The San Antonio Branch was established on January 9, 1909 as a branch of the Southern Association of College Women that was founded in July 1903 at the University of Tennessee. In 1909, the officers of the San Antonio Branch were President, Mrs. Jean McGrath Russ; Vice-President, Miss Emily Maverick; and Secretary/Treasurer, Mrs. Carrie Pfeifer Brown.
In 1921 the Southern Association of College Women united with the Association of College Alumnae and the name was changed to the American Association of University Women. The Association of College Alumnae was a merger of two groups. A group of 17 women met in Boston in the fall of 1881 to discuss forming an alumnae organization of women college graduates. As a result the Association of Collegiate Alumnae was formally organized in January 1882. In 1889 the Western Association of College Alumnae united with this group. So the AAUW began with 17 women who came together to unite alumnae of their institutions for practical educational work.
In 1926, San Antonio was a charter branch when AAUW Texas was organized in Dallas. The state organization is the backbone that supports all of the Texas branches. In recent years, two members of the San Antonio Branch have served as State Presidents: Helen Oujesky and Malinda Gaul.
The Branch Interest Groups have enhanced the richness of the AAUW
experience. Women come together to share their interests. The Historic
Southwest group is the oldest of the current interest groups. Mrs. Elizabeth
Dickson, President of the San Antonio Branch in 1939-1940, founded the group.
This group makes a donation each year to a historical landmark or a society
dedicated to preservation of landmarks. The members also make a Christmas
donation to a local charity. The University Women's Garden Club, a long-time
interest group, was founded in 1939. Their members donate handmade items each
year at Christmas to a local hospital. They also assist with garden therapy at
a local nursing homes. The San Antonio Branch also has a young professional
group, a book discussion group, a book review group, a theatre group, Women
Unlimited, which studies the
Three members of the San Antonio Branch established endowments for AAUW scholarships in their wills: Mildred Magee, Irma Gesche and Jean Longwith. The interest from these endowment accounts is used for local, graduate scholarships for women that are awarded at the branch meeting in May each year. Part of the money raised at the annual Educational Foundation fundraiser is also used for local scholarships. In recent years, the scholarships have been increased from $1000 to $2000. The branch awarded six scholarships in 2003 and five in 2004.
The San Antonio Branch has a major fundraiser each year for the Educational Foundation and for local scholarships. From the 1960's through 2000, the branch fundraiser was a used book sale. Due to decreasing revenues and a request for a change from the members, the branch initiated the Breaking the Glass Ceiling Brunch and Silent Auction in 2001. In 2003, it became a luncheon and silent auction. At this luncheon the branch honors a company that practices gender equity in its policies. The branch also honors a woman who has succeeded in her field and serves as an example to young women.
In 1910, the San Antonio Branch made the following report at the
Southern Association of College Women.
The San Antonio Branch continues the tradition begun in 1909. The branch has long supported the Expand Your Horizons Career Conference in science and math for girls in grades six through 12 held at the University of Texas at San Antonio. In 2003 members volunteered to speak at a career day event at a local school. In 2004, one of the branch's members, Dr. Linda Vargas-Lew requested the support of the branch in mentoring young Hispanic girls at the elementary school level. These girls have been identified as at risk to drop out before completing high school. Several members responded and are serving as mentors.
The San Antonio Branch is using technology to improve communications with members. In 1994, the branch moved from the typewriter to the computer to produce the branch directory. Then, Mynda McGuire, President in 2001-03, initiated the web page and still maintains it.
In 2001, the branch took a long look at its practices and began planning for its future when it held the first of its now annual Strategic Planning meetings. Following that meeting the branch conducted a demographic survey of its members and found that the average age was 68.5, and the members were predominantly white. The membership drives, as of 2001 focuses on diversifying the membership. One of the ways was to increase the AAUW Institutional Membership of local colleges and universities from only one institution in 2001 to five in 2004. One of those is St. Philip's College which is a Historically Black and Hispanic Serving Institution.
The San Antonio Branch is recognized as an outstanding AAUW branch through the 21st Century Recognition Program, an honor bestowed upon them by the national AAUW organization.
For more information about the current activities of the San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women, please visit them on the Web at: http://www.aauwsanantonio.org/.
The San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women Records, 1954-2009, contain correspondence, articles of incorporation, bylaws, ledgers, legal documents, agendas, minutes, membership lists, directories, tax returns, financial statements, oral histories, awards, newsletters, invitations, programs, scrapbooks, videocassettes, creative works, and other printed materials, arranged in seven series. Though the records date from 1954, the bulk of the materials are from the 1970s to 2004. The majority of the materials are membership records, financial records, and the minutes of branch and board meetings.
