ON THE MISSISSIPPI Red Wing Area Branch American Associa on of University Women In This Issue January 2015 From the President From the President ................ 1 Membership Counts ............. 2 Helping Hands & Paws ........ 2 Joint Program ......................... 3 Anita Hill Film ....................... 3 Making Dreams Come True 4 Public Policy........................... 5 Membership News ................ 6 Connecting Threads .............. 6 Brave New Girls .................... 6 Book Club ............................... 7 Coming Up ............................. 7 Joint Program Book Club & Connecting Threads Tuesday, January 13, 2015 6:30 p.m. Happy New Year to all of you!  I hope you have had a good Holiday time with family and friends, and have started the New Year on a nice note! Around New Year, I, as many others, take some time to reflect on the year that passed, what was accomplished, what was good and what could have been better. Looking back at the AAUW fall season, we had a stylish, ʹblingyʹ Holiday brunch with a nice attendance and fund raising result, we have had interesting member meetings with varying attendance, book club meetings, and preparation meetings for 2015. AAUW Red Wing had a table during the environmental event ʺClimate Solutions for Red Wing and Beyondʺ at the Anderson Center in October. Most of the exhibitors were nature and environmental organizations, so I naturally got the question ʺWhat is AAUW doing for the environment?ʺ My answer was that our main focus is creating an environment with equal opportunities for women and men.... Our spring program looks good, and I am sure we are all looking forward to the Anita Hill film in February, Brave New Girls, the summer picnic and everything in between. My first concern for 2015 is that nobody is willing to volunteer as coordinator for our GARAGE SALE. Please come forward if you can do something—anything helps! Twin Bluff Middle School Another concern I have mentioned before; there are still many well educated women in the area who a) don't know about AAUW or b) have been members of AAUW who found that "AAUW was all about raising money and nothing else" or "non of the meeting topics really interest me." I understand that we cannot meet everybody's need or interest, but if you have good ideas on how to reach out to more women, tell us! Don’t forget! $43.00 of your And last but not least; - through my work at the hospital, I meet many women with depression, anxiety, and other life challenges. It does something to me when I meet a 15 year old girl/young woman who is about to give up on everything that life has to offer. Depression Film Anita Hill: Speaking Truth to Power Wednesday, February 11 6 p.m. membership is tax deductible.  Hiawatha Happenings (Continued on page 2) Page (Continued from page 1) and anxiety affects at least 20 per cent (and boys/ young men, too) in middle school. Cammy Nelson's article last fall was a good reminder of the subject as well, and her article will be published in the Pine winter issue. She writes that it is very, very exhausting to be perfect. But in a world where we can be anything and everything is possible, what is really ʺperfectʺ? A Norwegian saying is that ʺIt takes a strong spine to carry good days.ʺ With all the opportunities and choices many have today, it takes a strong spine and mind to make the ʺrightʺ choices. And good examples of notso-perfect ʺperfectʺ women who can light the trail, so the numbers of depressed, exhausted, anxiety ridden girls and young women will be reduced in the future. In gratitude for the lighter days and your good work, Mette Membership Counts By Kay Humphreys, VP Membership We applaud the gains that our AAUW National, State and Local Branches have made and continue to make for women and girls. Our dues, donations and efforts make a difference. The women who began this organization in the 1880’s attended college, sought positions in the professional fields and worked hard to make progress in that area. Of course, we all know that women couldn’t possibly do “men’s work.” Perseverance and hard work proved that “theory” wrong. Women slowly made gains in the professional fields. Today women still face the wage gap between men and women hired to do the same jobs, but our dues, donations and efforts are chipping away at that inequity. We can’t let up on that issue. Women have experienced “glass ceilings,” “brick walls,” and sexual harassment in their efforts to achieve, contribute, and succeed economically. AAUW has not been silent on these issues, but has been in the forefront to support women. Your dues, donations and efforts are important. Each of you has made a choice by joining AAUW. You are important to improving the lives of women and girls. Thank you for your continued membership. Page 2 Helping Hands and Paws By Kathy Bell November’s meeting was livened up by an adorable golden retriever named Tori. He is a trained service and therapy dog. Tori’s mom, Jane Ward introduced us to many of Tori’s skills that he can perform. Tori and Jane train with Helping Paws, an organization dedicated to placing service/companion dogs with disabled folks. In addition