In December 2012, Washington Area Women’s Foundation made grants totaling $805,500 to 23 DC-area nonprofits whose work is improving the economic security of low income women and their families. One of those organizations was Academy of Hope, which provides high quality adult basic education that changes lives. Here’s a look at why The Women’s Foundation made a grant to Academy of Hope.
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Women's History Month Q&A – March 29, 2013
Q: Who was the first woman and first Hispanic to serve as U.S. Surgeon General? Hint: she served from 1990 to 1993.
A: Antonia Novello, M.D., served as the 14th U.S. Surgeon General from 1990 to 1993. Her work as Surgeon General focused on the health of women, children and minorities, underage drinking, smoking and AIDS.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 28, 2013
Q: Who was the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize?
A: Edith Wharton for her fiction novel “The Age of Innocence.”
Women's History Month Q&A – March 27, 2013
Q: Who was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic?
A: Amelia Earhart made her solo trip across the Atlantic in 1932.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 26, 2013
Q: What woman helped design the iconic fonts and graphics for Apple Macintosh?
A: Susan Kare developed most of the interface elements for Apple Macintosh. She helped develop the bulk of those little icons early Mac users clicked on everyday.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 25, 2013
Q: Who was the first woman to receive a U.S. patent?
A: On May 15, 1809, Mary Dixon Kies received the first U.S. patent issued to a woman for inventing a process for weaving straw with silk or thread.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 22, 2013
Q: Who was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the only woman to win two?
A: Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the only person to win in multiple sciences. She received the coveted award in both Physics and Chemistry.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 21, 2013
Q: What was the first sporting event that women were allowed to compete in at the Olympics?
A: At the first Winter Games in 1924, the only event open to women was figure skating. Only 15 women participated in these games.
Partnership for Women’s Prosperity Empowers Women & Girls Nationwide
Recently, I had the opportunity to travel with our president, Nicky Goren, to a meeting of the Partnership for Women’s Prosperity, a cohort of six women’s funds from across the country that share best practices and find replicable solutions to address systemic problems facing economically vulnerable women and girls nationwide. Our collective grantmaking will touch the lives of more than 16,500 women across the country.
The Partnership will be gathering on a regular basis this year and next as a “Professional Learning Community.” So, what did I learn?
- Women’s funds across the country are responding to their communities in innovative and powerful ways. In Mississippi, they’re partnering with employers to support alternatives to predatory “pay day” loans. In New York, they have an increased focus on small business and entrepreneurship. Our work is always place-based, and in the context of our communities, but there are tremendous things to learn from one another. And I’m excited to explore some “lessons learned” from our partner communities.
- Many of us are investing in community colleges. We have a concerted effort around post-secondary credentials, which are shown to help women attain jobs and advance to earn wages and benefits that can support a family. We’re supporting scholarships for tuition, transportation and childcare, and coursework that helps women gain basic literacy and numeracy skills, English language skills, and degrees and credentials that will lead to quality jobs in in-demand sectors.
- “Economic security” is intrinsically about money – but it’s also about having choices and opportunities. We work together to ensure that women and girls are empowered and supported so that they may reach their full potential.
That’s just a snapshot of our most recent conversation, so be sure to stay tuned for more updates in the months to come! In the meantime, please take a look at the cohort’s work by visiting: Washington Area Women’s Foundation’s grantmaking page, The New York Women’s Foundation, Women’s Fund of Mississippi, Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis, and the Women’s Funding Network.
Lauren Stillwell is a program officer at Washington Area Women’s Foundation.
Women's History Month Q&A – March 20, 2013
Q: Who was the first female filmmaker to win an Oscar for best director?
A: In 2010, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win an Academy Award for Best Director. Bigelow won for The Hurt Locker. She was the fourth woman in history to be nominated for the Best Director Award. The previous female nominees were: Sofia Coppola (for 2003’s Lost in Translation), Jane Campion (for 1993’s The Piano) and Linda Wertmuller (for Seven Beauties in 1975).