The Manhattan branch of American Association of University Women will begin its 2015-2016 program year with a talk, “Homeless and Underprivileged Children in Manhattan” by Stan Ward, Director, Federal/State Programs, Grants and Special Projects, USD 383. Ward’s talk will be part of the September meeting of the Manhattan branch, to be held at the First Congregational Church, 700 Poyntz Avenue, September 14, 6:00 p.m.

The last meeting of the Manhattan AAUW branch meeting was held May 11, 2015. Following annual tradition, the May meeting featured a silent auction and welcoming of newly elected and appointed branch officers. The Manhattan AAUW is a vibrant and growing branch that welcomes new members.

Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

The April meeting of the Manhattan branch of AAUW featured Deb Kluttz, executive pastor of Westview Community Church presenting, “Crimes Against Women: Violence, Rape, and Sex Trafficking.” Kluttz is founder and executive director of the Homestead, a transitional house in Manhattan for women who have exited the sex industry, are ready for life change, and are also ready for a new career path. Kluttz provided facts about sex trafficking: America is the number one destination for sex trafficking victims. Approximately 2300 youth under age 18 are victims of trafficking in Kansas each year. The number is even greater in Missouri, where approximately 4700 youth are trafficked each year. The most vulnerable youth are those in foster care and runaways. The interstate trucking industry is a main factor in trafficking through Kansas. Other factors in prevalence of sex trafficking activity: a large migrant population, neighborhoods with strip clubs and escort services, a trucking thoroughfare, unemployment, presence of military bases and casinos.

The meeting also featured a talk by Marie Bovée, a translator and resource provider for USD 383. In her talk, “The Changes in Manhattan,” Bovée noted that 50 to 55 languages are spoken in the district; 14% of children in the district require a translator; the poverty rate for children is now 45%; and more than 250 children in our schools have self-identified as homeless. Federal laws mandate that all children be accepted in public schools regardless of their nation of origin or citizen status.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the Meadowlark Hills Community Room, 2121 Meadowlark Road, at 6pm, Monday, May 11. The May meeting is a silent auction and welcoming of newly elected and appointed branch officers. Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

The April meeting of the Manhattan branch of AAUW featured Deb Kluttz, executive pastor of Westview Community Church presenting, “Crimes Against Women: Violence, Rape, and Sex Trafficking.” Kluttz is founder and executive director of the Homestead, a transitional house in Manhattan for women who have exited the sex industry, are ready for life change, and are also ready for a new career path. Kluttz provided facts about sex trafficking: America is the number one destination for sex trafficking victims. Approximately 2300 youth under age 18 are victims of trafficking in Kansas each year. The number is even greater in Missouri, where approximately 4700 youth are trafficked each year. The most vulnerable youth are those in foster care and runaways. The interstate trucking industry is a main factor in trafficking through Kansas. Other factors in prevalence of sex trafficking activity: a large migrant population, neighborhoods with strip clubs and escort services, a trucking thoroughfare, unemployment, presence of military bases and casinos.

The meeting also featured a talk by Marie Bovée, a translator and resource provider for USD 383. In her talk, “The Changes in Manhattan,” Bovée noted that 50 to 55 languages are spoken in the district; 14% of children in the district require a translator; the poverty rate for children is now 45%; and more than 250 children in our schools have self-identified as homeless. Federal laws mandate that all children be accepted in public schools regardless of their nation of origin or citizen status.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the Meadowlark Hills Community Room, 2121 Meadowlark Road, at 6pm, Monday, May 11. The May meeting is a silent auction and welcoming of newly elected and appointed branch officers. Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

Marilyn Fox and Christine Harold, both of whom are science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) educators, presented the evening’s program, “Opportunities for Branch Involvement in STEM Programs for Young Women.” Fox recently retired as a science teacher in USD 383; Harold leads the USD 383 STEM team.

