The Center for the Advancement of Women was a

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nonprofit institution dedicated to research-based education and advocacy for women. In 1995 the organization was founded and led by Faye Wattleton, formerly the president of Planned Parenthood with the objective of working for the advancement of women. The organization conducted national opinion research among women to measure experiences in their daily lives. This research presented a profile of women that was used to educate opinion leaders, policy makers and the

general public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlic ...

Founding

The organization was founded as Center for Gender Equality in 1995. It was known as that name until 2002. Focused on research-based education and advocacy for women, the Center for Advancement of Women's mission was "to conduct national opinion research among women to measure experiences in their daily lives. This research presents a profile of women that as hopefullyused to educate opinion leaders, policy makers and the general public."

Projects

One of the significant research projects undertaken by the CFAW beginning in the late 1990s and lasting several years was "Progress and Perils: A New Agenda for Women," a landmark survey of over 3,000 American women that measured opinions on various topics, such as

domestic abuse Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for '' intimate partne ...

, sexual assault, affirmative action, and

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

. The responses were tabulated so as to reflect any differences based on race. Other research projects included the Domestic Violence Report (an outgrowth to the "Progress and Perils" results), a National Security Report in response to 9/11, the Women on Religion Survey, and the Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Report.

Closure

Throughout its fifteen years, the CFAW depended on donors, large and small, to do its work and, after years of financial struggle, the organization closed down.

References

External links

Center for the Advancement of Women records
at

Sophia Smith Collection The Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College is an internationally recognized repository of manuscripts, photographs, periodicals and other primary sources in women's history. General One of the largest recognized repositories of manuscripts, a ...

, Smith College Special Collections Gender studies organizations Organizations established in 1995 Feminist organizations in the United States Women in New York City {{nonprofit-org-stub