Upcoming Events
College Day at Raytheon
Raytheon is looking for talented people in the field of engineering. Get more information about a rewarding career at Raytheon's College Day. This event will be held at 2000 E. El Segundo on Friday, November 21, 2008 from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Go to rayjobs.com for more information.
Congressman Henry Waxman: "Priorities for the 111th Congress"
Bring your brown bag lunch and join the National Council of Jewish Women Los Angeles at this free community event. It will be held at NCJW/LA Council House (543 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036) on Monday, December 1, 2008 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. To RSVP or for more information call (323) 651-2930 or email ruth@ncjwla.org.
Hispanas Organized For Political Equality (HOPE)-19th Annual Awards Dinner
Join HOPE at their 19th Annual Awards Dinner on Thursday, December 4, 2008. The event will be at the Center at Cathedral Plaza (555 West Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012) at 6:00 p.m. For more information, please call (213) 622-0606.
CSW's Commission Meeting
Join the Commission on the Status of Women as we discuss what the City is doing to improve the lives of women and young girls. This meeting will be held in City Hall (200 N. Spring Street, 10th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90012) on Friday, December 5, 2008 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. For more information, contact the Commission at (213) 978-0300 or via email at CSWinfo@lacity.org.
Communicating for Change Workshop: Target Audiences with New Communication Tools
Please join the Center for Healthy Communities in an in-depth training on the topic of communication. This free event will be held at the California Endowment (1000 N. Alameda St., Los Angeles, CA) on Thursday, December 11, 2008 at 1:30 pm. For more information, visit http://www.calendow.org/
Not From the Mall Holiday Boutique
Join the Asian Pacific Women's Center at the Not from the Mall: Holiday Boutique Benefit. This event will be on Saturday, December 13, 2008 at the Asian Pacific Women's Center Alhambra Office(405 Stoneman Ave., Alhambra, CA). For information visit www.apwcla.org or call (213) 250-2977.
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Commission's "Women Leaders in Education Summit" A Success at Cal State LA
 On November 7th, the Commission hosted the 2nd Women Leaders in Education: Discovering Our Path to the Future Summit at California State University, Los Angeles.
The symposium brought together attendees from Southern California's universities, community colleges, high schools, business industries and government entities, to discuss best practices on strategies to increase the number of women entering and remaining in science, math, engineering and technology (STEM) professions. The day began with a welcoming address by Provost Desdemona Cardoza of Cal State LA, where she prefaced the discussion by encouraging both government and academia to collaboratively work together to take on the challenge of preparing young women to enter the highly skilled workforce.
The panel discussions provided both knowledge and insight into best practices on building systems of high quality education, barriers of igniting an interest in math and science, and cultural and media influences on women entering into non-traditional careers. The summit's afternoon lunch session was commenced with a phenomenal keynote address by California State Senator Gloria Romero. Her message highlighted daunting statistics on the scarcity of women entering into nontraditional careers and the importance of using education as a basis for change.
The event culminated with a networking session and resource fair, where attendees were able to meet with various organizations and discuss workforce opportunities. As a result of the event, attendees were able to learn about best practices on helping young women get into college and training programs as while as pathways to effectively incite an interest in STEM careers.
LA City Boosts It's Effort to Alleviate Rape Kit Backlog
Submitted by: Monica Ballagh, CSW Intern
 Studies show that one in six American women are victims of sexual assault. In Los Angeles, 80 out every 100 rapist are never brought to justice.
A recent audit of the LAPD uncovered a backlog of 7,000 unexamined sexual assault testing kits. Of the untested kits, 217 are beyond the statute of limitations and cannot be prosecuted.
In an aggressive effort to ameliorate the problem, the City is seeking to hire additional personnel to alleviate the burdensome backlog. LAPD has also created a task force to examine the Scientific Investigations Division.
Kellie Hawkins, the Executive Director for the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) responded to the steps taken by LAPD and the City by stating, "While this is only one piece of the solution to addressing the horrible act of rape and sexual assault within our communities, it makes a huge impact on those victims and their families, bringing their cases closer to justice."
There has also been a rising concern over sexual assault on college campuses, and some institutions are proactively working to improve their sexual assault policies. California State University, Dominguez Hills, is currently revisiting and rewriting their sexual assault policies on their campus to ensure that their policies comply with the Clery Act. This act requires all colleges and universities that receive federal funding to keep and disclose information about crime on and near their campuses.
CSW's "Commission on Campus" Initiative, a collective effort by local city government and local higher-educational institutions, has recently taken additional steps to focus its efforts on the issue of sexual assault on college campuses.
For more information about sexual assault and sexual assault prevention, visit Peace Over Violence at http://www.peaceoverviolence.org/ and CSW's website at http://www.cityofla.org/csw.
The National Association of Women MBAs of Greater Los Angeles Launches as the Fourth Professional Chapter in the Nation
Submitted by: Liliana Arguello
 The National Association of Women MBAs of Greater Los Angeles (NAWMBA-LA) launched its newly formed professional chapter, in partnership with its national launch sponsor - The Boeing Company - on November 6, 2008 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA. Over 125 professionals attended and enjoyed a special evening of networking.
The chapter is focused on supporting graduate women in business by providing leadership, educational, and networking opportunities. As such, NAWMBA-LA will host a number of professional development seminars and networking sessions over the next several months. Among the first are "The Art of Negotiating" seminar, a "Career Transitions" workshop, and a networking mixer.
We encourage women to get involved. The ABCs of getting involved are -Attend an event * Become a member * Committee volunteering. If you would like to find out more about NAWMBA-LA, please visit our website at www.mbawomen.org or send an email to info@nawmbala.org.
College Bound Student Uses Internship to Prepare for the Workforce
Submitted by: Chante Sherwood, CSW Intern
 One of the most important goals that I would like to accomplish in the next three years is to get accepted into college. As a participant in College Bound, a program that prepares students academically to attend a 4-year college, I have learned the importance of getting a good job. I chose to intern at the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) because the work experience would prepare me for future jobs and it would also look impressive on my college applications.
When I first heard about the internship, I was excited to see what I could learn from the experience. I assumed CSW would teach me how to perform clerical duties, but I was wrong. I've learned that women have difficulties finding good jobs and there are a lot of nontraditional careers that CSW promotes, like engineering or working as a member of the line crew for LADWP. As an intern at CSW, I'd like to inform young ladies about other possibilities they have in the workforce, as opposed to having traditional jobs that women typically occupy.
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