Association for Women in Communications

Last updated
Association for Women in Communications
AbbreviationAWC
Formation1997;28 years ago (1997)
Founded at University of Washington
Dissolved2023
Type Nonprofit
Legal statusNonprofit
Headquarters4730 S. National Avenue, Suite A1
Location
Membership3,000 (2022)
Publication
the Communiqué
Award The Matrix Awards
Website www.womcom.org
Formerly called
Theta Sigma Phi (ΘΣΦ)
Women in Communications, Inc.

The Association for Women in Communications (AWC) was an American professional organization for women in the communications industry. [1] [2] [3] It was formed in 1996 when Women in Communication (aka Theta Sigma Phi) went defunct. AWC operated until it too went defunct in 2023.

Contents

History

Theta Sigma Phi, an honorary society for journalism, was established in 1909 at the University of Washington. [1] [3] [4] By 1950, the group had grown to 47 campus chapters and 29 alumnae groups as more women began to work. In 1972, Theta Sigma Phi was renamed to Women in Communications, Inc. (WICI). [1] [3] In 1996 WICI was dissolved.

The Association for Women in Communications was formed in 1997 as a new nonprofit organization that would continue the legacy of WICI. [1] [2] [3] [5] [6] The Association for Women in Communication was overseen by a new board. It was managed by Club Management Services in Springfield, Missouri. AWC ceased operations at the national level in 2023. [7] [8] Several of its chapters continued to operated as a local organizations. [7] [8]

Activities

The society's publication was Communiqué, an electronic newsletter. It presented the Clarion Award, [9] [10] the Headliner Award, [11] and The Matrix Awards. [12] [13] The latter two were originally initiated by Theta Sigma Phi. [11] [12]

Foundation

The nonprofit AWC Matrix Foundation was established in 1998 as an educational affiliate. The AWC Matrix Foundation promoted the advancement of women in the communications profession by providing funds for education, research, and publications. The foundation's three initiatives were:

Chapters

Following are the chapters of the Association for Women in Communication, with active chapters indicated in bold and inactive chapters in italics. [14]

ChapterCharter date and rangeLocationStatusReferences
Bloomington/Normal Bloomington, Illinois and Normal, Illinois Inactive
BGSU2011 Bowling Green, Kentucky Inactive ? [15]
Detroit Detroit, Michigan Inactive [16]
Lubbock Lubbock, Texas Inactive [17]
New York19xx ?–1998 New York City, New York Withdrew (local) [18] [a]
Pittsburgh19xx ? Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Inactive [19]
Santa Barbara2006–2023 Santa Barbara, California Withdrew (local) [8]
Seattle Seattle, Washington Inactive
South Florida South Florida Inactive [20]
Springfield, IL1985–2023 Springfield, Illinois Withdrew (local) [21]
Springfield, MO Springfield, Missouri Inactive
Tulsa19xx ?–2023 Tulsa, Oklahoma Withdrew (local) [7]
UW Madison Madison, Wisconsin Inactive ? [22]
Washington, D.C. Metro Area Washington, D.C. Inactive [23]
  1. ↑ Chapter withdrew and became the New York Women in Communications, Inc., a local organization.

Notable members

NameChapterNotabilityAwardsReferences
Rita Cosby news anchor for Fox News, MSNBC, and Newsmax Headliner Award 2002 [11]
Margaret Larson broadcast journalist and television presenter.Headliner Award 2004
Ann Liguori South Floridasports broadcasterHeadliner Award 2001 [11]
Harriet Monroe HonoraryPoet and founding publisher and editor of Poetry magazineLifetime Achievement Award 2001
Hall of Fame 2003
Gail Sheehy author, journalist, and lecturerHeadliner Award 2000 [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Burt, Elizabeth V. (2000). Women's Press Organizations, 1881-1999. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 11–20. ISBN   9780313306617 . Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Kopecki, Dawn (1996). "Makeover gives group new identity, no staff". The Washington Times.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Sterling, Christopher H. (2003). Encyclopedia of Radio. Taylor & Francis. pp. 177–179. ISBN   9781579582494 . Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Journalism Sorority has a large program". University Daily Kansan. Lawrence, Kansas. 14 May 1920. p. 1. Retrieved November 23, 2020– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "The Association for Women in Communications Celebrates 100 Years of Championing Women in Communications". Women's Health Weekly via HighBeam Research. 2009. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved November 30, 2012.(subscription required)
  6. ↑ Bulkeley, Christy C (2004). Whose news? Progress and status of women in newspapers (mostly) and television news. - Seeking Equity for Women in Journalism and Mass Communication Education: a 30-year update. Taylor & Francis. pp. 183–204. ISBN   9781135624002 . Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  7. 1 2 3 "History of The Association for Women in Communications". Association for Women in Communications Tulsa. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  8. 1 2 3 "AWC-SB – OUR STORY". AWC Santa Barbara. 2017-06-16. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  9. ↑ ARTnews Wins a Clarion Award, in ARTnews 07/01/10.
  10. ↑ "About Clarion Awards". The Association for Women in Communications. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 "Headliner Award". The Association for Women in Communications. 2022-02-27. Retrieved 2025-02-23.
  12. 1 2 "Overview: The Annual NYWICI Matrix Awards". New York Women in Communications, Inc. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  13. ↑ "May 14, 2009--Michelle Singletary and Kate Perrin to Receive 2009 Matrix Awards for Professional Achievements". www.awcdc.net. Archived from the original on 2012-02-27.
  14. ↑ "Find a Chapter". The Association for Women in Communications. 2022-02-15. Retrieved 2025-02-22.
  15. ↑ "Association for Women in Communications". Bowling Green State University. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  16. ↑ "About Us". AWC Detroit. Retrieved 2025-02-22.
  17. ↑ "About". Association for Women in Communication Lubbock. Retrieved 2025-02-22.
  18. ↑ Wyeth, Deirdre. "Our History". NYWICI. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
  19. ↑ "PG Sweeps Matrix Awards". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 1999-04-23. p. 38. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
  20. ↑ "Home". Women in Communications South Florida. Retrieved 2025-02-22.
  21. ↑ "Home". Association for Women in Communications Springfield Missouri. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  22. ↑ "Association for Women in Communications Madison". University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  23. ↑ "May 14, 2009--Michelle Singletary and Kate Perrin to Receive 2009 Matrix Awards for Professional Achievements". www.awcdc.net. Archived from the original on 2012-02-27.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.