Greater Grand Rapids Womens History Council
  P.O Box 68874, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-8874                     Phone: 616-574-7307

  

  

August 11, 2014

GGRWHC Board of Directors

Falinda Geerling,
 President
Ruth VanStee,
  Secretary
Connie Ingham
  Treasurer
  
Janet Brashler 
Jennifer Bryant 
Jo Ellyn Clarey
Susan Coombes 
Beverly Grant 
Sharon Hanks
Kyle Irwin
Mary Seeger
Ruth Stevens
Jill Straub
  
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Equality Day 2014
Your Story Matters! Celebrate It!

 

The Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council invites women to celebrate Equality Day this year by telling their Title IX stories. On Tuesday, August 26, members of the GGRWHC will be on the terrace of the Grand Rapids Art Museum (GRAM) from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. They will be asking women how Title IX changed their educational and/or career experience and benefited them. They will also be recording their answers for inclusion in the GGRWHC archives at the Grand Rapids Public Library.

Equality Day commemorates the passage, on August 26, 1920, of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, granting women the right to vote on an equal basis with men.

Equality Day
August 26, 2014

This year the GGRWHC will focus on the 1972 federal legislation known as Title IX of the Educational Amendments and how Grand Rapids area women have benefited from it. The movement to end discrimination in education began when three women who had personally experienced discrimination came together to help create and defend the first legislation that would prohibit gender discrimination in education.

These women dreamed of being doctors, engineers, and tenured professors, but they were denied jobs and admittance to schools because of their gender. Title IX of the Educational Amendments states that "....no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance."

While "sports" is the area most often associated with Title IX, athletics is only one of 10 key areas addressed by the law. The others include higher education, career education, education for pregnant/parenting students, employment, learning environment, math and science, sexual harassment, standardized testing, and technology.

All women are invited to join the Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council on August 26, Equality Day, a day celebrating a milestone in the struggle for parity with men. Look for the GGRWHC banner on the terrace outside the Grand Rapids Art Museum, next to Rosa Parks Circle, from 11a.m. to 3 p.m.

Support GGRWHC!

 

We are largely dependent upon member dues and contributions to continue finding and distributing local women's history. If you haven't paid your dues this year, please visit our website to register or renew your membership.

StoryCorps Trailer in GR!

On Equality Day, August 26, 2014, just by chance, the National Public Radio's StoryCorps trailer will be parked right outside the Grand Rapids Art Museum. Actually, it will be there for almost an entire month (from August 9 to September 5). But if you come out on Equality Day, you have the opportunity to tell your story twice! For StoryCorps, however, you do need an appointment. To make an appointment, call 800-850-4406 or visit storycorps.org.

For the StoryCorps interview, a trained facilitator guides participants through the interview process. At the end of the 40 minute recording session, participants receive a free CD copy of their interview. The interviews are conducted between two people who care about each other such as a mother and daughter or a pair of sisters.

So think about warming up or practicing first by telling your story to us and then going to your appointment at the StoryCorps!

For more details, visit our web site.



 





Join us or Update your Membership!  

Not a current member of GGRWHC?  Register or renew your membership and help offset the expenses associated with annual research and programs. Your membership helps to set the record straight on the women who've made history here in our community.
 

GGRWHC Board Meetings

Board meetings are held on the first Tuesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. at the Vanderveen Center for the Book at the Grand Rapids Public Library. If you have suggestions for programs, oral histories, or other items, please email us or plan to attend a meeting.

 

 

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Please take a moment to forward this message to others you know who may be interested in Women's History.  If you've received this message as a forward, consider joining our mailing list (click on the button in the left column above!) in order to receive future updates about programming.

Thank you for your interest in preserving and celebrating the history of the many phenomonal women who've helped to shape West Michigan!  If you aren't already a member of the Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council, consider showing your support through annual membership.  Visit our web site for more information and the ability to register using Pay Pal online!

Hats off to the historical women who've shaped West Michigan!