Updates.htm

Orientation begins for the Class of 2012!

Carmen Orozco-Acosta from the Class of 2011 welcomes

Meenal Khajuria, Karla Dhungana, Elina Alterman, Meredith Beers and Monica Barrera

to Capitol Hill on January 9, the first dayof orientation for the

WREI Congressional Fellowships on Women and Public Policy, Class of 2012.

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Women in the Military at the Crossroads

Ninth Conference on Women in the Military

Combines Real-world Experiences with Academic Insights

October 27-28

Go to the 2011 Conference page for details

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Commander Iskra's latest book wins

Military Writer's Society of America

Gold Medal

"...a tribute to women warriors past and present who served faithfully in the United States armed forces"

Commander Darlene Iskra USN, (Ret.), PhD's book, Women in the United States Armed Forces: A Guide to the Issues has won the 2011 Military Writer's Society of America Gold Medal in the non-fiction biography category.

The first woman to command a commissioned Navy ship and 2002 WREI fellow is currently an adjunct professor at Columbia College of Missouri and at Brandman University, teaching at the Naval Submarine Base, Bangor, WA. She is scheduled to attend the WREI - Alliance for National Defense Ninth Conference on Women in the Military -- Women in the Military at the Crossroads -- October 27 and 28, 2011, at the WIMSA Memorial in Arlington Virginia.

Read a review here

Purchase your copy here

Learn more about Darlene Iskra here

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Australia lifts restrictions on Women in Combat

WREI's Capt. Lory Manning says

U.S. policy still based on 'old cold War concepts'

The formal "U.S. policy on utilization of women has been based on old (outdated) Cold War concepts of what wars look like," said Lory Manning of the Washington-based Women's Research and Education Institute.

But "the Australian policy on women has been very similar to the U.S. policy over the years," she added. "It's my guess that the U.S. will be creeping that way too. ... I think (the United States will) at least bring the policy up to match the reality."

See the CNN print story

here

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WREI WIM Director Testifies before Caucus on Women in the Military

Retired Navy Captain Lory Manning, skipper of WREI's Women in the Military Project, testified before the Caucus on Women in the Military, joining legislators, active duty service personnel and activists in calling for an end to the Department of Defense's often breached, but still in force ban on women in combat.

“It’s widely known,” Capt. Manning stated, “that women in Iraq and Afghanistan have been attached to units rather than assigned to them, in many combat roles originally only done by men.

“It’s time to end the bureaucratic fudges that put women in harm’s way without formally recognizing their vital role in the defense of our nation.”

Read the Washington Post account of the meeting here

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Farewell Fete for 2011 Fellows

Susan Scanlan hosts a farewell dinner for the 2011 Congressional Fellows on Women and Public Policy at the Bombay Club in Washington. Pictured from left to right are Julie Feeney, Carmen Orozco-Acosta,Natalie Khalatov-Krimnus, Scanlan, Susan Cha and Hannah Katch.

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Bidding Farewell to 2010 Fellow Linda Mancillas

Dr. Linda Mancillas will be leaving American University to teach political science at Gwinnett College in Atlanta. At her farewell party: Andrea Casalotti (2010), Carmen Orozco-Acosta (2011), Linda, A.Tianna Scozzaro (2010), Carolyn Hughes (2008)

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WREI 2011 Fellows Salute

See Salute photos here

Photos by Sylvia Johnson Photography

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Officer Women’s Leadership Symposium

to convene 22-24 September 2011

The Eighth Military Officer Women’s Leadership Symposium will be held September 22-24 September, 2010 at the Women in Military Service for America (WIMSA) Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. This event is designed to inspire, inform and connect current, future and former women military officers from all the military services regardless of commissioning source.

The theme for the 2011 Symposium is “Leading Change: Individually, Locally, Globally.” The theme speaks to the opportunities we have as leaders to play key roles in implementing change in our lives, our organizations, and in the broader world. Choosing to champion change affords the opportunity for authentic leadership, to be one who holds fiercely to the course of personal values and conviction despite the opposing winds of others’ opinions and of convention.

