Philanthropy is important to AAUW nationwide, and especially to our local Nevada County Branch. Our members want to make the world a better place, especially for women and girls. Our members provide donations and sponsor fundraising activities for the following programs:
Local Scholarships – Our branch provides scholarships for local young women graduating from Nevada Union, Bear River, and Guidotti High Schools and Sierra College, moving on to four-year colleges, as well as a re-entry grant for women who have taken a break from their education, but are now ready to go back to enhance their career potential. MORE
AAUW Fund – This is an umbrella for AAUW nationwide to advance equity for women and girls via a broad range of programs. For an explanation of where the funds go: MORE.
Melanie Heckel (l) former VP of AAUW Funds and Kait Murray (r). Kait spoke at a meeting about a program at UC Davis to encourage young women to study math, science, engineering
Tech Trek– Our branch is able to send seven local 8th grade girls each year to attend Tech Trek, a week-long Science, Technology, Engineering and Math camp sponsored by AAUW, and held at U.C. Davis.
Cleo Gibson Education Grants -In the midst of a challenging time for the country and so many local communities like ours, the Nevada County Branch received a sensational surprise. One of our past presidents (1996), Cleo Gibson, named the Charitable Trust as one of the beneficiaries of her estate. This significant, sizeable donation has been overseen by Ann Shulse and a committee, all who have worked diligently to see to it that it will be distributed over the years to worthy endeavors, endeavors that Cleo would most likely approve.