The program will feature special guest Erin Regan, recipient of the 2025 Pat Tillman Award for Service at the ESPY Awards. A former Wake Forest women’s soccer standout, Los Angeles County firefighter, and co-founder of Girls’ Fire Camp and the Women’s Fire Prep Academy, Regan exemplifies courage, service, and leadership in a field traditionally dominated by men.

Joining her are three other distinguished women leaders:

• Anne Shoemaker — Greensboro-based leadership coach and founder of Anne Shoemaker, LLC, who empowers women to advance into leadership roles through executive coaching and workshops.
• Shackti Martinez — Graduate of the inaugural NC FAME program and dedicated Soldier in the Army National Guard. Martinez earned a debt-free associate degree from GTCC with more than 1,800 hours of paid manufacturing training and continues to pave the way for women in advanced manufacturing.
• Passion Graham — Nationally recognized speaker and “coachsultant,” founder of Passionate Productions, and transformational leader known for helping organizations thrive through purpose, connection, and character-driven leadership.

• Inspiring Conversations: Hear firsthand from women who have shattered glass ceilings in male-dominated industries.
• Practical Mentorship: Learn strategies to enter, navigate, and succeed in nontraditional fields.
• Networking Opportunities: Connect with local AAUW Greensboro Branch members, educators, and women leaders.
• Empowerment & Action: A call to reimagine what’s possible for women and girls in every career sector

• Event Date & Time: Tuesday, November 11 • 5:30 p.m.
• Location: Congregational United Church of Christ, 400 W. Radiance Dr., Greensboro, NC

AAUW Greensboro Branch Public Policy strategy for the 2025 City Council election was to educate and motivate by partnering with Temple Emanuel public policy committee using their facility and broader media coverage by partnering with the Carolina Pacemaker newspaper. For the first time, we worked with a group representing 15 local organizations to increase turnout to these forums and added an educational event” 

What Does City Council and Why should I care and Vote?”, asked hard questions directly to individual candidates and the public events were offered virtually recording the events on                        TE Facebook and YouTube. The Sept 11th forum for District 1-5 City Council candidates had 930 views on Facebook. The Oct. 16th forum for Mayor and At-large City Council candidates brought 125 attendees including a group of 6 male students from NCA&T. And we spoke at an event given by the AKA sorority at NCA&T in front of the hopeful pledges about the importance of voting. 

Our outreach began as a countdown to help the public remember the City Council election. 42 days until the October 7th primary, to select final candidates for general election.   4 years Greensboro City Council’s elections are every 4 years. 4 new members This year 4 of the City Council’s 9 members aren’t running for their seat. The first time in 10 years, and another is running for Mayor. With this change, over 50% of the council will be new members and only 10% of Greensboro voted in the primary! 

In an effort to educate the public of City Council’s responsibilities we held an informal decision with Mayor Nancy Vaughan (2013-2025), former Mayor Keith Holliday (1999-2007) and former City Councilman Justin Outling (2015-2022), What Does City Council and Why should I care and Vote?” 

Mayor Holliday said, “The Greensboro economy in 2000 lost 90,000 jobs, the most jobs in the total state. We visited other cities to see how they turned themselves around.                           Our strategy was to create impact projects that people could feel good about and let the outside world know that Greensboro had turned themselves around.” He built the Baseball Stadium, opened the international Civil Rights Museum and brought Fed Ex. 

Mayor Vaughan said, “for many years it looked like we weren’t doing anything—we were laying the infrastructure for water and sewer which led to Toyota electric battery factory.” She brought the largest economic development project in NC history, Jet Zero and turned Greensboro into “aerospace capital of North Carolina.”

Here is a link to the playlist of all three recordings of the events for you to share. 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwA9RsVsviuUYsLPa5n_Wcz3lCnG9SOlU

Mayoral Candidates

• • • Marikay Abuzuaiter: The current Mayor Pro Tem, Abuzuaiter has served on the city council since 2011.
    • Mark Cummings: A former Guilford County District Court judge, Cummings also ran for mayor in 2022.
    • Akir Khan: A newcomer to the race, Khan is the board chair of the nonprofit Out of the Garden Project.
    • Robbie Perkins: A former mayor who served one term from 2009 to 2011, Perkins is seeking to return to office. 