Panels and keynotes will include Barriers to Entry: Advancing Women into Key Leadership Roles; Leadership from the Inside Out: Leading Authentically During Times of Challenge; Work-Life Balance: Truth or Fiction, Can You Really Have it All?and; Leading on the Battlefield: Women and War Panel Discussion. There will also be a Remembrance Ceremony in honor of women fallen in combat throughout the ages. The Symposium takes place 23 and 24 September and will end with a workshop on effective mentoring planned especially for women participants of the eMentor Leadership Program but open to all.

The event begins on 22 September, with a full day Career Coaching workshop designed to assist women who are making career transitions after their military obligation, women who are considering a career change and women who are interested in improving their career success.

The Career Workshop will include a variety of sessions designed to help transitioning women gain a better understanding of: career options and the skills needed to succeed in each industry, the art of conducting a successful job search, creating a winning resume and developing strategies for career success. Opportunities will also be available for attendees to network with top-caliber, military friendly companies specifically interested in military women for their integrity, work ethic and leadership skills.

Visit www.AcademyWomen.org for more information, to register for the symposium or to sign up for free membership in AcademyWomen. AcademyWomen membership and events are open to all who support the organization’s mission. Please direct questions to Stefanie Goebel at goebel@academywomen.org.

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Capt. Lory Manning on women in elite combat units

Coming soon to this picture: Women SEALS?

Capt. Lory Manning (USN, Ret.), Director, WREI Women in the Military Project, was quoted in a Washington Post article contemplating women's roles in elite military combat units.

"Remember, we used to think women couldn't go into space.”

"The physical requirements are extreme,” she concedes, “but I know some women who could probably meet them, some very strong and fit women...

"...they’ll have to be held to the same physical standards as their male counterparts...Otherwise," Manning says dryly, "it would just be the ladies’ auxiliary."

Read the entire Washington Post article here

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WREI/IWDC Night O'Chocolate

featured on Voice of America

Russian language broadcast

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Air Force Major General Margaret Woodward:

first woman to lead U.S. air war

March 29 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Air Force general directing the airstrikes over Libya has flown aerial tankers into battle and commanded the pilots of Air Force One -- and is now the first woman to lead a combat air campaign.

Major General Margaret Woodward, 51, was in charge of the 17th Air Force, a unit that supports humanitarian and peacekeeping missions in Africa, when she was ordered to set up the United Nations-sanctioned no-fly zone over Libya.

Read the full story on the Bloomberg Businessweek site

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WREI has moved!

Been there, done that... two years have passed since our last move and WREI has moved again. We're now sharing digs with The National Council of Women's Organizations at Eighth and G streets, S.E., near the Navy Yard and Marine Barracks, only a few blocks from the Capitol.

Our new address:

Women's Research and Education Institute

714 G Street S.E., Suite 200,
Washington, DC 20003

Metro stop:

Eastern Market

Our telephone numbers will remain the same.

Updated WREI information for Outlook

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AND calls for changes in policy on

women in combat, women in submarines

The Alliance for National Defense today released position papers calling on the Department of Defense to modernize policies regarding women in the interest of national defense.

AND called for an expansion military women’s combat roles ‘to reflect the reality on the ground’ and urged that Navy women, both officer and enlisted, be given the opportunity to compete for positions in all platforms (SSN, SSBN, SSGN) of the U.S. Navy’s submarine force.

“Women should be considered for military assignments and duties based on the training, experience, leadership potential and characteristics required to accomplish the mission and the specific requirements/tasks of the job,” the position paper on Women in Combat states.

The position paper on women in combat urged sweeping changes in women’s participation in combat operations:

“Performance standards for military jobs should be based on the scientifically developed and empirically verified elements of the job’s tasks and not based on personal opinion.”

The complete position papers in PDF format are available for download and review:

Women in Combat Women and Submarines

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Orientation begins for the 2011 WREI Fellows

On January 10^th, the Class of 2011 Congressional Fellows on Women & Public Policy began their two-week Capitol Hill orientation. Introducing Susan Cha, Julie Feeney, Hannah Katch, Natalie Khalatov-Krimnus, and Carmen Orozco-Acosta.

