AAUW Ohio Speaks to Us

AAUW Ohio usually has two large events throughout the year and regular monthly discussions focused on current AAUW topics and trends. Find current year events on the AAUW Ohio home page.

Recap:

Ohio Fall Summit on Public Policy in Action

On September 30, 2023, attendees at AAUW Ohio’s annual Fall Summit learned about Ohio’s November Issue 1 from keynoter Kristin Hady as she spoke about roadblocks and facilitating access for women to get health care. Anne-Marie E. Walkowicz, PhD of Central State University talked about mentoring as how to start and sustain a path of someone who is career ready. She emphasized that a mentor is chosen, not assigned. Erin Czerniak, AAUW Ohio Public Policy outlined bills we need to influence, and Catherine Turcer, executive director of Common Cause Ohio said the August Issue 1 was an attack on voter rights, but the November Issue 1 is quite different. Voters will be confused. We can work to clarify.

Cybersecurity and the Navy June 19, 2023

Rear Admiral Tracy Hines spoke with all AAUW members in Ohio on June 19, 2023. We gathered on Zoom or met on location at Ville Charmonte Clubhouse, 135 St Michell Street, Worthington, OH 43085. RDML Tracy Hines, a Columbus native, is Navy Cyber Security Division Director, Office of Chief of Naval Operations.  Read more about RDML Hines at the Navy Leadership website.


Ohio Statewide Joint Conference Spring 2023

AAUW Ohio’s spring conference helped us learn to be inclusive and gave us words to use. The Friday 7:00 pm discussion was grounded in the book Inclusion on Purpose:  An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work by Ruschika Tulshuan. To improve your culture, you must learn to be uncomfortable, reflect on what you don’t know, invite feedback, limit defensiveness, grow from your mistakes, and expect change to take time. Policies or assumptions that seem “normal” can cause unintended harm.  This was a thought-provoking conference for learning and doing.

Zac Boyer joined us on Saturday. Zac is director of programs and marketing at Stonewall Columbus, a group that has been successful at raising visibility and acceptance. Stonewall Columbus states its vision is to “increase visibility, inclusion, and connection.” They hope to build a partnership with the community both represented at the table and not at the table. Sound familiar? Their success can be our ah-ha!  Zac’s perceptive answers to questions were enforced by slides that explained why we use specific words and which words make sense.

Following lunch, Erin Czerniak explained what attending group sessions is like for a sensory-sensitive autistic person. A panel five spoke about how inclusion has affected them professionally. Panelists were Heather Mason, athletic department strength and fitness coach: Katie McBroom, Starbucks manager; Debbie Stein, audiologist and special education teacher; Naykishia Head, English and women’s studies teacher at Wright State; and Rush Rogers, advocate for older adults.  The day concluded with presentation of branch awards.


AAUW Ohio Convention 2022

AAUW presented its spring convention and Annual Meeting in hybrid settings, with both in-person and online attendees. The morning panelists spoke about Advancing Women in Leadership: Closing the Leadership Gap.  Jean Droste, former mayor of Circleville; Heather Mason, Senior Director for Sport Performance at The Ohio State University; Andrea Townsend, Director of Career Technical and Special Education for the Greenville Schools; Erin Czerniak, AAUW Ohio’s public policy chair and a communications manager in politics; and Carolyn Seitz, a missionary’s wife and founder of the Lutheran School of the Miami Valley, Ohio comprised the panel. Read more on page 2 of the HHL April newsletter.

The afternoon panel spoke to intersectionality theory and said, we need to center the voices of those who have historically been marginalized and listen to those voices. Presenting online from Bowling Green University were Dr. Elizabeth G Holman, Dr. Laura Landry Meyer, Ms. Naykishia Darby Head, and Dr. Susan Peet. Becky Chambers mentioned one practical way to reach a diverse membership is to talk with those who look different from our majority.

