![[top]](http://web.indstate.edu:80/iconsetc/top.gif)
Last Updated November 19, 1999; comments to marshamiller@indstate.edu
"One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time." Andr¾ Gide
Those of us who attended the Association Convention in Washington, DC in June, will remember the Business Session when Mary Grefe, former Association President, went to the microphone to speak in opposition to a bylaws amendment, and said, after being recognized, "Madame Chair, I have a problem. I love progress, but I hate change."
The delegates laughed, partly because of Mary’s inimitable way with words, but also because we recognized, at a personal level, a fundamental dichotomy that exists throughout the organization. We talk about the need for progress, and we mean it, as long as it does not require us to move outside our comfort zones. Change is difficult, and it works best when it takes place in people’s minds, as well as in their hearts.
Many of us approached the recent Association Convention with excitement, certainly, but also apprehension, because of the controversial bylaws amendments made by the Educational Foundation board of directors. The members of AAUW voted at the Convention both with their minds as well as their hearts, and made sound decisions. Now, we must move forward toward a new century as a united, yet diversified, organization, poised to spread its wings of influence further than ever before in an effort to achieve educational equity for all women and girls.
To that end, the portfolio of projects unveiled at the Convention involving work, education and communities has taken on new and increased significance. Woman-to-Woman: A Community Dialogue on Social Justice, provides ways to expand the horizons of individuals, branches and state organizations. The incentive of achieving a Social Justice Star for working "in collaboration with diverse populations to support work on social justice issues, such as gender equity, democratic government, economic opportunity, intellectual freedom, quality education, and human rights" covers a wide gamut of possibilities.
AAUW members often choose to read and study before they launch into unfamiliar activities. There is a recently published book edited by Fred R. Harris and Lynn A. Curtis entitled Locked In The Poorhouse: Cities, Race and Poverty in the United States, that sheds some illumination on critical issues in our society as we move from one century to the next. It points up the need for us, as educated, involved citizens of this country, to step up to the challenge of seeing that programs are provided that improve the quality of life for all Americans. It is, of course, only one of many works dealing with the same issues, but is well-researched and written in a scholarly, though readable, style.
Where does "Great Lakes Region: Lighting the Way" fit into all of this? The answer depends on the members of the region, but I see an opportunity for us to be the region that seizes the chance to move our states forward as activists in issues of common concern, that allows for the formation of new alliances, and encourages our members to gain exposure to new ideas that will contribute to their lifelong education.
Barbara J. Bonsignore, Great Lakes Regional Director, Rochester Hills, Michigan
(248) 375-0062; E-mail: bjbaauw1@aol.com