2010 Fellows share their 111^th Congress experiences with 2011 Fellows who’ll begin in the 112^th Congress

First Row: A.Tianna Scozzaro, Julie Feeney, Linda Mancillas, Elizabeth Darnall, Susan Cha

Second Row: Natalie Khalatov-Krimnus, Adriane Casalotti, Hannah Katch, Carmen Orozco-Acosta

More orientation photos here

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Scanlan represents Virginia at Vision2020, Women’s Equality Convention

WREI president Susan Scanlan signs the Declaration of Equality, endorsed by 102 women leaders from the 50 states and the District of Columbia in Philadelphia on October 22^nd. Delegates gathered as part of Vision 2020, a national project focused on advancing gender equity by energizing the dialogue about women and leadership. This event helped launch an action agenda to move America toward equality by 2020, the centennial celebration of the 19^th Amendment, allowing women’s suffrage.

For more information about Vision 2020: http://www.drexel.edu/vision2020/

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BE A MENTOR IN THE VETERANWOMEN iMENTOR PROGRAM

We all hear about the struggles of returning veterans…here’s your chance to make a difference in the life of such a veteran. Consider becoming an online mentor to a woman veteran seeking employment. AcademyWomen is a proud partner of the Veteran Women Project, a program designed to provide a variety of services to assist women veterans in Southwestern Washington find employment. A core element of Veteran Women is an online mentoring program that pairs women veteran clients with volunteer women veteran mentors for 6 month- or one-year online mentoring relationships. Mentors are responsible to develop a mentoring relationship with the mentee and to support her in her job search or preparation for the search via weekly emails sent through the online mentoring platform’s messaging tool.

If you are interested in becoming a mentor in this exciting program, you may apply at:

https://pic.imentorinteractive.org/survey/intake/mentor/

or call the program director, Emily Stoutsenberger. at 360-696-8417 for more info.

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VOA interviews Scanlan

on 90th annniversary of women's right to vote

View the video

Read the story

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Scanlan vows to fight Social Security cuts

WREI President Susan Scanlan says women will "stand as one against any efforts to renege on this enduring and essential social contract by balancing the budget on women’s backs.

"Unlike the bankers and financiers of Wall Street who brought us to the brink of economic calamity, your average woman on the street has not received a bailout, " Scanlan wrote in a blog on Retirement USA. "We’re still working at low wage jobs, more than half of which offer no paid vacation, retirement, or sick leave let alone childcare or transportation assistance. Right now, the nurses, teachers, secretaries, grocery store clerks, data processors, hair stylists, and waitresses whom I represent are grateful to have a job, even if they receive only 77-cents for every dollar their male counterparts earn."

The blog was part of WAKE UP, Washington!, a new initiative sponsored by Retirement USA working toward a universal, secure, and adequate pension system for all Americans, billed as a time for Americans across the country to tell lawmakers to keep their hands off of Social Security and to fix the real problem – our nation's patchwork private retirement.

Read the complete blog here

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Celebrating Women’s Equality Day with the Troops

To commemorate the 90^th anniversary of the 19^th Amendment – granting women the right to vote – Susan Scanlan keynoted ceremonies at Quantico Marine Base and the U.S. Army JAG Corps. These Women’s Equality Day events honor the work and sacrifice of the Suffragists who endured ridicule, poverty, and prison to gain access to the ballot box. August 26, 1920 was the date that Tennessee became the 36^th state to ratify the 19^th Amendment – by one vote !

Susan Scanlan with women Marines following her speech at Quantico

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Susan Scanlan interviewed on Womens Radio

Visit Womens Radio and hear the interview

Or download a copy of the interview to your computer

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Remembering Juanita M. Kreps

WREI has learned with sorrow of the death of long time board member Juanita M. Krups, who died July 5. She was 89.

Although no longer active due to illness, she provided WREI wise counsel and lent her name and reputation to many of our programs.

Dr. Kreps joined the WREI Board in 1981, following her service as Secretary of Commerce in the Carter Administration -- one of only four women appointed to such high office. She made it her business to expand opportunities for women in and out of government through her own research as a labor economist, by advocating women’s recruitment and promotion on the many corporate boards she was elected to, and as Dean of the Women’s College at Duke University.

It was Dr. Kreps who persuaded Sally Ride to accept WREI’s American Woman Award in 1999, who reviewed our statistical profiles in each edition of The American Woman, and who steered research opportunities on women’s employment our way.

Juanita Kreps was a gracious lady, a ground-breaking leader, a respected scholar, and a dear friend. WREI will miss her.

