Dr. Chandra Story Wins the 2023 Athena Award!

AAUW Murfreesboro is proud to announce that our nominee, Dr. Chandra Story, was awarded the Rutherford ATHENA International Leadership Award on May 12, 2023.

Dr. Story was one of ten incredible women nominated for this award. Here is her bio:

Chandra R. Story is a public health professional with experience in clinical, community, and academic settings. Notably, she provided a TEDx Talk on cultural support and wellness. She is a member of the Tennessee Health Disparity Task Force and board president of the Middle Tennessee Fund for Women and Girls. Additionally, Dr. Story is a chaplain for the Kappa Tau Sigma chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho, Inc. and a licensed minister at First Baptist Church Murfreesboro. Dr. Story is a professor of Community and Public Health at Middle Tennessee State University and the 2023 recipient of the John Pleas faculty award.

For more information on the ATHENA Award Program, visit their website.

2023 EqualiTEA is sold out

EqualiTEA is a (hats optional) high tea held annually in Murfreesboro, Tennessee to raise scholarship and programming funds for the Middle Tennessee Fund for Women and Girls and AAUW Murfreesboro.

The 2023 event returns to the Center Atrium of the MTSU Miller Education, 503 E. Bell St., Murfreesboro, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 18. Full tea service will be provided by MT Dining Services. This is a free event and donations are greatly appreciated. More information is available on Eventbrite.

The EqualiTEA is officially hosted by both AAUW and the Middle TN Fund for Women and Girls. This event raises scholarship and programming funds for the Middle Tennessee Fund for Women and Girls, a 501(C)3 organization, in support of the mission of AAUW Murfreesboro: to level the playing field for women and girls in education and in the workforce.​

The 2023 Tea is fully booked, but you can still make a difference in the lives of Middle Tennessee’s women and girls by making a donation. You can make a donation from $5-$100 here.

The 2023 Tempest Award Recipient is MTSU professor Dr. Carmelita L. Dotson. The keynote speaker is MTSU Dean of Media and Entertainment Beverly Keel. The 2023 EqualiTEA honorary co-chairs are MTSU First Lady Liz McPhee and Tara MacDougall, Discovery Center President & CEO.

Honoring an individual who has taken action to address the systemic barriers to equity for women and girls. Our 2023 Tempest recipient, has spent over 30 years working and helping others, while encouraging women to pursue higher education and roles of leadership.

Beverly Keel is dean of MTSU’s College of Media and Entertainment, an award-winning journalist, and a music industry activist who works for gender and racial equality in the music industry. She was named a national “Change Agent” by Billboard for her efforts with Nashville Music Equality, which she co-founded in 2020 to create an anti-racist environment in the Nashville music industry. A Nashville native, she earned her bachelor’s degree from MTSU and her master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

About AAUW

Founded in 1913, AAUW Murfreesboro seeks to level the playing field for women and girls to work and learn. The Middle Tennessee Fund for Women and Girls, a 501(c)3 organization, is the charitable arm of AAUW Murfreesboro. Over the last 50 years, AAUW Murfreesboro has offered the Ruth M. Houston Memorial Scholarship to an undergraduate woman at Middle Tennessee State University. In 2017, AAUW Murfreesboro launched the Butler-Fouts Memorial Graduate Scholarship for an underrepresented woman pursuing a graduate degree at MTSU. Each provides $2000 for the academic year.

Charter Schools in Rutherford County: An Information Session with Q&A

Monday, February 27th
6:30PM-8:00PM
Patterson Park Community Center (521 Mercury Blvd., Murfreesboro, TN)

The public is invited to learn more about local options for and anticipated impact of charter schools here in Rutherford County in this program hosted by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters.

Representatives from local, state, and charter school organizations will make presentations and remarks from 6:30-7:15. After a 15 minute break for light refreshments and mingling, the presenters will answer questions from 7:30 to 8:00.

Speakers will include:

  • Tess Stovall, Executive Director, Tennessee Public Charter School Commission
  • Caitlin Bullard, Ed.D., School Choice/ Charter Coordinator, Rutherford County Schools
  • Jared McLeod, Executive Director, Springs Charter Schools, whose Empower Academy has been approved for Rutherford County.

The event will be moderated by former Rutherford County Commissioner and local League of Women Voters member Rhonda Allen.

Find more info on the LWV Rutherford website.