Membership Matters: A News Hub for Leaders

Upcoming Dates and Deadlines 

AAUW National Election Closes May 15, at 12 p.m. ET

Members who have not yet voted should check their emails for their electronic ballot with their unique voting credentials from vote@simplyvoting.com. If am member can’t locate the electronic ballot, email connect@aauw.org with the name and email address.

Help us champion gender equity by voting yes to open membership. Our standing as a leading voice for women’s rights demands we practice the inclusion we fight for.

Voting closes May 15, at 12 p.m. ET.

Promoting College/University Memberships

Seeking a tool to promote AAUW membership to college and university campuses in your community? Look no further! AAUW has unveiled a CU Member Toolkit designed to assist you in engaging with your local institutions. AAUW is pleased to share this toolkit designed to assist Branches with recruitment, renewal and engagement of current and prospective College/University Members. In addition to FAQs for members we have included a CU Membership Flyer, instructions on how to join and sign up student members, as well as flyers to encourage students, staff and faculty on campus to access Salary Negotiation and Financial Literacy training now available to all CU Members.

Renewal Notices and Email Reminders on the Way!

Both College/University members and Branch Members for those branches that opted to have National send renewal emails, will be sent each month during the week of the 20th. Here’s the schedule:

The FY25 National Dues Year is Open!

April 1 kicked off the 2025 Fiscal Year (FY25) membership dues collection process for AAUW branches. FY25 National dues remain the same: Annual National ($72), Students ($18.81), and Lifetime ($1,440). As of January 2024, all National dues are fully tax deductible. Finance officers can begin processing memberships for FY25 now!

Don’t Lose Your Access Rights — Officer Updates Needed by June 30!

If your affiliate title is president/administrator, membership vice president or finance officer, you have the access rights to update officers for FY25 by June 30. Even if an officer is returning, make sure to update your records if their next term starts July 1, 2024. Login to the Community Hub, then go to MY AFFILIATIONS and click the button next to your affiliate name. Choose BRANCH COMMITTEE to update officers by following the step-by-step screen instructions.

Review Your 2024 Count Report

The February 1 Count Report 2024 was sent via email mid-March to president/administrators, membership vice presidents and finance officers. Please review your state and branch counts here and report any discrepancies to connect@aauw.org. Any revised reports will be available in early May. We appreciate your efforts!

Finance Officers Must Respond — Don’t Lose Your Tax-Exempt Status with the IRS

All AAUW-affiliated entities must file a tax return each year. The simplest option for non-profits is to use a Form 990-N, which AAUW can prepare on your behalf if your annual gross receipts are $50,000 or less.

To have AAUW file your 990-N, complete the group exemption form in the Community Hub when the form opens on April 16 through October 15. To complete the form for the tax period ending June 30, 2024, login to the Community Hub then go to MY AFFILIATIONS and click the button next to your affiliate name. Choose TAX INFORMATION, then ADD NEW TAX DETAILS. The form will ask for the principal officer, which is generally the finance officer. Please verify that your Employer Identification Number (EIN) is correct, so your filing isn’t rejected. If you do not qualify to file Form 990-N, AAUW cannot file your return. Please explore other options and applicable forms (e.g., Form 990, Form 990EZ, or Form 990PF).

Don’t Miss These Engaging AAUW Webinars!

AAUW has had the privilege of showcasing some exceptional webinar content in 2024, and we hope you’ve had the chance to attend and share these valuable resources within your state and branch networks. If you haven’t caught up on our latest webinars yet, make sure to visit our AAUW Webinar page.

Recently, the AAUW Advancement Committee assembled a panel of AAUW branch leaders to share their successes and best practices in growing their membership. You can gain valuable insights into their strategies by watching the “Membership: Securing Our Future” webinar.

Another webinar that generated significant member attention and was “A Journey Through Time: AAUW’s History and Evolution.” In this session, AAUW Archivist Jessica Miller delves into both the broader organizational shifts and the stories of individual trailblazers who have shaped the AAUW we know
today.

These webinars and more are readily accessible on the AAUW Webinar page, and stay tuned in the coming months as we hold several advocacy webinars to keep members and voters informed.

Stay Connected: Re-Subscribe to AAUW Emails

Do you think a member may be missing out on vital updates and important announcements from AAUW? Don’t let valuable information slip through the cracks! Ensure they stay connected with us by re-subscribing to AAUW emails. Simply forward this link, aauw.us/emailoptions, to the member to re-subscribe and guarantee that they receive all the latest news, webinars, and opportunities from AAUW.

New Resources for the Community Hub

As many state and branch leaders gear up for dues renewals, we’re excited to introduce new resources available on our Community Hub: Tools and Resources Page. These short tutorial videos are designed to assist with various aspects of the Hub. Currently, these videos cover essential tasks such as handling renewals and donations, exporting your branch roster, and managing new and lapsed members.

More videos will be added this spring and we will be sure to make you aware of them here in Membership Matters. We’ll continue to review feedback on these videos to gauge if we expand this type of resource to other topic areas or look into additional resources to provide leaders with the support they need.

Community Hub Spotlight

For this month’s spotlight we wanted to highlight the removal of members from branch rosters and branch selection when joining members.

Removing a member does not delete the member’s history within AAUW; it only removes them from the roster. If the member chooses to rejoin at a later time, they will be able to do so through self-joining or via a state or branch leader. To remove a member from the roster, on the Company Roster page where members are listed individually, click the button next to the member’s name and select Remove. On the next page, select the Removal Reason from the drop-down menu then click Remove.

Reminder: Please do not remove state leaders from the roster. State leaders are identified in the Export Branch Roster under the ‘Is State Manager’ column.

When joining a new, lapsed, or transfer member you should select both the branch and state. This allows the branch to be noted as the primary on the roster and does not leave a blank field in the ‘Primary Branch’ column. Doing so, branch dues will be reimbursed the following month.

AAUW’s Five-Star Recognition Program

This month, we want to highlight a crucial aspect of our organization: the AAUW Five-Star Recognition Program. As previously mentioned, the AAUW Five Star page has been recently updated to outline the criteria necessary for achieving recognition in the current fiscal year. While the criteria remain largely consistent, we urge branch leaders to review the page to ensure that their programs align with the requirements if they aim to pursue recognition this year.

Looking ahead, we have plans to conduct the Branch Impact Survey in September and revise the criteria for the next fiscal year. We hope sharing these adjustments earlier will enable branches to better prepare as they prepare their fall programming.

As always, we will keep leaders informed through Membership Matters and provide more specifics as these dates approach.

Key Resources and Tools

Community Hub Resources

Instructions on how to manage member records, update officers, pay dues, donations, and file Tax 990N, all online.  

State and Branch Tools

Forms to request member lists, speakers, and off-line member dues and donations forms as well as logos and branding info.  

Governance

AAUW National Board and Committees. 

Diversity Equity & Inclusion

Officer resources, programming and planning information. 

Past Membership Matters Updates

MAY 2024

MARCH 2024

FEBRUARY 2024

MARCH 2023

SEPTEMBER 2022

AUGUST 2022

JUNE/JULY 2022

MAY 2022

March 2022

FEBRUARY 2022

January 2022

December 2021

OCTOBER 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021

August 2021