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

Andy Feldman to Compete In 2010 Oswalt Culinary Cook-Off

The 2010 Oklahoma Restaurant Convention and Expo is September 1-2 at the Cox Convention Center in downtown Oklahoma City. It is the largest trade show in the state of Oklahoma and the most important event for food service and hospitality industry professionals. The show features hundreds of exhibitor booths, an opening night party, culinary demonstrations, over 8,000 industry attendees AND the Oswalt Culinary Cook-Off competition. This year my grandson, Andy Feldman, is one of the 12 chefs competing! You can read about the cook-off by clicking here. Yeah, I know - it doesn't have anything to do with Oklahoma women - but bloggers get bragging rights once in a while!


 :-)

Hired Two Graduate Research Assistants Today!

Yippee.

We hired two graduate students at the University of Oklahoma today to work as Graduate Research Assistants on our Oklahoma Women's Foundation grant. We are now really ready to roll!

I'll  share more about this exciting project as we progress.

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.

PowerPoint Presentation of Women's Status in Oklahoma

At a recent summit hosted by the Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma, Amy Klinge, Wanda DeBruler (image) and Sheryl Lovelady gave a wonderful workshop on leadership.

They spoke from a PowerPoint presentation that you can view by clicking here.

To view all the summit materials, click here.

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).

Women's Museums

I am starting a list of museums (real and online) that celebrate American women. If you know of one I have not listed below, please tell us about it by leaving a comment on this post. I'll add a page to this site with all that we find. Here is the start of my list.

99 Museum of Women Pilots - Oklahoma City, OK

Florida Museum for Women Artists - Deland, FL

International Women's Air and Space Museum - Cleveland, OH

International Museum of Women - San Francisco, CA

History of Women's Basketball - Online

Museum of Women's History - Billings, MT

National Cowgirls Museum and Hall of fame - Fort Forth, TX

National Museum of Women in the Arts - Washington, DC

National WASP World War II Museum - Sweetwater, TX

National Women's Hall of Fame - Seneca Falls, NY

National Women's History Museum - proposed for Washington, DC

Pioneer Woman Museum - Ponca City, OK

San Diego Women's History Museum & Educational Center - San Diego, CA

The Sewall-Belmont House and Museum - Washington, DC

The Women's Museum - Dallas, TX

US Army Women's Museum - Fort Lee, VA

Women at Work Museum - Attleboro, MA

Women of the West Museum - Online

Women's Rights National Historical Park - Seneca Falls, NY

EXHIBITS ON WOMEN

American Folk Art Museum: Women Only: Folk Art by Female Hands - New York, NY
Field Museum: Women in Science Exhibit - Chicago, IL

Metropolitan Museum of Art: American Women: Fashioning a National Identity

Museum of American Finance: Women of Wall Street - New York, NY

Sept 7: Moore Norman Tech Center's "Taste of the South" Benefits Battered Women

Here is a fun event that benefits battered women in Oklahoma!

The Moore Norman Technology Center will host the third annual Taste of the South event from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Sept. 7 at the South Penn Campus located at SW 134th and South Penn. Tickets are $20 and are available for advance purchase only. Ticket purchasing information may be found at www.mntechnology.com, or by calling 405-354-5763, ext. 7404.

Taste of the South is the largest fundraising event of its kind in the area and includes 22 south Oklahoma City and Moore restaurants that share generous samples of their menu items. There is also a business expo featuring 25 area businesses and a silent auction. Music is provided throughout the evening by the 395th Army Band Jazz Combo.

Local corporate sponsors for the event include Top of the World, Allegiance Credit Union and realtor Glen Cosper. Some of the restaurants to attend include Alfredo's Mexican Restaurant, Boomerang Grille, Louie's Grill and Bar, Carino's Italian Restaurant, Earl's Rib Palace, Banchetto's, Café Broccato, Ted's Café Escondido, Two Olives Café, Jersey Mike's Subs, Swadley's BBQ, Dad's Diner, Chick-fil-A, The Blue Bean Coffee Co., Michael's Catering, Johnnie's Sweet Creations and more.