to performing many needed tasks, these dogs provide much needed emotional support as well as open doors of conversation and recognition for their owners in wheel chairs. We saw how Tori follows his commands while wearing his working vest, which he can put on and take off on his own! He turned the lights off and on and demonstrated his ability to pick up things for his owner. Even coins off the floor. Tori was well paid with treats for his performance and quickly became everyone’s new best friend. In addition to his service skills, Tori takes time each week to listen to young children read and explore books. It’s much more fun to lay on Tori’s quilt and read a story to him! Due to allergies, Tori will not be placed with someone needing a service dog thru Helping Paws. The treatment would be too much for someone in that capacity to handle. He happily lives with the Wards and is truly a community companion. We also collected for the “Packing for the Weekend” program, sponsored by United Way. You generously donated $250 and 8 bags of groceries!! Well Done. Hiawatha Happenings Connec ng Threads and the Book Club Sponsor a Joint Program By LaVonne Lommel Tuesday, January 13, 2015—6:30 p.m., Members and guest are welcome to join in discussing Elizabeth Clineʹs book, Overd ressed , at the Presbyterian church. The book explores what our ʺlove affair with cheap clothingʺ is doing to our environment, economy and society. Members are invited to show and tell about a garment they have sewed or mended. Letʹs brighten up January with a lively discussion on fashion. Mark your calendar now. RW library has a copy to check out for reading; Janet will also have books related to our topic to share with us. If you have created or sewn an article of clothing, please bring it to share and tell about it. Tickets for the Anita‐ Speaking Truth to Power can be picked up at the  Library.  Seating is now open to the public. Hiawatha Happenings Page 3 “Making College Dreams Come True” 48% of college freshmen struggled with effective time management The College and Career Readiness Network of Every Hand Joined is focused on preparing students for a successful transition to the next step in lives after completion of high school. Estimates show that by 2018, 70% of jobs in Minnesota will require some form of post-secondary education. In many ways 2018 seems like a distant date but as we approach the holidays and prepare to launch into 2015 it becomes abundantly clear that 2018 isn’t a distant year in the future but one that we are approaching quickly. 39% of college freshmen had a hard time developing effective study habits by Charley Nelson, Every Hand Joined We all want ensure that our children are adequately prepared to enter their post-secondary education, have a successful collegiate career and then 4 years after we drop them off on campus, watch them walk across the stage and pick up their degree. 73% of Red Wing students will enroll in higher education within one year of graduating high school While this is every parent’s dream, for many students, this is far from what will be their collegiate reality. About 46% of Red Wing students will complete their post-secondary education within 6 years – the national average is 54% 25% of college freshman will drop out of college and they drop of for 2 primary reasons: financial pressure and academic pressure. 38% will leave because of financial pressures 71% of all college student s will leave college with some college debt MN students owe an average of $31,497 US average is $29,400 MN ranks #5 in the nation for average student debt MN ranks #4 in the nation for proportion of students having debt 28% will leave because of academic disqualification 91% of college freshman believe they are well prepared academically for college; 74% of their professors believe they are not well prepared academically for college. 51% of college freshmen felt overwhelmed by all they had to do Page 4 36% of college freshmen had difficulty adjusting to the demands of coursework 13% of college freshmen thought they might switch majors; 35% did! What’s the answer to ensure success in college? Obviously, there is none. Every student is different and every college experience is different. There are countless books, articles and blogs dedicated to helping students select the “right” college. While I’m not anything near an expert, here’s my list: Be involved in the decision! Your son or daughter is 17 or 18. I guarantee that your son or daughter will make decisions like a 17 or 18 year old. They may select a college because an older sibling attended that school. They may reject the college because an older sibling attended! On a warm, bright sunny day every school looks great. On a cold, overcast, dreary day no school looks good. The weather can impact the decision of an 18 year old. The food can impact the decision. If the tour guide is cute – that can impact the decision! Help them through this tough decision. They need your help. You still know your child better than they know themselves. Give them a hand. You child will push back, probably hard, but stay connected to the decision. Visit your top 2 or 3 choices