And we are finally getting it NOW!
Click here for a great video: What AAUW does Be proud!
The gender pay gap won’t close until 2119 at the current rate of change.
AAUW is doing something about it. Take action now!
Empowering women since 1881
October 2022
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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE FROM CELIA
As usual, the first meeting of our AAUW branch year was wonderful. We were able to have a usual, pre-COVID, plentiful and delicious pot luck provided by the 21 attending members. The outstanding program highlighted our two 2022-sponsored Tech Trek girls talking about their experience at Tech Trek camp at Whittier College this summer, preceded by detailed information from Tobi Balma about the Tech Trek program. Our business meeting followed. (See draft minutes elsewhere on the website.)
There are two upcoming branch events in October which are of broad interest. Both have to do with the November 8 election.
On Wednesday, October 12, we are hosting a forum for candidates for ABC School Board Trustee Areas 2 and 3. The cost of holding the forum and broadcasting it from the Cerritos City Council chamber is being underwritten by the City of Cerritos. There are two candidates for each seat. As of late September, three of the four have accepted our invitation to participate. Many of you live in these trustee areas, so try to attend. As usual, you will have the opportunity to submit questions for the candidates. Harriet and Sondra are facilitating the event which is open to the public. (See the Public Policy article in this newsletter.)
Our October 20 general meeting will feature a speaker from the League of Women Voters who will explain the ballot measures, giving both the pros and cons of each. Be sure to attend so that you can be a fully-informed voter.
Finally, mark November 17 on your calendar when we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the chartering of our branch, initially called the La Palma Branch. (Do you know when “-Cerritos” was added?) Charter members and past presidents who are not current members will be invited to attend. If you know how to contact any of them, please send the information to Faith or Cathy.
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Reminder to members: As is written in your directory, the AAUW mail/email list is to be used for AAUW business only. If you wish to share something personal with selected members, please verify with the members first, if they want to be included. Members who find themselves receiving email they do not want should feel free to ask to be removed. We’re all friends here.
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Meeting & Program, Faith & Cathy
Thursday, October 20
Cerritos Library Skyline Room
Social time at 6:30
Program at 7:00 PM,
Business meeting to follow
This month our speaker is Nancy Mahr. She is the Public Policy Chair for the Palos Verdes Branch. She has been on the State Public Policy Committee many times and is a member of the League of Women Voters. Nancy is well informed about AAUW CA’s Public Policy and she will speak to us about the ballot propositions and the AAUW position on those initiatives.
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Please note: All our meetings comply with local rules and the accepted health guidance of Los Angeles and Orange counties for in-person meetings. Members may choose to easily attend and participate in meetings by connecting via phone to another member in attendance and have been doing so successfully.
From the City of Cerritos: FACE COVERING IS OPTIONAL. It is strongly recommended, but not required, to wear a face covering when inside any City of Cerritos facility.
Please welcome and support your new officers. Remember that their job is to lead and encourage other members. Please offer to help them when they ask.
We are looking forward to taking care of services for current membership. In order to increase membership for our branch, we request all members to bring one friend to our meetings. Please welcome our new member at the meeting. Thank you.
AAUW Fund, Sue, Tobi
This coming year we are planning to have one major non event fund raiser. We may have a few restaurant or fast food participation in which we would receive a portion of the profits for the evening. We would appreciate suggestions of places that you like. We tend to participate with places that we enjoy eating at.Also to continue with Joan Pylman ‘s idea – we expect a donation of at least $22 or $23 GIVE 22-23 IN THE YEAR 22-23.
Save these dates for the AAUW CA Fund Recipient Webinars!
October 15, 2022 October 22, 2022
10 am – 12 Noon 10 am – 12 Noon
Register HERE Register HERE
October 23, 2023 November 12, 2022
1 pm – 3 pm 10 am – 12 Noon
Register HERE Register HERE
39 inspiring California fellow and grant recipients will share nuggets of their fascinating studies at four fall AAUW Fund virtual events. See what, and who, your AAUW Fund dollars support. Sign up for one or all to learn about sustainable environments, global migration, refugee studies, and other topics.
The AAUW Legacy Circle: The Gift That Keeps on Giving
Most of us contribute to the AAUW Fund yearly. We are proud of the Fellowships AAUW awards and by contributing to the Greatest Needs Fund, we know we are helping AAUW’s mission. The Legacy Circle enables you to keep contributing to AAUW after your death. Become a beloved visionary who is committed to advancing equity for women and girls long into the future.