Branch awards were presented and officers elected to serve two-year terms beginning July 1. President Mickey Radtkin, Program Vice President Naykishia Head, Co-Membership Vice Presidents Deborah Wooldridge and Nancy Stellhorn, Fundraising Vice President Adrienne Knight, Secretary Debby Stein, and Finance Officer Jana Patchen.

AAUW Ohio Fall Summit and Convention 2020

September 12, 2020 – Part 1

Lisa Maatz, AAUW’s former top policy advisor speaks about Women’s Rights and Advocacy 100 Years after Selective Suffrage.

Many thoughts stood out as Lisa spoke and answered questions Saturday, but only a few can be posted here. Primary, was Lisa’s, “AAUW does not tell people how to vote. AAUW acts.” We see more women in leadership; they are donating to campaigns; women of color are being recognized for what they do. We have a tendency to focus on the election but we need to focus on what will happen after the election.

  • As we isolate or distance and many schools are 100% online, women are facing more inequality in households as they add the majority share of childcare and education to their workloads.  The US Senate does not even bring up women’s issues, let alone have hearings on them.
  • Ohio redistricting should happen soon after the election
  • Practice respectful listening: challenging someone with facts and figures doesn’t work. “Today it comes down to the notion of respect and hearing each other out.” Develop the instinct of when to cut connections.
    • Use letters to the editor
    • Phrases like, “I personally trust.. believe… it will work, or similar
    • Know your listener. Respect others’ opinions, but don’t be afraid to interject.
  • Sometimes we all need a break from the news so each of us can be trusted messengers for our friends.  AAUW members are opinion leaders. We need to be a resource so others can make good decisions.

We need to hold others accountable; they do not always do the right thing.

Lisa is a true champion of Women’s rights.  She has developed a reputation for her strategic approach to legislation and advocacy.  Currently serving as Senior Advisor to Ohio Citizen Action, Lisa also provides leadership to several coalitions working to advance opportunities for women and girls, including the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education and the Paycheck Fairness Act Coalition. Lisa was recently featured in the book Secrets of Powerful Women by Andrea Wong.

Save the Date for Part 2 – October 10, 2020

Part 2 of the Fall Summit and Convention will show on October 10. Save the date and get ready to register for another morning filled with leadership, equity, inclusion, and planning for the spring events.

Kendra Davis Inspired Ohio Members

Kendra Davis, AAUW senior vice president for advancement and partnerships, pointed the way and reinforced steps in AAUW Ohio’s two-year strategic topic Women’s Economic Security/Pay Equity: Two Sides of the Same Coin as she spoke with members at the AAUW Ohio Fall Summit in Worthington on September 28, 2019.   Read more at AAUW Ohio’s website

AAUW Ohio NE District Day Featured Women’s Economic Security

On April 27, 2019 the eight branches of the Northeast District met in Austintown, Ohio to discuss and plan for improving women’s economic security using AAUW’s Work Smart Training focused on women learning to negotiate–especially to negotiate for a better salary or a promotion. Why is it men are four times more likely to negotiate their salary than women? Does this connect with why, on average, women are paid less than men? So, will training women to negotiate help close the pay gap and bring about fair pay?  AAUW thinks so.

Would you recommend young women try AAUW’s free Work Smart Online tool if you hadn’t tried it yourself?  Northeast Ohio District branches are: Cleveland,  Elyria,  Heights-Hillcrest-Lyndhurst,  Medina County,  Northeast,  Warren-Trumbull County,  Wooster, and Youngstown .

Bylaws Chairs

The March 24, 2018 AAUW Ohio counterpart session about policy documents was titled Why Write A Policy Document?

The presentation on this site is a pdf file. You must have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it.  If you do not have Acrobat Reader, it is available as a free download here from Adobe.

 

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HHL is pleased to be the 2019 winner of Ohio awards for our newsletter, diversity, programs, and fundraising. Please look at our other pages on this site. We would like you to join us or come for a visit. Use the Contact Us page and we will be in touch. Our 2019-20 programs are posted on the Programs and Events page.