multiple times. If it’s at all possible, make multiple visits to the school. The first visit may go really well. The second one may not go nearly as well. Get on campus as often as possible. Stop by and tour on a weekend. Weekend environments can be very different than weekday visits. If the school is a “suitcase” college the weekend can be very quiet. Is your son or daughter OK with that environment? Distance from home is an issue. Statistics show that the farther from home a student goes to attend college, the less likely the student is to graduate from college. Some students are really well equipped to handle the distance, others are not. Which category does your son or daughter fall into? One thing that is certain, at some point, the pressure of college is going to get to your son or daughter. They are going to need you. Can they get home to get away from the pressure? Can you Hiawatha Happenings get to them to help alleviate the pressure that they’re feeling? This singular issue can often be the difference between success and struggle in college. Get your feet on the ground! Academic success in high school does not guarantee academic success in college. There are about 20,000 high schools in the US. If your son or daughter was valedictorian of the class, the argument can be made that he/she is now competing against 20,000 other students for college admission, scholarships and academic success. College will be much more intellectually challenging and competitive than high school. Students will be “upping their academic game.” The same level of effort that brought tremendous academic success in high school will not deliver the same level of success in college. While your son/daughter may have been capable of handling AP Calc, AP Physics, Chem and AP lit in the same semester, it may not be in their best academic interest to Calc, Physics, Organic Chem and Macro Econ in the 1st semester of college. Take a really challenging class and compliment it with gen eds. Encourage your son or daughter to take a class or two that you feel will be a little “easier” and they are more likely to have success. Your son or daughter is going to be in class with students that are freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors. It’s going to be hard! It’s going to take a least a semester to “figure out” college. Take the semester to grow into more challenging coursework. Your son or daughter has four years to complete their major – don’t have them try to complete that major in the 1st semester! Money matters. As part of gathering research for the College and Career Readiness program, we pulled together two focus groups comprised of college students. There was universality in their desire for more financial literacy. Each student stated that they really didn’t understand the magnitude of the numbers they were dealing with. $3,500 or $35,000, it really didn’t matter. There’s a euphoria around getting into your college coupled with a lack of financial understanding that ultimately can cost a student financially. As a parent, how much are you prepared to pay? How much does your child have saved for his/her education? Your child may receive a very substantial scholarship – what does that do the final cost of that college or university? How much of the cost of college are you willing to underwrite and how much is going to fall to your son or daughter? Have the really tough conversation with your child. Being accepted into your son Hiawatha Happenings or daughter’s dream school is an incredible accomplishment. That still may not make it the best choice. Help your son or daughter make a decision that also is in their best economic interest. On the Public Policy Front By Dee Bender, VP Public Policy AAUW has been empowering women as individuals and as a community for 134 years. The efforts of those individuals and groups have changed public policy for us as women, and YOU can make an impact as well. It’s as easy as a few clicks or finger gestures on your smart phone, iPad or computer. Are you on Facebook? Go to the AAUW page to get up to the minute info about the big issues of Education, Economic Security or Civil Rights. Be sure to “like” the page to stay current. Do you wonder what’s happening locally? Go to AAUW Minnesota on FB. Want the bigger picture or more in depth background? Google AAUW and get the website in Washington DC. Click on “what we do”, then “public policy” and join as a “2 minute Activist” with just your email address. You can unsubscribe any time. Immigration Reform will be a big issue this year and by giving yourself access to our MN members of Congress, John Kline, Amy Klobchar and Al Franken, YOU can help drive decisions. The reform as President Obama wrote it intends to take the �fair and just path to legal status for over 40% of the undocumented immigrants in the US’. Big points on that will affect the parents of citizens who were born here, “Dreamers” who entered the US as kids before January, 2010 and victims of certain crimes and human trafficking with visas. f this, or any other issue, comes to the critical juncture of voting, I’ll be urging you through Pat Welke to get on line