DIversity, Equity & Inclusion

Chair: Mary Ann Takemoto

AAUW Long Beach fully supports AAUW’s mission of  “advancing equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research.” The branch also fully supports AAUW’s Diversity Statement:  “In principle and practice, AAUW values and seeks a diverse membership. There shall be no barriers to full participation in this organization on the basis of gender, race, creed, age sexual orientation, national origin, or disability.”

We also support AAUW’s commitment to educate our members about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). We invite you to explore AAUW’s DEI Toolkit, including Key Terms and Concepts

AAUW Long Beach is committed to diversity & inclusion in all their forms. This living document contains resources for members and the community at large to learn, unlearn, question, and grow. If you would like to recommend additions to this list, please email aauwlongbeach@gmail.com.

From the toolkit:

AAUW seeks to promote inclusion and awareness for all members to create an equitable, sustainable and inclusive membership reflective of today’s world.

We recognize the need to attract and retain members and to celebrate the diversity that all individuals bring. Members of AAUW have long raised awareness through their impactful initiatives, programs and research.

AAUW is dedicated to helping members become more comfortable sharing their perspectives outside of diversity trainings and to address diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in all aspects of their work and lives. We seek to encourage ongoing dialogue that will inspire all members to bring these values to their personal and professional interactions. Within AAUW, our goal is to turn these conversations into actionable goals and strategies for each branch. We seek to help members understand how inclusion factors into every decision made in the branch and in their lives. AAUW hopes to bring inclusion to the workplace, including transparent advancement and opportunities for development.

The AAUW Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) resources aim to identify best practices for promoting diversity, equity and inclusion within AAUW. These resources present guidelines for how AAUW branches, national members, student members and individual members can demonstrate an understanding of AAUW’s mission, values, goals and strategic plan. It is meant to start the inclusion conversation. We encourage all members to seek ways to incorporate inclusive practices into their branches and daily life.

LBGTQIA2S+ and Gender Justice

AAUW of Oregon held two exceptional programs on Gender Justice in January and February 2024.  They have generously agreed to share these programs with us.  The presenter was Emily Evans, principal in Emily Evans Consulting Practice (https://www.evanspractice.com/), who has dedicated her career to unearthing and dismantling the many ways gender injustice harms us all.  The links are below:

Gender Justice:  The Basics : basic definitions of gender, myths, and allyship possibilities in helping make the world more equitable for all
Gender Justice:  Continuing the Conversation :  concepts from the first session and then expands on the information.
LGBTQIA2S+ Definitions
Power & Privilege Exercise Wheel
Emily’s Slide Deck
GLAAD Media Reference Guide
LGBTQ-Inclusive Dos & Don’ts

 

Diversity Branch Program
September 10, 2022
Dr. Sharifa Batts

 

Dr. Sharifa Batts

We were thrilled to have our very own member, Dr. Sharifa Batts, serve as speaker for our meeting. Dr. Batts currently serves as Vice President of Safety and Environment at Ports America and oversees operations in the Port of Los Angeles and across the United States. She holds a Doctor of Business Administration degree from the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School.

A native of Long Beach, Dr. Batts has been very involved with the LBUSD schools and the Long Beach community for over 20 years. Promoting excellence and equity have been important themes in her professional and community work. Dr. Batts discussed how AAUW can evolve and become a more inclusive organization with intentional recruiting. She shared aspects of her research that relate to women’s equity and our branch goals. View her presentation HERE.