New co-presidents: Join AAUW State College’s legacy of impact
We are excited to be the new co-presidents of AAUW State College, a branch affiliate of the national nonprofit, American Association of University Women. We have a proud history of empowering women and girls, and we wish to share with you a bit about AAUW.
Marion Talbot and Ellen Richards founded AAUW in 1881 because they faced tremendous barriers to accessing higher education. They wanted equal opportunities for women pursuing higher education and careers. Today, AAUW comprises about 1,000 branches with 170,000 members still working to advance equity for women and girls through research, education and advocacy.
AAUW State College, one of the largest and most active branches in the U.S., began its early work shortly after being founded in 1916 advocating for the most basic needs of women students at Penn State: restroom facilities. Today, those facilities are taken for granted as they have since been legislated by federal law: Title IX.
AAUW played a pivotal role in the passage of Title IX, the landmark federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in education. This law also gives women equal rights to educational programs and financial assistance. However, despite equal rights to education, women working full-time in the U.S. are still paid just 83 cents to every dollar earned by men — and the consequences of this gap affect women throughout their lives. Pay equity will remain an AAUW priority until the gap is eliminated, and the AAUW.org website offers negotiation strategies and empowerment workshops to support this goal.
Education remains a focal point for AAUW State College, as we will continue to be strong advocates for public education. As co-presidents, we will share AAUW’s resources that identify best practices for diversity, equity, and inclusivity in schools and workplaces, as we do the work needed to embody the spirit of inclusion, diversity, and intersectionality across all AAUW activities.
Many of you may know AAUW State College for our annual used book sale at the Penn State Snider Ag Arena, one of the largest in the country. We are grateful to those who donate their books, our volunteers who give countless hours of time and talent, and community members who purchase our books, enabling AAUW State College to use the proceeds from this sale to fund many activities in Centre County.
With book sale proceeds this past fiscal year, we awarded nearly $15,000 to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) initiatives for girls. We also awarded more than $40,000 in community grants. Our scholarship program funded four $7,000 scholarships for women students. (Applications for these awards, scholarships, and grants can be found on our website: AAUWStateCollege.org).
If these are issues that you care about, please consider joining AAUW State College and becoming a part of our growing Centre County nonprofit. You may email info@aauwstatecollege.org for more information. As co-presidents, we are excited and committed to continuing AAUW’s mission and expanding its initiatives throughout Centre County.
We look forward to meeting you!
Carline Crevecoeur and Ann Echols are AAUW State College co-presidents.
