AAUW NYSEquity for Women and  Girls through advocacy, education and research

2012 Convention Information

Marilyn Tedeschi
NYS Convention Director

The 2012 convention will be held at the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa in Rochester. See some of what Rochester's doing to grow on YouTube at www.youtube.com/rochesterbiz.

The complete registration packet (all forms and instructions) is now available here. Feel free to print and distribute to other members.

Register NOW for all the wonderful activities using the various forms.

More details will be coming, but see the other convention pages for some of the exciting programs that are planned!

Also be prepared to vote for officers for the coming biennium. The candidates submitted by the nominating committee are:

  • President: Mary Lou Davis, Poughkeepsie Branch
  • Program Vice President: Melissa Guardaro, Rockland County Branch
  • Educational Opportunities Fund Vice President: Doris McLallen, Jefferson County Branch

The 2011 Convention was held April 15-17, 2011 at the Glen Cove Mansion on Long Island.

New this year - two branches (in attendance!) won the opportunity to give a $500 local scholarship, courtesy of funds left to the state when the Queens Branch disbanded.

One of the important parts of the business meeting was the election of some of our officers for the next two years. The candidates presented by the nominating committee are listed below. All the candidates were elected.

Legal Advocacy Fund Vice President - Roli G. Wendorf
Roli Wendorf is currently the webmaster and Pay Equity Outreach action group leader for the Westchester Branch where she has been a member for three years. She was the branch’s EF and LAF chair from 2007-10. Roli promotes STEM by helping to plan the Explore Your Opportunities STEM conference for 7th grade girls to promote science, math and computing. She maintains a website and recruits professional women with STEM careers to serve as role models for the participants. She has organized workshops at colleges to teach pay negotiation skills to women and minorities as a way of reducing the gender wage gap. Roli was Westchester’s Emerging Leader in 2009.
Roli’s education includes a BS and MS in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, a MS in computer science from Carnegie- Mellon University and a DPS in computing from Pace University.
Supporters have written: “Excellent leadership talents;” “Consistently was in the top ten statewide for total donations and per capita.”

Membership Vice PresidentMaria Ellis
Maria Ellis has been a member of the New York City Branch for ten years. She has been president and treasurer of the branch. Maria is currently the district council director on the AAUW NYS board and is on the national AAUW major gifts committee.
Maria earned an MBA and BBA from the University of Massachusetts. She was owner-president of a management program at Harvard Business School. She is a development committee member for the Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund and does pro-bono work for non-profit organizations as a member of HBS Community Partners. Maria has skills in management, analysis, negotiation and marketing.
Supporters have written: “An avid supporter of all aspects of AAUW;” “Enthusiasm is evident in all she does.”

Secretary/BylawsEdwina Frances Martin, Esq.
Edwina Martin has been a member of the Staten Island Branch for five years where she has been the program VP from 2007 to the present and has coordinated programs on women’s initiatives.
Edwina earned a BA from Williams College and a JD from the NYU School of Law. For the last 20 years, she has garnered significant experience working with Legal Services NYC, as well as working with other non-profit agencies, public interest
groups and academic institutions on the development of innovative programs, fund-raising and handling legal and business issues. She has project management experience, outstanding communication skills, a commitment to public service and strong writing skills.
Supporters have written: “A woman of exceptional talent, vision, passion and professionalism;” “Very well-organized and is the definition of ‘multi-tasker’.”

TreasurerRuth Fierro-King
Ruth Fierro-King has been a member of the Buffalo Branch for five years. She has been the finance chair for the branch for the last four years. Buffalo chose her as their Emerging Leader in 2008. She was elected to a two-year term as NYS AAUW treasurer in 2008.
Ruth has a BA from Bernard Baruch College and an MBA in finance and business administration from the University of Buffalo. She has received certification from Moody’s for commercial loan certification. She worked for Key Bank from 2008- 10 as a vice president/senior relationship manager. In the community, she is on the board of directors of the Community Preservation Corporation and was the 2009 board president of the Risk Management Association where she was the recipient of the Gold Circle Leadership Award.
Supporters have written: “Highly professional with the right skills for this position and she believes in the mission of our organization;” “Instrumental in assisting board members in understanding how a budget is organized and presented.”

BUSINESS - the Bath Branch proposed a new resolution which was modified slightly and was then adopted during the business meeting. You may read it here.

In addition, the assembly accepted a bylaws change which allows state AAUW dues to be set by a 2/3 affirmative vote of the AAUW-NYS board.


The 2010 convention was held at the Otesaga, in Cooperstown, NY the weekend of April 23-25. Handouts from some of the workshops are now available -

The officer candidates (president, program VP and EF VP) for the 2010-2012 term were voted on at the 2010 convention. The candidates proposed by the nominating committee - and elected - are listed here:

President – Eileen S. Hartmann
Eileen has been a member of AAUW for 34 years. She was elected to a two-year term as NYS AAUW president in 2008. She also served as NYS AAUW membership vice president for three years, college/university director for three years, and was on the marketing committee.
Eileen has held various offices in the Fairport Area Branch including president, co-vice president. Eileen has a B.A. from Edgecliff College and an M.S.Ed. from Nazareth College of Rochester. Her work experience includes positions as English teacher, sales representative, program coordinator for the Rochester Area Career Educational Collaborative, and field experience coordinator for the Education Department at Nazareth College. She is also active with the Fairport-Perinton Chapter of Dollars for Scholars.

Program Vice President – Peggy Kelland
Peggy served as vice president for program for two women’s organizations, Poughkeepsie AAUW and the Junior League of Poughkeepsie, before being elected as NYS AAUW program vice president in 2008. At the state level, she also served as international affairs director for two years and as a member of the nominating team.
Peggy is a 37-year member of the Poughkeepsie Branch where she served as president, program vice president, communications vice president, and recording secretary, along with various other chairmanships. Peggy has a B.A. from Smith College and an M.A. from Columbia University Teachers College. She has experience teaching elementary subjects, high school social studies, ESL and reading. As a Peace Corps volunteer in Honduras, she trained and supervised student teachers. Her community activities include the Dutchess Interfaith Council, Girl Scouts, League of Women Voters, Junior League, and several community boards and commissions.

Educational Fund Vice President – Lisa Davis Clark
Lisa has been a member of the Rockland County Branch for five years. She has served as Educational Foundation chair and co-president. Lisa’s educational background includes a B.S. from New York University, an M.A. from Teachers College, and a P.D. from Long Island University. She is working toward a PhD. at Walden University.
Her work experience includes positions as a math teacher, local instructional superintendent, co-director of the NYC Department of Education/ Adult and Continuing Education and director of the NYC Board of Education Cooperative Work-Based Education Program. She is currently a substitute assistant professor at Medgar Evers College and adjunct instructor at Nyack College. Lisa is also a board member and chair of the government relations and community affairs subcommittee of the New York University Alumni Association. She has reviewed proposals for conference presentations for the American Educational Research Association.

Part of the business of the 2009 convention was the election for 2009-2011 of four officers. The single slate of candidates was elected:

  • Membership Vice President – Bergie Lebovitch
  • Legal Advocacy Fund Vice President – Mildred DeWitt
  • Secretary/Bylaws – Mimi Korb
  • Treasurer – Ruth Fierro-King.

Be sure to read about our emerging leaders who were honored at the Saturday breakfast!