Home

Welcome to the Humboldt, CA Branch of AAUW!

AAUW Humboldt meets the first Saturday of the month from September to December and February to May at the Wharfinger Building.

 

---

AAUW-Humboldt Awards 2025 Scholarships to Re-Entry Students

The Humboldt County branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) recently awarded its annual Re-Entry Scholarships, which are open to Cal Poly Humboldt (CPH) upper division and graduate level women students with at least a five-year interruption in their college-level educational experience.

AAUW-Humboldt has focused on giving scholarships to women returning to school after a long break to provide an extra incentive for them to stay in school, even when facing significant financial, family, and work pressures. The diverse experiences of these older students also bring value to the campus and serve as a reminder that there is often no straight path to some educational goals.

Due to the generous donations of its members, the organization was able to award a total of $10,000 through four scholarships to two undergraduate students and two working toward Masters degrees.

Chara Boasso is attending CPH for the completion of her music degree, which she began over 30 years ago. She is double-majoring in Music Teacher Preparation and Applied Music (piano performance), while also enrolled in an intensive summer Masters Music Education program at San Jose State. Her long-term goals include obtaining a teaching credential, becoming a K-12 music teacher, and also opening a piano studio. Her vision is to expand access to music in schools.

Jenni Hedin has a passion for understanding and protecting natural resources. She spent six years after college working in jobs that included restoring native vegetation in Glacier National Park and monitoring subalpine vegetation at Mt. Rainier National Park. She is now working towards her Masters, with her thesis project monitoring threats to endangered and endemic pine trees in the Klamath Mountains. Her goal is to conduct research that aids vegetation conservation and land management decisions.

Monica Strickler will complete her undergraduate degree in Environmental Science and Management at CPH in the fall of 2026, eighteen years after she began as a freshman at Mills College. She is described by one professor as “highly motivated, deeply engaged, and unfailingly prepared.” Monica’s path to a degree has been complicated by personal and financial constraints. She works hard balancing the needs of her family with the demands of her education.  Her goal is political and environmental advocacy.

Delila Werner returned to CPH to obtain a degree in social work as a way to expand her reach as a teacher and resource person in the rural community where she lives. Her professor described her as “a natural caregiver and an intuitive listener – qualities that make her not only an exceptional social work student but also a genuine healer”. Delilah remembers being told that her dyslexia would prevent her from becoming anything of significance. A teacher’s support changed her outlook completely and instilled in her a desire to do the same for others.

---

Notebook Computers Awarded to Two Outstanding Continuing High School Graduates

Dorothy Skjonsby and Mary Lou Lowry coordinated the awarding of notebook computers to two 2025 graduates of Continuing Education Schools in Humboldt County: Heidi Rayburn and Anika Gonzales. Selected by their teachers for their outstanding high school performance and interest in continuing their education, these students have achieved success despite life challenges that took them off the typical path and into continuation programs.  Read more here…