The
The
Meeting minutes of the Board (1982-2004) are also included in the Officers series, as are the records related to Branch officers and the majority of the correspondence (1981-2003). The correspondence reflects the Board's involvement in local events and outreach projects, as well as documenting activities within the Branch. Other correspondence reflects information sharing between the branch and the State (1981-1986, 1990-2003) and the branch and National (1977, 2001) levels of AAUW.
The
The
Other important materials in the Standing Committees series include Branch budget information to be found in the Finance Committee materials, oral histories by San Antonio Branch members to be found in the Historian Committee files, and press releases and copies of the Branch website both to be found in the Communications Committee files.
The
The
The
The
The
The
The
The
The
The
The
This collection is housed at UTSA's Main Campus and must be accessed via the John Peace Library Special Collections reading room. To request access, please use the
Permission to publish material from the San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women Records must be obtained from University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
[Identification of item], San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women Records, 1954-2004, MS 128, University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
Received from the San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women, 2001-2009 (Acc. 2001-018, 2002-005, 2002-059, 2002-069, 2003-040, 2003-041, 2003-042, 2003-086, 2004-004, 2004-007, 2004-032, 2005-004, 2006-058, 2006-076, 2006-096, 2007-054, 2007-095, 2007-098, 2008-040, 2009-055).
Processed by Traci JoLeigh Drummond and Gerrianne Schaad, October 2004.
Additions encoded by Tatina Wulzer, Collections Assistant, November 2008 and October 2009.
Materials related to this collection may be found in the Malinda Gaul papers (Acc. 2003-06). For information regarding access to this unprocessed collection, please contact University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
Early records of the Branch were donated to the Women's University in Denton, Texas.
For more information about the current activities of the San Antonio Branch of the American Association of University Women, please visit them on the Web at: http://www.aauwsanantonio.org/
This series includes Letters of Incorporation from 1989, the year the branch incorporated, as well as materials that govern Branch activities, including bylaws, handbooks, standing rules, and policies and procedures. Of note are the documents that, while limited in scope, provide information about the history of the San Antonio Branch.
This series includes records kept by the President, President Elect, Corresponding Secretary, and Parliamentarian. The Treasurer's papers provide information about the financial activities of the Branch. Among these financial documents are ledgers kept from the early 1970s and 1980-2000; Treasurer's reports from 1966-2004; federal income tax returns from the mid-1950s through 1993; audited and unaudited financial statements from 1962-1992, and records of donations made to the branch.
Meeting minutes of the Board (1982-2004) are also included in the Officers series, as are the records related to Branch officers and the majority of the correspondence (1981-2003). The correspondence reflects the Board's involvement in local events and outreach projects, as well as documenting activities within the Branch. Other correspondence reflects information sharing between the branch and the State (1981-1986, 1990-2003) and the branch and National (1977, 2001) levels of AAUW.
This series includes materials related to the activities of the San Antonio Branch. Among them are minutes for the Branch meetings from 1979 to 2003, documenting issues, events, and activities that occurred. Also included in this series are files about events, projects and outreach planned by the Branch. Award files are also located in this series, and reflect the honors and recognition bestowed upon the Branch and individual members from1971 to 2004. They include awards from the national and state levels of the AAUW and from local organizations. Other materials that reflect the activities of the branch are located in scrapbooks (1980-1982, 1989-1991) and newsclippings (1979-2002).
This series reflects the work and interests of different committees of the San Antonio Branch. Committees range from the Communication Committee to the Community Serve Committee and the History Committee, Legal Advocacy Fund Committee and the Scholarship Committee. However, the bulk of this series consists of materials from the Membership Committee. Included are lists of members from 1969 to 2002 and yearbook directories beginning in 1954. There are also files on twenty-two individual members, which include newspaper clippings, articles, and other printed materials, and a file for deceased members, which includes obituaries, correspondence and funeral programs. Also included in the membership records are materials used to market to new and returning members, membership reports, member surveys and questionnaires.
Other important materials in the Standing Committees series include Branch budget information to be found in the Finance Committee materials, oral histories by San Antonio Branch members to be found in the Historian Committee files, and press releases and copies of the Branch website both to be found in the Communications Committee files.
This series spans the 1960s through 2003 and includes information regarding special interest groups and their activities and interests, such as interior decorating, world travel, book groups, Bridge, theater and arts, gardening and genealogy. Of note in this series is the Historic Southwest Interest Group whose records contain a detailed travel itinerary for a tour of the southeast (1972), scrapbooks (1941-1972), yearbooks (1961-2000), and meeting minutes (1972-1999).
This series includes an almost complete run of the
This series contains materials about the Branch's desire to hold an AAUW conference in San Antonio, and AAUW conventions in San Antonio and other parts of Texas.
Consists of administrative material including meeting agendas and minutes, correspondence, newsletters, reports, bylaws, job descriptions, programs, financial material and material related to scholarships, fundraising, PEARL award, and other organizational activities between the years 2006-2009.