• • • Crystal Black: Challenger
    • Sharon Hightower: Incumbent 

• • • Cecile Crawford
    • Irish Good
    • Jim Kee: Former City Council member
    • Monica Walker
    • Anthony Wesley 

• • • Mohamed Bashir
    • Zack Matheny: Incumbent
    • April Parker 

• • • Steve Ignac
    • Adam Marshall
    • Nicky Smith 

• • • Jeannette Davidson-Mayer: Challenger
    • Tammi Thurm: Incumbent 

At-Large City Council Candidates

• • • Irving D. Allen
    • Richard Beard
    • T. Dianne Bellamy-Small
    • Carla Franklin
    • Latoya B. Gathers
    • Samuel L. Hawkins
    • Hugh Holston (incumbent)
    • Michael McKinney
    • Jamilla Pinder (incumbent)
    • Denise Turner Roth

Jasmeh Gill is a senior at Grimsley High School with a passion for computer science and engineering. Her STEM journey began as a camper in the Aspire IT summer program with AAUW in 2017, where she explored the basics of coding, robotics, and 3D printing. These experiences sparked her curiosity and made her eager to learn more.

In 9th grade, Jasmeh returned to those same camps but this time as a volunteer with the American Association of University Women (AAUW) IT Girls Camp. She helped younger students build coding skills using Code.org and introduced them to robotics tools she had once enjoyed as a camper. Volunteering opened her eyes to the power of inspiring others in STEM.

Through AAUW, Jasmeh connected with the SHIELD Mentor Program, which introduced her to the local robotics team Eagletron, Team #9559. What stood out to her about this team was the supportive environment and hands-on learning opportunities where she could develop real skills. The team’s focus on collaboration and growth drew her in. Her advisor, Precious McKoy, Founder and Executive Director of the SHIELD Mentor Program, played a key role in guiding her journey. Jasmeh also learned that Ms. McKoy had a long career as a web developer, which inspired Jasmeh and gave her a great chance to practice and improve her own coding skills.

Robotics became a place where Jasmeh could tackle challenges and build confidence. She embraced every project and competition as a chance to learn and contribute.

Now a senior, Jasmeh continues to deepen her involvement in STEM through robotics and mentorship. Recently, she volunteered with the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Professional Development program, supporting other mentors as they built technical skills and teamwork. Looking ahead, Jasmeh is excited to keep exploring new STEM opportunities and inspire others through mentorship, just as she was inspired herself.

Her journey—from camper to volunteer to mentor—shows how early opportunities with AAUW and the SHIELD Mentor Program can shape academic goals, leadership skills, and a commitment to empowering the next generation in STEM.

AAUW & TEMPLE EMANUEL (In-person)GREENSBORO CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATE Forums at 7:00 p.m. at Temple Emanuel, 1129 Jefferson Road, Greensboro.

• Thursday September 11th, flyer – GREENSBORO CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 1 thru 5 FORUM
• Tuesday, October 7th – Primary election day. You will select a Mayor, a District Councilmember and up to 6 At-Large Councilmembers. List of Candidates. 
• Thursday, October 9th, flyer – a Panel decision with two Mayors & a former City Councilman “WHAT DOES THE CITY COUNCIL DO AND, WHY SHOULD I CARE & VOTE?” 
  • • • Mayor Nancy Vaughan (2013-2025),
      • Former Mayor Keith Holliday (1999-2007)
      • Former Councilman Justin Outling (2015-2022).

• Thursday, October 16th, flyer –  GREENSBORO CITY COUNCIL MAYOR & AT-LARGE FORUM.
• Tuesday November 4th, Municipal General Election. You will select a Mayor, a District Councilmember and 3 At-Large Councilmembers. Early Voting will run from Thursday, October 16, 2025, to Saturday, November 1, 2025

October 26th, 2024

Walking Tour of Women’s Monuments Saturday

– a Public Policy event led by Catherine Magid, committee chair!!