Some members think they need to have a healthy bank account in order to become a Legacy Circle member. The answer is, no, you do not need to be well off to be a Legacy Circle member! A Legacy gift is not something you give during your life-time- it is given by your estate. There are many ways to leave a gift, including making AAUW a beneficiary on an insurance policy or annuity, donating a set sum or a percentage of your estate, creating a charitable gift annuity, or even creating a COD account at your bank (You deposit money now, either one time, or several deposits, and it is payable to AAUW upon your death). Knowing that we are a part of helping secure the future of AAUW, an organization that we have contributed our time and talents makes us feel proud.
The top three motivations that AAUW donors cite for making a planned gift are the importance of AAUW’s mission; the belief that AAUW makes a significant impact; and the ability to make a larger gift through an estate gift than is normally possible during the donor’s lifetime.
- There is no minimum gift requirement to join the Legacy Circle, and the benefits are many. For example:
- Planned gifts afford you flexibility to provide for your family and support AAUW.
- Certain planned gifts may reduce estate or capital gains taxes.
- Planned gifts need not affect your cash flow during your lifetime.
- Certain types of planned gifts allow you to support AAUW while also providing income for the rest of your life — or a fixed income for a loved one.
- The joy of knowing that your legacy gift will sustain AAUW’s programs for years to come is the ultimate benefit!
To learn more about the benefits of planned giving, please contact Judy Horan and Charmen Goehring, of the AAUW Legacy Circle Team (queenjah@pacbell.net and charminme@yahoo.com), or by contacting Tobi.
You can…
Create Change,
Advance Equity,
Empower Women and Girls,
By helping to raise money for AAUW Fund.
AAUW Fund supports aspiring scholars around the globe – activists in local communities, women at critical stages of their careers and those pursuing professions where women are under-represented. It also provides funding and a support system for women seeking judicial redress for sex discrimination in higher education.
This tax-deductible fund now includes:
Legal Advocacy Fund
Eleanor Roosevelt Fund
Funding for a variety of College Student Seminars
AAUW Greatest Neds Fund
And many other advocacy and support funds
Public Policy, Sondra
When Women Vote, They Change the Conversation!
As mentioned in the President’s message, our branch will be hosting a forum for candidates for ABCUSD School Board Trustee Areas 2 and 3 on Wednesday, October 12. The forum will be held in the Cerritos City Council Chambers located at 183rd Street and Bloomfield Avenue, adjacent to the Cerritos Library. The forum will begin at 7 pm and last approximately two hours. You will have the opportunity to submit written questions for the candidates. If you live in one of these areas, please attend so that you can be a well-informed voter.
AAUW California supports the passage of
Propositions 1 and 28 on the November ballot in California.
Proposition 1. The decision by the Supreme Court of the United States to overturn Roe v. Wade dealt a serious blow to the rights of women to make their own decision about their bodies. This spurred many state legislatures to act to ban abortion, some with no exceptions for rape, incest, or endangering the life of the mother. Abortion bans in other states have already taken effect. Yet polls in many states show a majority in support of protecting the rights of women to choose to have abortions. Currentlywomen are coming from other states to obtain abortions in California. An Abortion Access website is being formed in our state to enable and assist out-of-state women with travel arrangements, housing, medical appointments and other matters.
California Legislators, recognizing the remote possibility that at some future time state legislation could ban abortions, took timely action in June to pass SCR 10. This put Proposition 1, the Constitutional Right to Reproductive Freedom, on the November ballot. Passage of Prop 1 will amend the California Constitution, stating “Section 1.1 is added to Article I thereof, to read: SEC. 1.1. The state shall not deny or interfere with an individual’s reproductive freedom in their most intimate decisions, which includes their fundamental right to choose to have an abortion and their fundamental right to choose or refuse contraceptives. This section is intended to further the constitutional right to privacy guaranteed by Section 1, and the constitutional right to not be denied equal protection guaranteed by Section 7. Nothing herein narrows or limits the right to privacy or equal protection.”
Proposition 28. In the context of AAUW CA’s Public Policy Priorities in support of Education, AAUW CA supports Proposition 28, The Arts and Music in Schools – Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act. Studies on educational achievement prove that arts and music education improve student learning. Music education has been shown to improve cognitive development and spatial reasoning while the dramatic arts improve reading comprehension. Arts and music education has also been shown to improve school attendance and individual self-confidence and motivation to learn, particularly among poor and other at-risk students. Yet these programs are usually the first cut when school budgets are reduced. Prop 28 would provide a minimum source of annual funding coming from the state General Fund to K-12 public schools to supplement arts education programs. School districts would be held accountable to use the funds for hiring certificated employees and purchasing supplies and materials. Read the full propositions on the Secretary of State website, www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures
Become informed, and Vote on November 8, 2022!!
