Dear AAUW Leader,
It has been difficult to watch the case in Steubenville, Ohio, where this weekend a juvenile court judge found two high school boys guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl.

Rape is always horrific. But the response to this case has troubled me. In the news, on social media, and in the Steubenville community, we’ve seen an outpouring of victim blaming that has too often crossed the line into bullying and sexual harassment. Just yesterday, two girls were arrested for allegedly threatening the life of the victim.

This high-profile example illustrates the terrible effect bullying and sexual harassment can have on individuals and communities. Instead of further victimization, threats, and blame, we need to give survivors justice, peace, and safety.

While changing attitudes about sexual assault and victim blaming will take time, one immediate step we can all take is to talk with middle and high schoolers about sexual harassment, sexual assault, and consent.

You can start these conversations in your own community by sending AAUW’s report Crossing the Line: Sexual Harassment at School to principals and guidance counselors. Schools can make a difference by teaching that disrespectful, harassing, and nonconsensual behavior is never OK, nor is blaming the victim or threatening people who report crimes.

I hope you will join us in taking action on this important issue.

Thank you for all you do to empower women,

Linda D. Hallman, CAE

AAUW Executive Director/CEO

Fall 2012 Edition

Dear Members and Friends,

The temperature outside may be cooler, but STEM is hotter than ever! With the election over, the administration is going to continue to focus on STEM education with an emphasis on innovation and new technology. Same goes for AAUW.

After being recognized by STEMConnector as one of 100 Women Leaders in STEM, I was honored to be invited to two receptions here in Washington, D.C. STEMconnector also listed AAUW as its STEM Results profile of the day on October 24, giving great visibility to all AAUW does to break through barriers for women and girls in STEM.

We are also thrilled to announce that AAUW has chosen five pilot sites to host Tech Trek math and science camps in 2013. Find out about the new sites below, and stay posted for more information about the camps in the coming months.

We hope you enjoy the winter holidays, and we look forward to another year of widening the pipeline for women and girls entering the STEM fields. What are you doing in your community? Let us know about your STEM activities so other branches can be inspired!

Sincerely,
Linda D. Hallman, CAE
AAUW Executive Director

P.S. Missed an issue? Interested in sharing with a friend? Back issues of Spotlight on STEM are archived on the AAUW website.

AAUW STEM NEWS

AAUW Talks to the White House
The White House Office of Public Engagement and Council on Women and Girls held a joint conference call for AAUW members on August 16 to discuss topics relating to gender equality. Among the participants was Steve Robinson of the Domestic Policy Council, who spoke about federal efforts to increase women’s participation in STEM.

AAUW Launches Five New Tech Trek Camps
Tech Trek inspires girls to see their potential in STEM with weeklong summer camps hosted on college and university campuses throughout the country. This year, AAUW added five new pilot sites:

• AAUW Bowling Green (OH) Branch – Bowling Green State University
• AAUW Weatherford (OK) Branch – Southwestern Oklahoma State University
• AAUW of Florida – University of Central Florida
• AAUW of Washington – Pacific Lutheran University
• Kristian Trampus (AAUW national member) – University of Texas, Tyler

Know an organization looking to fund proven winners when it comes to widening the STEM pipeline? E‑mail stem@aauw.org with contact information.

Get STEM Updates on the AAUW Blog
Check out some of the recent STEM blog posts from AAUW Dialog. It’s a great place to get talking points for your next discussion on women in STEM.

• Meet Emma P. Carr: Chemist and Mount Holyoke Legend
• Meet Sequetta Sweet: Consultant and Dreamer
• From Barbie to Builder
• Meet Cynthia White: From Engineer to STEM Education Reformer
• Celebrate Women in STEM on Ada Lovelace Day

Want to know more about AAUW’s STEM efforts? Check us out on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at @AAUWSTEM.

FROM THE FIELD

Looking for a successful STEM program for your community? Why not take a look at what other AAUW branches are doing?

Westchester Hosts Engineering Camp
Middle school girls attended Visualization in Engineering: Paper to 3D, an engineering camp held in August. The goal of the four-day camp was to encourage girls to develop spatial skills and pursue STEM careers. The event was held by the AAUW Westchester (NY) Branch in partnership with the Board of Cooperative Educational Services Technical Center in Yorktown, New York.