The event is coordinated by MNTC's HIRE program. HIRE, which stands for Help in Reaching Employment, is a program that assists parents in poverty by providing training and employment services. For 18 years, MNTC's HIRE program has worked in partnership with businesses and community agencies to encourage positive outcomes for families in the Moore, Norman and south
Oklahoma City communities.

The event's proceeds will benefit the HIRE program, The Oklahoma Coalition Against Domestic Violence and a former MNTC student who recently experienced severe burns through an act of domestic violence. The Oklahoma Coalition Against Domestic Violence is an organization that educates individuals in the public and private sector, promotes legislation to address domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking issues and promotes awareness activities across the state.
HIRE Program Coordinator Becky Boyd said, "Each year this event has grown larger and more exciting for those that attend. Most importantly, the proceeds will benefit families in our community. Tickets do sell fast, so we encourage people to order soon."

For more information about MNTC's Taste of the South, visit www.mntechnology.com or call 405-364-5763. Taste of the South advance tickets are $20 and may be purchased using any major credit card, checks, or cash.

Source. Marcia Smith, Executive Director, OK Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, 3815 N Santa Fe, Suite 124 Oklahoma City, OK 73118; 405/524-0700 x12.

Come (Vicariously) To the Marshall Islands

My niece is in the Marshall Islands as part of World Teach Program operated through Harvard University. (You recall of course that The Marshall Islands are an American protectorate taken from the Japanese during WWII and used to test atom bombs on Bikini Island.) Their school system is modeled after the American one and they utilize native English speaking volunteers in their classrooms. The program she is a part of has been running -- along with one sponsored by Dartmouth University -- for about 8 years. You can read about this Marshall Island Program by clicking here.

One of their early volunteers published a book after his service called "Surviving Paradise: a Year on a Disappearing Island." My niece intends to start a blog called "A Year in a Muumuu" (the required dress code for women in the Marshall Islands). Until then, here is a little about her experience so far:

Volunteers completed a month-long training program on Majuro before traveling to their work site.  A 45-minutes flight took her 4-member team to Kwajalein atoll where they landed at a US Army base. A water taxi took them, along  to Ebeye (where she will be teaching).  Finally, a 10 mph, 30 minute drive up the causeway got her to Gugeegue where she will be living.

There are two two-bedroom apartments across the yard from one another so each gets their own bedroom. Hers has direct access to a porch on the ocean side.  Forty steps to the north is the high school and the school buses park in her front lawn.  There are two small stores run out of people’s homes about a minute away which have essentials like canned fruit and veggies, soup, chips and cleaning supplies.

The neighbors are very friendly.  One let them into the high school to pick up their mail which the principle brings to them from Ebeye.

Her family sent a box of art supplies which arrives. She is already thinking of more things that might be useful to spruce up here apartment like duct tape or something to seal up the random holes and gaps between the floor and walls. 

School started Monday (today). She's heard its pretty laid back the first week. Their neighbor told the volunteers to have some lessons prepared -- just in case -- but she hadn't been told yet what subject(s) she would be teaching -- only that she is teaching at the high school level.  

Internet in the nice apartment seems pretty good so she hopes to use Skype. Her cell phone is having issues; she will have to take it to NTA next week to see what's up with it. 

 
So that is it for now. Stay tuned for updates!

Ryan Singe Argues Google Went From "Do No Evil" to "Just Don't Be Stupid"

Ryan Singe, in a Wired post yesterday, castigates Google for reversing its position on Net Neutrality. Basically, he argues the American consumer has just been screwed. It is worth a read; check it out here:

Why Google Became A Carrier-Humping, Net Neutrality Surrender Monkey (UPDATED)

Whoever thought facebook would come out looking like the good guys?! (See Facebook Criticizes Google...)

#140conf is Seeking Expert Speakers: What's Your Area?

