DECEMBER 2023 EDITION

Dr. Sarah Glenn-Smith

MCSW Chairwoman

Register Now for our Next Public Hearing

We want to hear from you! Join the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW) and partners for a virtual public hearing focusing on issues affecting women and girls, highlighting housing in the Commonwealth.

Public Hearings are an opportunity for women across the Commonwealth to give testimony on issues that matter most to them, which directly inform MCSW's policy priorities for the 2023-2024 legislative session.

The event is free and open to the public – and entirely virtual. Leaders and residents from across the Commonwealth are invited to attend, and testimony is open to any member of the public, including elected officials. MCSW also encourages legislators and other community stakeholders to attend. We're asking anyone interested in housing issues that women, children, and families to testify and share their experiences to learn from one another and create change, together.

Register by Tuesday, January 16, 2024. If you register after the deadline, we cannot guarantee accessibility accommodations, such as additional language translation.

Thank you for Joining Us!

Thank you for making your voices heard! MCSW Commissioners and staff are incredibly grateful to the many Bristol County leaders, residents, legislators, and other community stakeholders who joined us for our final in-person public hearing of 2023 at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.

We heard powerful testimony on a myriad of issues critical to the health and well being of women, children, and families in Bristol County. Included among those was call after call – from young women as young as 13, our next generation leaders – calling for inclusive and accessible menstrual products in public schools, universities, and more. We stand in solidarity with the Massachusetts Menstrual Equity Coalition (MME), more than 400+ menstrual activists, advocacy organizations, non profits, businesses, and public servants who've come together to end period poverty statewide.

Your testimony directly informs MCSW's policy priorities for the 2023-2024 legislative session. We’re stronger when we stand together. Thank you to everyone who joined us for our final public hearing of 2023!

We welcome the feedback of attendees to improve our events and invite you to take our brief event survey.

If you weren’t able to join us, you can recap the livestream video linked below or on the MCSW YouTube channel. If you didn’t get to testify or would like to share your story, please email your written testimony to mcsw@mass.gov. 

MCSW Executive Director Shaitia Spruell is a Holyoke Community College alumna from the class of 2014. She visited the campus to share her experience attending HCC as a young mother and the relentless encouragement and support of faculty and staff like Professor Pat Sandoval and the great Irma Medina of the Pathways HCC Program. Most importantly, they discussed the critical role community colleges play in socio-economic empowerment. As the ED of the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women, Shaitia's story is one of perseverance, resourcefulness, and hope. Thank you, Shaitia, for proving that where you start matters - and community colleges are a great place to start.

Commissioner McGee is in Dubai for COP28! Officially, COP 28 stands for the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Commissioner McGee is managing the conference's second-annual Ocean Pavilion, which brings together world leaders in ocean science, engineering, and policy to carry the message that the ocean matters to everyone, everywhere and that science must lead the way in our quest for safe, long-term solutions to climate change.

Last year, her work made Smithsonian’s Top 8 Ocean Stories of 2022!

Great News! This election season, MCSW Regional Commissioner Nicole McClain was the first Black woman to be elected Councilor-at-Large in Lynn, Massachusetts. The MCSW is proud to have McClain as part of our Essex County Regional Commission!

Visit her website to learn more about McClain's incredible work as a community leader, veteran, and teacher.

Massachusetts was well represented at the National Association of Commissions for Women (NACW) Annual Members Meeting held August 12, 2023. Two of our very own were elected to leadership positions!

Commissioner Tuitt was elected to serve another term as the NACW President. MCSW Executive Director Shaitia Spruell will serve a 2 year term as NACW Director-at-Large. Massachusetts is well represented on the national level!

In the News

MCSW Commissioner and veteran Mary-dith Tuitt was a featured guest on City Line in honor of Veterans Day 2023. In this special episode, Navy Veteran Mary-dith Tuitt, Program Manager of the Veterans Outreach Center at Harvard Street Neighborhood Health Center explains how she help all vets access veterans benefits.

Watch the full episode here:

CityLine: Serving veterans along Blue Hill Ave and beyond (wcvb.com)

Above Photos:

Bristol County Commissioners Tanya Lobo (Chair), Esther Rogers (Co-Secretary), Rose Costa (Co-Secretary), and Stephanie Taylor (BCCSW Emerita) attended MCSW's November 13th public hearing in Dartmouth and spoke about issues affecting women and girls in Bristol County.