When Women Vote, We Change the Conversation

– in this election year 2024, AAUW Greensboro Public Policy is committed to providing voter education through candidate forums and participating with affiliated organizations such as college/university partners to register voters.

September 12th 2024 Candidate Forum for NC House and Senate Seats

AAUW Greensboro  Branch  members  ready  to  welcome  attendees  to  the  candidate  forums.

AAUW North Carolina State Priorities 2023-2024 – https://www.aauwnc.org/legislative-priorities/

• • Equal Pay
  • Voting Rights
  • Opposition to the use of vouchers to pay for non-public programs that do not adhere to the same civil rights standards as public schools

September 8, 2025 Table for Two by Amor Towles (Elaine Ostrowski)

October 6, 2025 The Black Angels by Linda Beatrice Brown

November 3, 2025 Silent Voices by Ann Cleeves (Libby Haile)

December 1, 2025 Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey TBD

January 5, 2026 All the Pretty Places by Joy Callaway (Jennifer Thomas)

February 2, 2026 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver TBD

March 2, 2026 The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline TBD

April 6, 2026 Dinners With Ruth by Nina Totenberg (Jane Terwillegar)

May 4, 2026 The Lady Bug and the Dove by Valerie Patterson*

June 1, 2026 Book selection for following program year.

*Self-published book by Valerie Patterson

The 8th annual Find Your STEM conference for and by AAUW high school teen near peer mentors was held on the UNCG campus Saturday April 5th to coincide with Science Everywhere and NC   Science    Festival.

Screenshot

The Agenda included a plenary session, led by AAUW Greensboro high school intern Kavya Donepudi, senior at North West Guilford. Additional high school students from Rowan, Randolph, and Guilford County schools presented their experiences in academics, extra-curricular, and volunteer service which have influenced how their are “finding their STEM” and planning for their futures. 

On Saturday March 22nd at the 2025 AAUW NC statewide meeting, Lena Murrill-Chapman of Greensboro was elected and installed at the President of AAUW North Carolina. Greensboro members were present in force to affirm Lena’s election and to support her term July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2027.

Lena was “virtually” surrounded by friends from the Greensboro Branch when current president Pat Ashe called for the voice vote. Attendees from the Greensboro Branch included: Libby Haile, Laura Tew, Tiffany Jacobs, Mary Fran Schickedanta, Aundrea Alemanni-Grunenwald, Saundra Yates-Evans, Jenise Abdul-Razzaaq, Chioma Okey-Mbata, Barbara Carter, and Millie Hoffler-Foushee.

Lena Murrill-Chapman is a graduate of Bennett College with a bachelor’s degree in Library Science and Intermediate Education and a concentration in Language Arts and Social Studies. She earned a master’s degree in Instructional Media/Library Science from North Carolina A&T State University. Lena completed her Leadership Certification from the Center of Creative Leadership in Greensboro, North Carolina and Leadership Development Program at Yale University. She is currently the branch Co-President for AAUW Greensboro and served as the branch President, from 2018-2020. Under her servantstyle leadership, the branch has implemented a variety of activities that enhanced membership and member involvement. Her famous quote is “Members Matter”.

“It is an honor to be elected as the president of AAUW NC and to work for the many members across the state that dedicate themselves to moving the mission of the organization.” Lena looks forward to using her skills in helping to advance equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research.

REGISTER for virtual AAUW North Carolina State Annual Meet

Greensboro Branch Annual Meeting Reports

On Tuesday March 11th,  Greensboro Branch members gathered to review the successes of the year to date. President Libby Haile welcomed members and guests; membership chair Mary Fran Schickedantz presented key updates  Annual Meeting Membership Report; WINs chair Tiffany Jacobs provided a review of activities for celebrating and encouraging women in non-traditional careers;

 STEM Chair Laura Tew and Intern Kavya Donepudi March 11 2025 GSO annual meeting STEM Education Report; 

Vice president of programming Saundra Yates-Evens gave a report on the Program Summary 2024 – 2025 as well as a listing of opportunities to recognize Women’s History Month.

Incoming Branch president Jenise Abdull-Razzaaq was introduced and will be sworn in at the branch luncheon on Saturday April 26. Jenise’s two year term will begin July 1st.