I've been looking at the #140 conf call for presenters proposals. No one is flying me to London so it is purely out of curiosity. Here is what stuck me: They want you to check a box indicating your "Subject Area" and here are the choices (I've put them in alpha order):

Advertising
Book Author
Branding
Celebrity
Charity
Comic Books
Communications
Education
Enterprise / IT
Entertainment
Fashion
Film
Finance
Food
Games
Internet
Journalism
Legacy
Location Based Services
Love and Romance
Marketing
Media
Music
News Gathering
Parenting
Policy
Politics
Public Diplomacy
Public Safety
Publishing
Real Estate
Semantic Web
Social Change
Story Telling
Technology
TV

My first impression: I don't seem to be an expert at ANY of these topics! I don't even know what  "Legacy" refers to. How about you? Do you fit nicely into one of the slots above? Or, like me, are you more of a generalist (knowledgeable about a little of this, a little of that)?

If you could add a topic, what would it be?

(Keep in clean, please!)

: - )

Websites and Blogs for Women Interested In Technology

There are quite a few websites that are targeted to women who are interested in technology. For example, there is the National Center for Women and Information Technology!  Here is what they say about themselves:

We are a coalition of over 200 prominent corporations, academic institutions, government agencies, and non-profits working to increase women's participation in information technology (IT). NCWIT is a 501(c)(3)*, established in 2004 with startup funding from the National Science Foundation, Avaya, Microsoft, Pfizer, Bank of America, Intel, HP, the Kauffman Foundation, and Qualcomm.

We believe that inspiring more women to choose careers in IT isn't about parity; it's a compelling issue of innovation, competitiveness, and workforce sustainability. In a global economy, gender diversity in IT means a larger and more competitive workforce; in a world dependent on innovation, it means the ability to design technology that is as broad and creative as the people it serves.

There are other groups interested in this issue, too. Check out:

Girls in Tech

News on Women

Shiny, Shiny: A Girl's Guide to Gadgets


Women 2.0

The Next Women

Geek Feminism Blog

Want to suggest others we should be following? Leave a comment and let me know about good websites and blogs for women interested in technology!

Thanks-

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!

A Micro Loan System for Oklahoma's Single Mother Students?

There is a great article in a recent Newsweek magazine entitled "It's Payback Time" on how the now famous Bangladeshi Grameen Bank makes very small loans to poor women to start and operate small businesses. If you haven't heard how Mohammud Yunus started a micro lending bank to loan money to  poor women in Bangladesh, click here! He won a Nobel Prize for this approach and now has similar programs operating in many countries -- including (brace yourself) the United States of America! So it got me thinking, "How about micro loans for single mothers attending college who run into a small but critical financial bind?" I've heard of programs on campuses where a team of single mother students collectively hear requests for a small, short-term loan (for instance to repair a flat tire or purchase text books) where the team makes the determination. That is quite similar to the Grameen Bank approach. What do you think? Check out how the Grameen system functions here.  Would a similar micro lending system on college campuses help single mother students trying to work their way out of poverty get over a short-term crisis (and stay in college and get their degree)?

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. 

Relationship between Education and Reducing Poverty in Oklahoma

I posted yesterday on Oklahoma's rank of 44th in the nation on children's well-being. Today State Representative Doug Cox responded to the Annie E Casey report in a press release (see below) entitled "Education is Key to Improving Health and Well Being of Oklahoma Children."

OKLAHOMA – The recently released 2010 Kids Count Data Book statistics reflects the importance of education, especially in the heavily-weighted Health category, according to the chairman of the Appropriations and Budget Subcommittee for Public Health in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

Oklahoma was rated a disappointing 44th in the nation in child well-being in the report. Health issues were a key issue in the survey, including statistics for premature births, teen pregnancy, and the number of uninsured children. 

State Rep. Doug Cox pointed out that all of the measures studied in the project are actually related to the education level of the citizens. 

“We know that all of the health measures are directly related to education,” Cox, R-Grove, said. “It has been proven time and time again that as the education level of citizens goes up, the number of teen pregnancies, premature births, and the prevalence of unsafe and risky behaviors goes down. All of those issues were considered key factors in the study. Of course, fewer high school dropouts and more college graduates will also result in fewer kids living in poverty.” 

