Oklahoman Lacey Russ Named Miss America's Outstanding Teen

Congratulations to Lacey Russ of Cordell, Oklahoma who won Miss America Outstanding Teen in Orlando, Fl on August 28. She was already reigning Miss Southwestern Oklahoma State University Outstanding Teen and Miss Oklahoma Outstanding Teen. She received a $30,000 scholarship and more. Read related article here.


Photo from http://missteenoklahoma.org

August 26: Celebrate Day Women Won the Vote in USA

There is a nice article in The Oklahoman today about women's suffrage entitled "Oklahoma was among first states to allow women's right to vote."

Read more: http://newsok.com/oklahoma-was-among-first-in-u.s.-to-allow-womens-voting-rights/article/3488891#ixzz0xjo7W6cK

Wikipedia's page on women's suffrage in the US begins,

Woman suffrage in the United States was achieved gradually, at state and local levels, during the 19th Century and early 20th Century, culminating in 1920 with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which provided: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex."

And here is more on the topic from About.com: Women's History --

August 26, 1920: The Day the Suffrage Battle Was Won
On August 18, 1920, the Tennessee legislature voted -- by one vote! -- to ratify the 19th Amendment giving women the vote. But it was still almost a week before parliamentary maneuvers and official certification could be completed, and the Amendment officially ratified. Read more about that last part of the long road to women's suffrage: August 26, 1920: The Day the Suffrage Battle Was Won

Women's Suffrage Quiz
Check out how much you know about the women's suffrage movement with this online quiz: Women's Suffrage Quiz

Oklahoman Lauren Zuniga on the Time Bomb That Is Woman!

Here is a 5 minute tape by incredibly talented Oklahoma artist Lauren Zuniga who turns words into bullets that pierce your heart. Enjoy and pass it along.

Norman Artist Debbie Kaspari Finds Sketch Books After Tornado

Great new! Oklahoma artist Debbie Kaspari, who lost her Norman home to a tornado, found her sketchbooks! She said, "I swear I heard angels singing when my sketchbooks were found. The roof was chainsawed and peeled back, and under the debris, there they were. Safe." You can read more at her post Nature is a moody muse. The image of Debbie working in her ruins cames from her terrific blog Drawing the Motmot. It was taken by photographer extraordinaire Tim Ryan who's blog is From the Faraway, Nearby. TR's blog was runner up for the 2009 Okie Blog Award for Best Photography. Just one of his MANY amazing photos is posted below.

Susan Walton Appointed to The Women's Alliance Board

Susan Walton, Executive Director of Oklahoma City's Suited for Success, has joined the board of directors of The Women's Alliance.

The Women's Alliance is a national organization of independent, community based members who provide professional attire and career skills training to low income women and their families seeking self sufficiency.

Suited For Success provides professional clothing and career development services to low-income women who have completed a job training or job readiness program and are actively seeking employment. We feel that our services empower our clients to successfully obtain and maintain employment thus ensuring their economic independence. Our services are available to our clients at no charge.

Journal Record Names "50 Women Making A Difference" in Oklahoma

Each year The Journal Record honors fifty women making a difference in Oklahoma. They announced their picks for 2010 a while back and I am pleased to note that nearly a quarter are members of the Oklahoma Women's Coalition. Indeed, 4 of the 50 are current or past board members of the Coalition (Alison Anthony,  Andrea Chancellor, Cathy Stackpole, and me). You can watch a video of several of the women who were early winners of the Woman of the Year award here.  

On Friday, October 8, we will gather at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum to hear from Jessie Rasmussen, Vice President, Buffett Early Childhood Fund. The Journal Record will present several scholarships, honor some programs benefiting women in Oklahoma and announce the 2010 Woman of the Year.

You are invited to attend this statewide celebration of women. Tickets are $150 and can be purchased by calling The Journal Record (405-278-2820).

Oklahoma's Brenda Edwards is New Chair of Caddo Nation

M. Scott Carter in The Journal Record July 30, 2010 had a nice profile on Brenda Edwards, the Caddo Nation’s new chairwoman. I'd love to share it here but The Journal Record uses a firewall to keep the masses out. Anyway, it was a lovely article and congratulations and best of luck to Chair Edwards!

Cara Cowan Watts Honored

From Indian Country Today

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers has named Cara Cowan Watts, of Claremore, Okla., winner of the 2010 Robert E. Stewart Engineering – Humanities Award. The award, which honors outstanding contributions of agricultural engineering students to the advancement of the interaction of the profession and the humanities, was presented June 23, at the ASABE 2010 Annual International Meeting, held in Pittsburgh, Penn.

A member of the Cherokee National Tribal Council, Watts was selected for the award in recognition of her outstanding efforts toward the integration of Cherokee culture with engineering research and outreach.

Read full article by clicking here.