This Voter Guide states the positions of candidates for Congressional District 45, in which most of our members live, and was prepared by the national AAUW. The listed topics fall within the AAUW Public Policy Program. Please read this guide so that you can be an informed voter regarding these issues. While it is up to you as to how you choose to vote, AAUW encourages its members to vote for candidates who support its positions, which you can find in the Public Policy section of the AAUW website.
You can also download and print out the 2022 Voter Guide HERE
This guide is a public service and is not intended to be an endorsement of any candidate or political party. Candidates’ positions were determined using their voting records, public statements, campaign position papers, and information posted on the internet from trusted sources; or from position statements related directly to an AAUW CA member.
Support: Candidate has co-sponsored or voted for this legislation or has explicitly stated a policy position on the record with no ambiguity.
Oppose: Candidate voted against legislation or has explicitly stated a policy position on the record with no ambiguity. Unknown: The candidate has taken no explicit or compelling public position.
Mixed: The candidate has made conflicting statements and/or votes on the issue or has taken a nuanced position.
AAUW California is a 501(c)4 organization incorporated under the AAUW Action Fund. For questions about this guide or AAUW California, please visit aauw-ca.org. To learn more about the AAUW Action Fund, please call 202.785.7793 or visit www.aauwaction.org.
Looking for Resources on Reproductive Health Coalition Building?
The following is from Ginny Hatfield AAUW CA Public Policy Committee.
Subject: Reproductive Rights Resources
- Want to join a coalition but don’t know where to start? Honestly, just reach out to your state Planned Parenthood. They will be able to connect you in with other vetted & trusted coalition members. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center?location=delaware#hc-per-state-list
- Where do we gather accurate data & analysis? The Guttmacher Institute is #1 in reproductive rights data & analysis, including drilling down to state-specific information. https://www.guttmacher.org/
- What about the legal battle side of things? The Center for Reproductive Rights leads on litigation and legal analysis. They’re a global group, so here’s the U.S. page: https://reproductiverights.org/our-regions/united-states/
- What if our members are asking how to offer direct help with the abortion access crisis, not general advocacy? Want to know who else is working in your direct community? Check with the National Network of Abortion Funds to see who is in your locality, and check with your local fund for volunteer opportunities. The local funds might also direct you to a “practical support network”, which includes simple help like driving folks to/from the airport/clinic/safe housing/etc. https://abortionfunds.org/
- Finally, the AAUW central hub for reproductive rights information: https://www.aauw.org/resources/policy/rallying-for-repro-rights/
Academic Achievement Awards, Joan P
Update: Haya Chehada
Haya is enrolled and attending her university of choice, USC. Her first Quarter has already begun. She has been named a Transfer Merit Scholar and has been awarded a USC Transfer Merit Scholarship worth one quarter tuition. It is renewable each quarter as she progresses toward her degree. Congratulations to this high achieving AAUW 2021 Academic Achievement Award recipient.
Help support other deserving women by donating to the La Palma-Cerritos AAUW Academic Achievement Awards fund.
GOURMET, JOAN F & GAIL
Gourmet will be going strong this year. We hope to do regional recipes that all of us will enjoy.
Registration is open to all AAUW members who would like to partake of our delicious meals and wonderful companionship. A couple can be 2 AAUW members or 1 AAUW member and a friend.
The first meal will be scheduled for Saturday, October 15, so mark your calendars now.
We hope to have 3 groups of 4 couples, so plan ahead, and if you haven’t been in Gourmet before, we’d love to have you join us.
Please RSVP to Gail Ross. gailross1947@gmail.com Looking forward to seeing you.
International Issues, Jackie Shahzadi
…through its global focus and reach, empowers all women and girls to create a secure and just world built on education, advocacy, friendship and mutual respect.
WG-USA is an online organization based in the United States focusing on global issues *Support and Advocacy for Refugee and Migrant Women and Girls
*Safe Access to Education
*Human Trafficking Advocacy and Action
*Women, Peace and Security
Join WG-USA at www.wg-usa.org
In 2019, Graduate Women International celebrated its 100th anniversary with a Centennial Celebration in Geneva, July 25-28. GWI was founded in 1919, by representatives of AAUW, and other international women’s groups. It used to be known as the IFUW, International Federation of University Women. Currently, Women Graduates-USA is the organization representing American women at GWI.