Cox pointed out that Oklahoma’s high school dropout rate is embarrassingly high. In addition he feels the number of Oklahomans completing a bachelor degree should be higher. 

“If you analyze the data closely it is easy to see that states ranking higher than Oklahoma in overall rank, and particularly health issues, rank higher than us in education,” Cox said. “This study underscores for me that of all the issues we address as a legislature, education has the most far-reaching effect and provides the greatest opportunity for improving the lives of Oklahomans. 

Cox pointed out that 41 other states have a higher percentage of homes where the householder has a bachelor degree. 

“We have to get Oklahoma parents, regardless of their education level, to stress the importance of education to their children,” Cox said. “When that is done successfully, the other statistics measured in Kids Count will take care of themselves and our overall ranking will improve.” 

People tend to think of infrastructure being such things as roads and bridges, water and sewer – hard assets. The longer I serve in the legislature, the more I truly believe that the most important infrastructure in our state is the educational system.”

I am pleased to see that Rep Cox says, "the number of Oklahomans completing a bachelor degree should be higher." The Oklahoma Women's Coalition is launching a project -- along with the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and the University of Oklahoma -- to identify and implement programs that would increase the number of single mothers in Oklahoma (especially those living in poverty) enrolled in and completing college. We agree that greater education is an important tool in reducing poverty and addressing many of the dismal statistics on women in Oklahoma. It is not the whole answer but increased education is a good place to start.

Oklahoma Ranks 44th in Nation for Child Well-Being (2010 Kids Count Data Book Released)

Bummer. Oklahoma ranks 44th in the nation for child well-being according to the recently released 2010 Kids Count Data Book. The Annie E. Casey Foundation produces a Kids Count Book for every state. Here is an article by David Averill with The Tulsa Tribune on the report.

We are slipping, folks. We were ranked 42nd in 2007 and 38th in 2003. Now we are 44th. Of all the factors they measure, Oklahoma's lowest ranking was 47th for child death rate.

Oklahoma also ranks in the bottom 10 in the percentage of children living in poverty, teen birth rate, teen death rate and infant mortality rate.

Am I crazy to find these statistics disappointing? alarming? frustrating? Got any ideas for how we can improve the status of children in Oklahoma? If so, leave a comment and let's talk about it!

(One thing you can do to make a difference is become a member of the Oklahoma Women's Coalition. Or make a donation to the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy which is a member of the OWC!)

Care about education? Pledge to see Waiting for 'Superman' and help a teacher

Hey, everyone: please make the pledge and spread the word about this super project.

Image via Wikipedia

Waiting for "Superman" is an award-winning documentary film we all need to see.

If 30,000 people (we are almost there!) pledge to go see Waiting for "Superman", DonorsChoose.org will donate $5 gift cards to every person who pledges to see the film by September 15th. The gift cards can be used to fulfill requests made by public school teachers from every corner of America who post classroom project needs on DonorsChoose.org. (The mission of DonorsChoose.org is to improve public education by empowering every teacher to be a change-maker and enabling any citizen to be a philanthropist.)

If 40,000 people pledge to see the film, the OfficeMax(R) program that helps defray  out-of-pocket expenditures on school supplies by dedicated teachers will now boost their annual award to include 40 additional deserving U.S. teachers.

"I made this film for and about kids and their parents, struggling to get a quality education in the United States," said Director Davis Guggenheim. "My hope is that people continue to pledge, demonstrating to teachers, parents and children that they have support and real change is coming to the public school system."

People who have pledged are encouraged to see the film when it opens in their area beginning September 24.

For more information about the movie, or to take the pledge go to

http://www.WaitingForSuperman.com

To join the conversation visit us on Facebook at

http://www.Facebook.com/WaitingForSuperman

What does your school need? Tell us by Tweeting #MySchoolNeeds at

http://www.Twitter.com/WaitingSuperman

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