and weigh in. In the mean time, get familiar with the AAUW website and Facebook page. It’s so informative and easy to do from home on these cold winter days. Stay informed! Stay active!! Page 5 Brave New Girls: What Hue RU? Share your news with AAUW Members by sending it to Pat Welke…….Inquiring minds want to know! Red Wing Area Branch member, Nancy Hove, won reelection as the Sheriff in Pierce County yesterday. Congratulations, Nancy! Kai Coyle married Matt Rodgers. Terri Cook was promoted to Executive Vice President with Norwex. There are only 11 people at that level in the country. Dawn Bennett sold her Body Kneads business and is concentrating on her new business venture “Body Healing Power.” By Marilyn Meinke Please reserve Thursday March 26, 2015 from 3 5:30 p.m. for the 12th annual Brave New Girls Conference. Our Red Wing Area Branch will host 60 middle-school girls, inviting them to explore the many ways color touches their lives. This year's focus on color will give girls the opportunity to create alongside local artist Dawn Zero Erickson while learning about her career and 'life in color.' Branch member and 3M Science Wizard Sandy Wollschlager will lead the girls through hands-on experiments in light and color. And each of the attendees will complete a short inventory to determine what color best describes her personality. Lacey Seefeldt, a staff member at SE Tech, will introduce and lead this fun activity designed to give the girls better understanding of how they work with others. In addition to the expert help from these talented local women, we'll again be assisted by Red Wing High School junior girls. 2015 January 13, 2015—7 p.m. Overdressed, The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion Elizabeth Cline Presbyterian Church And of course, this annual event is a big success because of your ongoing and amazing support! Your response in the past years has been wonderful! Please watch for opportunities to help with all aspects of the program. We need volunteers to help with check-in, snack, t-shirt distribution, guiding the girls to breakout discussions, clean-up and more. As in the past, we'll ask AAUW members and friends to support our girls by donating and sponsoring t-shirts for every attendee. Watch for details about this opportunity to make a difference in the life of a girl. Sister City Travelogue Date: late February/early March Location: TBA Chair: Shannon Hanson In addition to each of you and our presenters, our partners this year include Red Wing Community Education, Girls on the Run of Bluff Country and SE Tech. We thank each of these organizations for another year of support. Spring Road Trip to Faribault Woolen Mill and Area Date: Thursday in May Chair: Elise Howell Brave New Girls Planning Committee: Erin Yoemans and Shannon Hanson (co‐chairs), Linda Thielbar and Marilyn Meinke Page 6 Hiawatha Happenings Newsle er Informa on Send information to: Pat Welke 1844 Bohmbach Drive, Red Wing, MN 55066 pwelke@charter.net—651-388-2100 Or, redwingaauw@rwab-aauw.org Minnesota Website: http://aauw-mn.net Association Website: www.aauw.org Association email: info@aauw.org Red Wing Area Branch Website: www.rwab-aauw.org Mission Statement: AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy and research Vision Statement: AAUW will be a powerful advocate and visible leader in equity and education through research, philanthropy, and measurable change in critical areas impacting the lives of women and girls. 2014‐2015 Branch Officers President: Secretary: Treasurer: VP Program: VP Membership: VP AAUW Funds: VP Public Policy: Historian Nominating Comm. Mette Christiansen Janet Brandt Ellen Hutchinson Kathy Bell Kay Humphreys Vacant Dee Bender Lynda Kern Marilyn Meinke (2015-17) If your email address changes, please notify me and our president ASAP so that you don’t miss any of our AAUW email notices. FLASH New members joining in January can join at a reduced rate of $48.50. Pass the good news on. Hiawatha Happenings Looking Ahead Jan 13 Joint Meeting-Book Club & Connecting Threads Feb 11 Anita Hill Film, TBMS Mar 1 Documentary Film on Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Rosalie Wahl, Historical Society Mar 10 Book Club, Sandy Wollschlager, host Mar 26 Brave New Girls AAUW Book Club 2015 What is included in the branch reads for this year? Here is the Book Club information. All members are invited to join in book club discussions for one or all of the meetings. If you see a book you are interested in, please consider coming to review it and express your opinions. We share a beverage—even wine—and a snack. Book club members host the meeting. Selections for this year are: January 13, 2015—7 p.m. Overdressed, The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion. Elizabeth Cline March 10, 2015 My Beloved World Sonia Sotomayor Host, Sandy Wollschlager May 12, 2015 The Paris Wife: A Novel Paula McLain Host, Kay Humphreys July14, 2015 Tenant of Wildfell Hall Anne Bronte Host, LaVonne Lommel September 8, 2015 Northern Slave Black Dakota: The Life & Times of Joseph Godfrey Walt Buchman Host, Jean Magnusson Page 7
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