The New York Women’s Agenda (NYWA) is an umbrella organization of women's groups in the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

metropolitan area. Its membership consists of both nonprofit women's organizations and individuals.

About NYWA

Founded in 1992 by

Elinor Guggenheimer Elinor Sophia Coleman "Ellie" Guggenheimer (11 April 1912 – 29 September 2008) was an American civic leader, author, and philanthropist in New York City.Nemy, Enid (December 19, 1973)To Elinor Guggenheimer, Affluence Is No Excuse to Take It Easy.' ...

, NYWA is a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organization dedicated to bettering the lives of

women and children ''Women and Children First'' is the third studio album by American rock band Van Halen, released on March 26, 1980, on Warner Bros. Records. Produced by Ted Templeman and engineered by Donn Landee, it was the first Van Halen album not to featur ...

of New York. NYWA's members represent the diversity of New York City and include community-based groups;

religious Religion is usually defined as a social system, social-cultural system of designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morality, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sacred site, sanctified places, prophecy, prophecie ...

ethnic An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

, and

political groups A political group is a group consisting of political parties or legislators of aligned ideologies. A technical group is similar to a political group, but with members of differing ideologies. International terms Equivalent terms are used differ ...

;

professional associations A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and the ...

; and issues-based groups. Through NYWA, these groups unite to work on issues of common interest and to advocate for public policy.

Agendas

NYWA is involved in various activities which focus on a broad range of public policy issues that affect the quality of life of women and their families. These are grouped into three main areas, or "agendas" that are the focus of NYWA's work each year. * Governmental Affairs Agenda: Their most recent success was the Fair Pay Forum held at

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools. It also admi ...

in December 2008 featuring

Lilly Ledbetter Lilly McDaniel Ledbetter (born April 14, 1938) is an American activist who was the plaintiff in the United States Supreme Court case '' Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'' regarding employment discrimination. Two years after the Supreme C ...

which stimulated passage of the

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 (, ) is a landmark federal statute in the United States that was the first bill signed into law by U.S. President Barack Obama on January 29, 2009. The act amends Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 an ...

. "The legislation expanded workers’ rights to sue in this kind of case, and relaxed the statute of limitations, restarting the six-month clock every time the worker receives a paycheck." For the most current information, go to NYWA/EPCNYC BLOG: www.nywaepcnyc.org * Economic Security Agenda: Most recently, NYWA has developed the ''Strategic Business Leadership'' program with the School of Continuing and Professional Studies,

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, Department of Leadership and Human Capital Management. This program is tailored specifically towards women leaders of profit and nonprofit organizations and government agencies who are looking to improve their leadership skills and increase their organization’s effectiveness. Participants in this program receive an Executive Certificate in Strategic Business Leadership. * Quality of Life Agenda: focuses on what may improve living conditions for New York women and their families, including affordability of housing, the physical environment, recreation, health, safety, culture, and the sense of community.

Programs

* Financial Literacy: Financial literacy was first addressed in 1998 when

Muriel Siebert Muriel Faye Siebert (September 12, 1928 – August 24, 2013) was an American businesswoman who was the first woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange, and the first woman to head one of the NYSE's member firms. She joined the 1,365 mal ...

was NYWA president. Now, in conjunction with the

Manhattan Chamber of Commerce Manhattan Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit organization that represents and supports local businesses across the borough of Manhattan in New York City. History The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce was established in July 1920 as the Yorkville Cha ...

NYWA created ''The New York City Financial Literacy Guide for Girls and Women.'' "Women are in a special need of becoming financially literate. Yet women often do not want to admit their problems in money management. This Guide provides numerous different resources including self-study possibilities as well as workshops, courses and events." * New York Breaks the Silence Together: This program was begun by

Linda Fairstein Linda Fairstein (born May 5, 1947) is an American author, attorney, and former New York City prosecutor focusing on crimes of violence against women and children. She was the head of the sex crimes unit of the Manhattan District Attorney's offic ...

, former chief of the

Manhattan District Attorney The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County (Manhattan), New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws ...

's sex crimes unit because, "We lose the victims before the trial...The victims withdraw, choose not to prosecute, some because of fear of reprisal, some because of the psychological feelings involved. The perception has been nationally...that these cases don't do well in the system" *New York Reads Together: This is the first citywide book discussion project to foster literacy. Supported by the

school system and nationally known newscaster

Roz Abrams Roslyn Maria Abrams (born September 7, 1948) is a former American television news journalist. She had a long career as an anchor on ''Eyewitness News'', which is broadcast by WABC-TV, working in Manhattan. More recently she worked for WCBS-TV, al ...

, it is one of NYWA's most successful programs. At its 2005 commencement,

Pace University Pace University is a private university with its main campus in New York City and secondary campuses in Westchester County, New York. It was established in 1906 by the brothers Homer St. Clair Pace and Charles A. Pace as a business school. Pac ...

President David A. Caputo honored Roz Abrams's work on this program, "You serve as cochair of the New York Reads Together Program, a program of New York’s Women’s Agenda that aims to foster citywide discussions based on people all reading the same book at the same time."
David A Caputo, Pace University.

Star Breakfast

In 2008, the Star Breakfast presented the inaugural Elinor Guggenheimer Lifetime Achievement Award to

Barbara Walters Barbara Jill Walters (born September 25, 1929) is an American broadcast journalist and television personality. Known for her interviewing ability and popularity with viewers, Walters appeared as a host of numerous television programs, including ...

. Honored speakers were New York City mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...

and first lady of New York State

Michelle Paterson Michelle R. Paige Paterson (born April 1, 1961 in Fairfield, California) was the First Lady of New York state. Then-wife of New York Governor David Paterson, she became the First Lady of New York on March 17, 2008, when her husband was sworn in as ...

. In 2009,

Gloria Steinem Gloria Marie Steinem (; born March 25, 1934) is an American journalist and social-political activist who emerged as a nationally recognized leader of second-wave feminism Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in ...

presented this award to

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress, activist, and former fashion model. Recognized as a film icon, Fonda is the recipient of various accolades including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, sev ...

. Michelle Paterson was honored speaker.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

New York Women's Agenda
Women's organizations based in the United States Business organizations based in the United States Organizations based in New York City Organizations established in 1992 Women in New York City