Fargo-Moorhead Branch Hosts “Women and Girls in Science”
Ellen Brisch, professor of biosciences at Minnesota State University, Moorhead, spoke to AAUW members in North Dakota’s Fargo-Moorhead area on the topic of women and girls in science on September 17.

Motivating Girls in STEM
Women leaders who are motivating girls to pursue an interest in STEM presented October 23 to the AAUW McLean (VA) Branch on “How We Can Make a Difference in Local Girls’ Education and Future Careers.” The branch heard from local STEM educators and advocates Naomi Sweet, Billie Feldhaus, and Elizabeth Vandenburg on the programs they have founded.

Second Annual STEM Conference
Middle school girls and their parents participated in workshops run by prominent STEM women at a conference held at AAUW’s Arlington (VA) Branch on November 3. Sandra Cauffman of NASA gave the keynote speech on her experiences as a woman in STEM.

Mothers and Daughters Discover STEM in Fremont
Girls and their mothers joined the AAUW Fremont (CA) Branch for hands-on STEM activities such as “Kitchen Chemistry,” “LEGO Robotics Mania,” and a planetarium show at the Mother/Daughter Math and Science Discovery Day held November 3 at Fremont, California’s Hopkins Junior High School.

FOR THE GIRLS

GoldieBlox Inspires Girls to Become Engineers
GoldieBlox is an engineering toy for girls. Creator Debra Sterling, a Stanford engineering graduate, hopes that her project will spark young girls’ interest in STEM as construction toys marketed to boys have done for their male peers.

Ada Lovelace Day
What part should actress Keira Knightley play next? Ada Lovelace, the world’s first computer programmer, of course. On Ada Lovelace Day, AAUW dedicated a blog post to Lovelace and celebrated the contributions of other women in STEM. Check out the blog to learn more about this fascinating STEM pioneer!

See our list of online STEM resources for women and girls for more tools.

Questions or comments about this e‑newsletter? E‑mail us at stem@aauw.org.

September 19, 2012

Today, we are proud to describe AAUW as a nationwide community of more than 150,000 members and supporters. The new language reflects the exciting success of several new marketing initiatives. AAUW’s activism is galvanizing support for our work on issues such as fair pay, access to contraception, sexual harassment at work and school, student debt, and the lack of women in STEM fields and in public office. People who care about these issues too are seeking online ways to get involved, and AAUW is there with our social media channels and online outreach tools such as Care2, Change.org, and our Two-Minute Activist, which allow supporters to take immediate action. AAUW’s vision gives voice to their concerns; their voices increase AAUW’s power to effect change.

These new supporters are not one-time contacts. They are individuals who have a track record of continuing engagement with us and our issues and who seek to effect positive change for women through their activism. They know that by lending their support consistently to our advocacy, our combined voices become all the more powerful. Almost all nonprofit membership organizations include their active supporters in their numbers. Thus, including them in our count is a truer representation of the strength of support for AAUW positions and a more effective presentation of our case.

These new activists are spurring growth and renewed interest in our organization. Some of them have already become members, but others have not yet done so, and it would be a disservice to their enthusiasm and passion not to count them as friends of our organization.

This growing list of supporters is a great way to recruit new national and branch members, and AAUW is capitalizing. We encourage you to take part in this effort, too. Urge prospective members to sign up for Action Network. Let them try us on for size online, and use that as a tool to turn their interest into active membership.

This is briefing #28 in our AAUW Current Topics Briefing Series issued by Linda Hallman, CAE, Executive Director.

http://youtu.be/uv4dirG0-cA

AAUW President Carolyn Garfein and Executive Director Linda D. Hallman visited the White House in September for the announcement of a new National Science Foundation initiative to promote workplace flexibility in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. AAUW was recognized for our contributions to research and grassroots advocacy in promoting women’s increased participation in STEM.

The AAUW Two-Minute Activist page helps you to quickly speak out to your legislator on issues central to AAUW’s mission through an easy-to-use website.  Some recent alerts asked members to send messages to their legislators on issues like job creation and training, access to contraception, and Social Security.  You can read about the issues on the website and then send a quick message adding your voices to other AAUW members.