Our regional commissions have had a busy fall season, holding public hearings and community conversations – and collaborating with community partners on programs that support the needs of their constituents. One of the highlights for December will be the semi-annual Regional Convening in Wellesley, where regional commissioners will join state commissioners for an evening of networking and learning before taking a break for the holidays.

• The Berkshire County Commission held their November public meeting in Pittsfield where they discussed upcoming events with plans to welcome three new commissioners in January.

• The Bristol County Commission attended MCSW's public hearing at U-Mass Dartmouth on November 14th. Chair Tanya Lobo, Commissioner Esther Rogers, and Commissioner Emerita Stephanie Taylor spoke about issues affecting women and girls in Bristol County. Commissioner Rose Costa was also in attendance.

• The Cape Cod and Islands Commission hosted Kerry McCarthy, Coordinator for the Cape and Islands Maternal Depression Task Force at their November 8th meeting for a conversation on the work of doulas and their significance in maternal health and the birthing process. This is aligned with one of their legislative priorities, An Act Relative to Medicaid Coverage for Doula Services. 

• The Eastern Regional Commission interviewed several applicants for upcoming vacancies on their commission. They are also finalizing their legislative priorities and will be planning a series of community events across the region. 

• The Essex County Commission hosted Megan Sweeney, founder of PowerUp! (a civic engagement group) at their November 9th meeting for a conversation about their work in the community. The commission also welcomed a new intern who will be supporting their youth advisory council, the Ginsburg Initiative. Additionally, ECCSW submitted testimony on behalf of the Act Supporting Parents Running for Public Office (H.590/S.348), which is one of their legislative priorities. 

• The Hampden County Commission will be hosting an event in January at the Chicopee Public Library which will be focused on youth homelessness in Hampden County. They will be spotlighting two youth speakers for a community conversation on awareness and prevention. 

• The Hampshire-Franklin Commission will be electing new leadership in January - and will be welcoming three new commissioners. They are continuing to follow their regional legislative priorities and sharing their resource guide with community organizations. 

• The MetroWest Commission will be hosting an I AM Bill/Period Palooza event in partnership with their Athena Council later this month. They are also looking forward to welcoming regional and state commissioners to the MetroWest region for the December 6th MCSW Regional Convening. 

• The Plymouth County Commission recently partnered with the Brockton Women’s Commission for a joint public hearing on the topic of workplace harassment. They also submitted testimony to support the passage of the Act Supporting Parents Running for Public Office (H.590/S.348), which is one of their legislative priorities. 

• The Upper Middlesex Commission recently interviewed several great candidates for three vacancies - and will look forward to welcoming new commissioners in January. They are also focused on expanding their legislative priorities, the primary one being elder care - and are working to support the efforts of their Athena Council which is in its second year. 

• The Worcester County Commission continues to widen their community networks, partnering on events and opportunities that are aligned with their regional priorities. They are also expanding their community advisory board which now includes over a dozen members who are engaged with the work of their commission and who serve as ambassadors across the region. 

Updates from the Coalition Corner

Have you registered yet for the Boston Women Workforce Council's (BWWC) annual Effective Practices Conference on December 6th from 8:30 - 11:30 AM?

Not only are they announcing our 2023 Gender and Racial Wage Gap results, they are also celebrating 10 years of the BWWC. 

The event includes:

• Breakfast and Networking (8:30-9:30 AM)
• The release of our 2023 Gender and Racial Wage Gaps Measurement results. This is a snapshot of where wage gaps stand in Greater Boston based on employer-reported payroll data.
• A conversation with Beth Chandler, President and CEO of YW Boston about her work in gender and racial equity and how that relates to our data.
• Table and large group discussions about what policies or practices are working and what are not, in terms of addressing wage gaps in the workplace.

This event will be in person, at Boston University's Center for Computing & Data Sciences (665 Commonwealth Ave Boston, MA). * Please note this event is open to Compact Signer employees, if you are a prospective Signer please reach out to team@thebwwc.

You can register to attend here. We hope to see you there!

Story via the Boston Globe: Harvard professor Claudia Goldin awarded Nobel economics prize for pioneering research on the workplace gender gap: In the rarefied world of economics, some of the field’s best minds figured it was a matter of when, not if, Claudia Goldin would win the Nobel Prize.

The 77-year-old Harvard economics professor finally got the early morning call Monday from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for her pioneering research to explain the gender gap in the workplace. In poring over 200 years of US labor market data, Goldin meticulously documented the differences between men’s and women’s earnings and employment rates, and the role public policies can play in eliminating inequities.