Harold defined STEM: “STEM is an approach to teaching and learning that integrates STEM skills through project-based learning.” The USD 383 STEM team is funded by a Department of Defense grant. Each year, Harold plans a summer STEM Institute for school children and models how to teach STEM lessons in the classroom. Harold finds engineering concepts to be the most challenging for teachers to integrate into their lesson plans. Harold and her team have visited every 6^th grade class in USD 383 and are currently helping to teach these youth to build lego robots.

The STEM Institute for youth grades five through eight runs each summer at K-state. The cost for students is $100 for four weeks. This year, thanks to Fox’s advocacy, the Manhattan branch of AAUW will sponsor two scholarships to the STEM Institute. Fox noted why she began to advocate for STEM camp scholarships. Girls are still under-represented in STEM fields and even at the STEM Institute. Fox would like to make the camp accessible to kids who might otherwise not be able to go and especially to girls.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the First Congregational Church, 700 Poyntz Avenue, at 6pm, Monday, April 13. Deb Kluttz, Executive Pastor of Westview Community Church will present, “Crimes Against Women: Violence, Rape, and Sex Trafficking.” Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

Branch president Barbara Gatewood welcomed many guests and new members to the February branch meeting. Vice President for programs, Mary Stamey, introduced the evening’s speaker, Pat Hudgins, who spoke on “Leaders in the African American Community.” Hudgins is associate director of Career and Employment Services at K-State and serves as liaison to the College of Education. She is a member of the executive board of the K-State Black Faculty and Staff Alliance and serves the greater Manhattan community as an elected School Board member.

During her talk, Hudgins emphasized the theme of “Making a Difference.” In honor of black history month, Hudgins spoke about black women inventors, such as Alice Parker who invented central heating in 1919. Female black inventors advanced web-cam and security technology, invented the toaster, laser surgery equipment, the stapler, architectural engineering scale, and the hoist loading mechanism…to mention just a few. Hudgins spoke of local leaders and recommended the Manhattan history, A Hundred and Forty Years of Soul: 1865-2005, by Geraldine Baker Walton, saying, “Make a difference where you are and start small.” Among the long list of accomplished local leaders is Dr. Gwen O’Neill, first African American department head at K-State, who led the department of apparel, textiles, and interior design; Dr. Carla Jones, one of few African American vice-presidents at K-State; La Barbara Wigfall, professor of regional and community planning, who has been instrumental in preserving African American history in the state of Kansas.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the First Congregational Church, 700 Poyntz Avenue, at 6pm, Monday, March 9. The program will feature Marilyn Fox, STEM Educator and Science Teacher, speaking on “Opportunities for Branch Involvement in STEM Programs for Young Women.” Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

The State Meeting will be held April 11, 2015 in El Dorado, Kansas. To register for the meeting, download the 2015 Annual Meeting Registration and send in to Carolyn Dwire, AAUW State Treasurer to register for the State Meeting.

The January meeting of AAUW Manhattan branch began with a program by Dr. April Mason, Provost of K-State, who spoke on “Women Leaders in Higher Education:  A Place at the Table.” Mason reflected upon the experience of being the first female vice president of K-State and her realization that her position makes her a role model for younger women. Mason credited her parents with inspiring her to excel; their attitude was one of doing the utmost to help their children become educated in an area of the child’s interest. Mason offered three guideposts for leaders: acknowledge if you’ve done something wrong; praise others; and learn to accept praise.

Branch president Barbara Gatewood called the business meeting to order. Branch vice-president and state liaison, Nancy Bolsen, announced the state AAUW annual meeting will be held at Butler County Community College Saturday April 11, 2015. Board member Joan Strickler reported that in preparation for the branch 100^th anniversary, the archive subteam has developed archiving guidelines with help of a National AAUW template and input from the Riley County Historical Museum.

