meetings took place via Zoom, and the majority took place without a hitch.

While most meetings were conducted with legislative staff, we were able to hold eight meetings with the members themselves - five Assemblymembers and three Senators. We were not able to get a meeting for Zoom Team 7 with Assemblymember Hart, but they did even better when one of their members, Judy Frost from the Santa Maria Branch, joined Assemblymember Hart on a hike and lobbied him on the hiking trail.

We were happy to learn that our organization was known to many of the legislative staff and legislators with whom our members met. Some staff had looked up our website prior to the meeting and were impressed with programs such as Tech Trek and Gov Trek. Most were supportive of advancing women’s equity.

The reception of our “Top 3” bills - AB 2843, AB 2326, and AB 2099 – was generally favorable. You can find more information on these and all the bills we are supporting HERE.

If you’ve signed up for action alerts, thank you! You should get ready for a busy summer and fall. Thankfully, a lot of our priority legislation is moving along smoothly, so we have not yet reached out to you to act. However, we do invite you to test out one arm of our alert system: Resistbot. Click on HERE and “sign” the petition in support of SB 554. When you “sign,” Resistbot will prompt you, through your preferred text message system, to send a letter with the petition text to your CA State Senator. Be sure to check it out! 

Sign up for Action Alerts HERE.

What I need to know: Title IX guidelines have at last been updated with many important changes. Our Lobby Days event was very successful with 140 women from 63 branches lobbying for the three top bills we support. The Resistbot arm of our Action Alert system is primed and ready for use.

What I need to do: Take some time at a branch meeting to thank members who volunteered on Lobby Days and hear about this unique experience. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, members should be impressed by the significant participation and advocacy outreach accomplished on Lobby Days. Include directions for signing up for the Action Alert system to personally react to critical legislative activity.

Program News

SPEECH TREK TOP

Lana Widman, Speech Trek Program Director, and Speech Trek Committee chair, speechtrek@aauw-ca.org

THE RESULTS ARE IN!!! THE 18TH ANNUAL AAUW CALIFORNIA STATE SPEECH TREK CONTEST HAS BEEN COMPLETED.
The Speech Trek Committee sends our sincerest appreciation to the Foxhoven family for their generous financial support for the last few years. We’ve been able to keep the competition going and have been able to provide our competition winners with substantial awards.

This year, we had 13 branches hold Speech Trek contests and submit videos of their 1st Place winners to compete in the state competition.

All participants wrote and delivered a 5- to 6-minute speech on the following topic:

If an educated population is essential to a nation’s prosperity, then how can we ensure a robust public–school curriculum that is accessible to all and teaches historically accurate information?

And the winners are…..

1st Place, $1,500, Addison Horn, Auburn Branch
2nd Place, $1,000, Shreeya Patel, Poway-Penasquitos Branch
3rd Place, $500, Nenas Ajji, La Mesa-El Cajon Branch
4th Place, Honorable Mention, $250, Nicolas Jung, California Online Branch
5th Place, Honorable Mention, $150, Angelina Yip, Alhambra-San Gabriel Branch

You can watch the videos from the top three contestants HERE.

What I need to know: The state Speech Trek contest was completed and five winners were selected for the top three awards and two honorable mentions. The contest has been generously supported by the Foxhoven family. 

What I need to do: If your branch participated, consider showing the video of your candidate’s speech at a branch meeting. 

Should I include this in my branch newsletter? Yes, if your branch participated.