She is only the third woman to win the economics prize and the first to win it alone.

The Women’s Rights History Trail Task Force is inviting the public to submit suggestions for sites to be included on the Massachusetts Women’s Rights History Trail. Suggestions can be made via the online form.

Suggested sites should:

• be historically and thematically associated with the fight for women’s rights and women’s suffrage, including the contributions of women veterans; and 
• commemorate individuals who reflect racial, ethnic, cultural and economic diversity.  

The MCSW is a proud member of the WRHT Taskforce! If you haven't already made your suggestions, please use the link below to submit suggestions for the Women's Rights History Trail. We welcome any state or regional commissioners to submit their suggestions here!

Massachusetts is the only state in New England without updated parentage laws. It's time to protect MA children and families. The MCSW recently signed on in solidarity to a coalition letter offering testimony in support of this crucial legislation. Read the Letter and learn more here.

Good news! 

The Senate has UNANIMOUSLY passed the I AM Bill 

We’re taking today to thank our Senators for passing the bill, and tomorrow we start calling our Representatives to encourage them to bring the bill to a vote in the House too! Lean more: massnow.org/2023/senatevote

Constituents and partners are welcome to join us at any of our monthly committee meetings.

Legislative & Public Policy Committee:

First Tuesday of every month, 5:30-6:30pm



Regional Chairs Meeting:

First Tuesday of every month, 7:00-8:00pm

Program & Planning Committee:

Second Tuesday of every month, 5:30pm-6:30pm.

Finance Committee:

First Thursday of every month, 3:00-4:00pm

Executive Committee:

Second Thursday of every month, 4:00-5:30pm

Full Commission Meeting:

Third Thursday of every month, 4:00pm- 5:30pm

MCSW State Commissioners

Dr. Sarah Glenn-Smith, Holliston

Chairwoman

Mary-dith Tuitt, Boston

Vice-Chairwoman

Legislative and Public Policy Committee Chair

Tanisha Arena, Springfield

Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair

Christine Monska, Auburndale

Secretary

Denella Clark, Hyde Park

Immediate Past Chairwoman

Rebecca Bact, Auburndale

Carol Campbell, Amherst

Divya Chaturvedi, Wilmington

Finance Committee Vice-Chair

Guimel DeCarvalho, Natick

Legislative and Public Policy Committee Vice-Chair

Marianne Fleckner, Westford

Jean Fox, Freetown

Liz Friedman, Northampton

Allison Goldberg, Marblehead

Audrey Hall, Framingham

Finance Committee Secretary

Nina Liang, Quincy

Leslie-Ann McGee, Kingston

Legislative and Public Policy Committee Secretary

Dr. Aisha Miller, Mattapan

Program and Planning Committee Chair

Sonia Shah, Natick

Dr. Kimberly Shea, Winchendon

Legislative and Public Policy Committee Secretary

The Office of Economic Empowerment - Economic Empowerment for Women

The Office of Economic Empowerment provides several programs geared toward women of the Commonwealth, covering financial literacy, wage equality, and more.

Under Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg, the Office of Economic Empowerment (OEE) focuses on creating and implementing programs and initiatives that give women the tools to succeed at home and in the workplace. They provide quality workshops and opportunities for women to learn strategies for financial success and free resources.

Mass 2-1-1: This online directory is an information resource for emergency food, rent, help to pay your heating and utility bills, mental health counseling, health programs, public health and safety services, child care referrals, job resources, and other help for individuals' parents, and families.

Massachusetts Girls in Trades was launched in 2015 by a partnership of educational, governmental and union organizations with a shared goal of supporting and encouraging female career and technical education students and alumnae to pursue careers in the building trades. Directory of Joint Apprenticeship Training Centers in Massachusetts.

Find LGBTQ Youth Resources: A comprehensive list of LGBTQ resources for youth throughout the state of Massachusetts, updated frequently, from our partners at Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Youth.

Local Women’s Commissions

There are currently 10 local Women’s Commissions that represent various cities and towns in the Commonwealth. While these Commissions are independent of MCSW, the Commission serves as a resource and partner for local commissions:

• Boston Women’s Commission
• Brockton Mayor’s Commission on Women’s Issues
• Brookline Commission for Women
• Cambridge Commission on the Status of Women
• Melrose Commission on Women
• Newton Commission on the Status of Women
• Quincy Mayor’s Commission on Women
• Somerville Commission for Women
• Springfield Women's Commission
• Worcester City Manager’s Advisory Committee on the Status of Women