Learn more about this extraordinary women here.

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Don't balance the budget on backs of women!

Susan Scanlan testifies before

Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform

WREI President Susan Scanlan, in her role as Chair of the National Council of Women's Organizations, called on members of the Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform not to balance the budget through cuts to Social Security.

"Social Security has not contributed one red cent to the deficit..." Scanlan stated in testimony before the commission June 30. "Suggestions about cutting benefits or raising the retirement age represent nothing less than the country’s breaking its word with its most vulnerable citizens. Truly, America is better than that...

"I know that you are looking out for our grandchildren. So I’m here today speaking for today’s and tomorrow’s grandma’s. The 12 million members of the National Council of Women’s Organizations are ready, willing, and able to work with you to defeat the deficit. Give us a fair plan that eliminates the Bush tax cuts, ends two unfunded wars, and spreads the sacrifice to those who can afford it. Then we’ll roll up our sleeves to work with you.

"But," she warned, 'we will stand as one against any efforts to renege on this enduring and essential social contract by balancing the budget on women's backs."

Click here for the complete statement

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Once and current Fellows at WREI’s

June 8th, 2010 Capitol Hill reception

Front:

Irene Lin, Elizabeth Darnall, A.Tianna Scozzaro, Davida Walsh

Second Row:

Heidi Hollonbeck Robinson, Alicia Butler Dupre, WREI President Susan Scanlan,

Linda Mancillas, Amber Shipley, Anh Phan

Back Row:

Jo Deutsch, Adriane Casalotti, Jacqueline Ayers, Leslie Greenberg, Savannah Lengsfelder,

Lisa Maatz, Fatemeh Hosseini, Carolyn Hughes, Debbie Jessup

To view more photos from this event, click here

To view photos from previous events, click here

Click here to meet this extraordinary group of women

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Remembering Dr. Dorothy Height

WREI Board Member/President emerita

of the National Council of Negro Women

Dr. Dorothy Height, a founder and WREI board member for 33 years, died Tuesday, April 20th, at age 98.

Her loss will be deeply felt in both the civil rights and women’s communities.

“WREI has benefited from Dr. Height’s leadership since our founding in 1977 as the data/policy analysis arm of the Congresswomen’s Caucus,” said Susan Scanlan, WREI president. “A woman who changed history—and who lived long enough to witness these changes—Dorothy Height’s vision defined and reinforced our mission. She brought a sense of calm, cohesion, and capability to every conversation.”

Another special link between WREI and Dr. Height: She was appointed by President Harry Truman to the first board of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Service (DACOWITS). Over the years, she provided wise counsel to WREI’s one-of-a-kind Women in the Military project.

Learn more about Dr. Height's career, accomplishments and honors here

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WREI's Scanlan is

PLEN 2010 Mentor Award honoree

WREI president Susan Scanlan accepts a Public Leadership Education Network 2010 Mentor Award at PLEN's 30th anniversary celebration and awards celebration Feb. 25 in Washington.

PLEN is the only national organization whose sole mission is educating women for leadership in the public arena. Its member and associate schools include some of America's most prestigious colleges and universities. It was founded in 1978 by then-Wells College president and former Texas State Legislator Sissy Farenthold, a Scanlan heroine.

Rep. Judy Biggert of Illinois and Washington attorney Valerie Jackson also won Mentor Awards. International development expert Kristin Haffert was the winner of the PLEN Alumna Leadership Award.

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WREI partners with the Global Summit of Women

In January, WREI formed an alliance with Globewomen, Inc., a prominent public affairs firm in Washington, DC. Globewomen links businesswomen worldwide through an international summit, two national conferences, and an online expo of women's products and services.

At the three-day 2008 Summit that opened June 5th in Hanoi, Vietnam, more than 1000 business, professional, government, academic, and entrepreneurial women leaders from around the world gathered to exchange ideas, extend markets, and expand equality. Some 50 government ministers from around the world were there to talk about public/private partnerships to enhance women's economic status.

Click on the logo to read the latest GlobeWomen newsletter

Globewomen's president is Irene Natividad, who, over an impressive, 30-year career, has headed the National Women's Political Caucus, the National Commission on Working Women, and the Philippine American Foundation.