AAUW’s origin story begins with a small group of women gathering together in 1881 to engage in public policy and advocacy.

Welcome to the

Public Policy Committee

Representative Patsy Mink, co-author of Title IX as part of the Education Amendments of 1972

Why is Public Policy Important?

From AAUW National:

“We’ve published hundreds of research reports, from an 1885 paper disproving a prevailing myth that college impairs a woman’s fertility to, most recently, a study documenting the economic impact of workplace sexual harassment. We have supported the academic achievements of many thousands of scholars, from scientist Marie Curie, the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, to astronaut Judith Resnik, the second woman in travel in space.

Our advocacy efforts have propelled countless new laws, including the Equal Pay Act, first proposed in 1945 and finally passed in 1963; the Title IX amendment in 1972; the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1993; the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in 2009; and the Paycheck Fairness Act, which was passed by the U.S. Representatives in 2019 but is awaiting action in the Senate.”

Civics Education

We strive to bring Civics Education opportunities to our membership and the local community. We have hosted the Office of the Secretary of State Civics Education Program, bringing a Civics 101 Workshop to the community at Walla Walla Public Library, Civics Storytelling, and Civics Trivia at Quirk Brewery. We have also organized an Ask Me Anything session with Secretary of State Steve Hobbs at Whitman College for our members.

Candidate Forums

We encourage voter participation and endeavor to create an informed electorate by hosting nonpartisan candidate forums for Local Elections, the Congressional 5th District and Legislative 16th District of Washington State, as well as City Council and School Board elections.

“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

Title IX was enacted as part of the Education Amendments of 1972