Director-at-large Patricia Floros will represent the branch at the Community Fair, 10am-3pm, February 7^th at the Manhattan Town Center. Public policy liaison, Jean Lee, announced that the AAUW is co-sponsoring an event with the League of Women Voters: award-winning Attorney F. James Robinson, Jr. will speak on current threats to the merit selection of our state judicial branch, February 14, 10am-noon at the K-State Union Little Theater.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the Congregational Church on February 9^th at 6pm. The evening’s program will be “African American Leadership in the Community,” by speaker Patricia Hudgins, Associate Director of K-State’s Career and Employment Services. Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

The December meeting of the Manhattan AAUW branch began with a tour of the McCain Auditorium facility, led by K-State staff member Kyle McGuffin. McGuffin recounted the history of McCain and revealed the many architectural, acoustic, and stage design features of the auditorium. Following the tour of McCain Auditorium’s facilities, branch president Barbara Gatewood called the business meeting to order. Gatewood noted the branch plans to bring the Elect Her program to K-State; member Usha Reddi gave an update on city commission activities and noted that electing women is only the first step to ensure fair representation for women; even elected women officials must fight to have a voice on important boards and committees. The meeting concluded with a chamber music performance by Dr. Anna Marie Wytko’s saxophone quartet, composed of student musicians.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the Sunflower Room in the K-State Campus Union on January 12^th at 6pm. The evening’s program will be “Women in Higher Education: A Place at the Table,” by guest speaker April Mason, Provost of Kansas State University. Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

Tom Page, President of the Kansas chapter of the National Federation of the Blind opened his talk with the question: “What is the National Federation of the Blind…and why do we need it?” Page traced the arc of empowerment for blind people: For tens of thousands of years, when a blind baby was born, the child was left in the elements to die. Some hundreds of years ago, blind people organized themselves into work guilds and for the first time gained independence outside of the family unit. In 1940, the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) was formed by a group of blind people to provide security, opportunity and equality for blind people. NFB became a mechanism towards bigger civil rights goals for the blind, like access to education and employment. NFB members do a great deal of advocacy work supporting parents of blind children to ensure children are given access to education as guaranteed by law. Sadly, there are still school districts in Kansas that do not understand the value or legality of braille training (which creates literacy) for blind children.

Following Page’s talk, branch president Barbara Gatewood called the business meeting to order. Updates from board members and team leaders included information on AAUW fellowships and grants; the treasurer’s report; a report on the growing membership of the branch; information on a salary negotiation workshop recently held at K-State and co-sponsored by AAUW; and reflections on AAUW national policy positions. Branch member and liaison to the League of Women Voters, Jean Lee, noted that the mid-term election is over and we must now encourage congress to support women, girls, and working families through advocacy for equal pay for equal work.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at McCain Auditorium on the K-State Campus on December 8^th at 6pm. The meeting will include a live music performance by K-State students. Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.

Usha Reddi, city commissioner, hosted the October branch meeting at City Hall and presented the evening’s program, “An Inside Perspective of Local Government.” Reddi shared her career and life path as a parent, teacher, and elected official. Reddi called for more women in government to represent our local, state, and national demographics. As she put it, women have a wealth of information and life experiences to contribute to political leadership.

Branch president Nancy Gatewood called the business meeting to order. Gatewood gave an overview of AAUW mission, noting that AAUW is a major funder of fellowships and grants for women pursuing educational goals.

Joan Strickler gave an update on public policy and noted that locally, the League of Women Voters helped register more than 190 voters in the month of September. Barbara Gatewood encouraged all to go to the Riley County website to view a sample ballot prior to the November 4^th elections.

State liaison Nancy Bolsen reported on the state AAUW board retreat.

Gatewood and Janet Skochdopole publicized grants and fellowships available through AAUW. Claudia Jones, treasurer, presented the proposed annual budget. With a small amendment, the budget passed unanimously.

Pat Hudgins reported that on October 21st, 6-8pm at Leadership Studies Town Hall, K-State campus, trained facilitators will host a $tart $mart salary negotiation workshop for students. No sign up is needed, the event is open attendance; AAUW will provide refreshments.

The next Manhattan AAUW branch meeting will be held at the Congregational Church on November 10^th at 6pm. The program speaker is Tom Page, Kansas chapter president of the National Federation of the Blind.

Persons interested in learning more about AAUW in Manhattan may go to manhattan-ks.aauw.net or email manhattanksaauw@gmail.com.