LWVAZ education fund - League of Women Voters of Arizona

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LWVAZ EDUCATION FUND (LWVAZEF)

OUR MISSION:

Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy.

We envision a democracy where every person has the desire, the right, the knowledge, and the confidence to participate.

The League of Women Voters of Arizona Education Fund (LWVAZ Ed Fund) supports the following voter service and citizen education activities:

● Increasing participation in the democratic process

● Promoting the informed and active participation of citizens in government

● Studying key community issues at all government levels in an unbiased manner

● Enabling people to seek positive solutions to public policy issues through education

● Registering voters and providing voters with election information through publications, voter guides, and candidate forums.

The LWVAZ Ed Fund is a tax-deductible 501(c)(3) charitable organization. It supplements and extends the citizen education aspects of League work. Funds contributed to the LWV Ed Fund may be used to support the charitable and educational activities of our League and to benefit both the state and local Leagues while honoring specific designations placed by the donor.

League of Women Voters of Arizona (LWVAZ) is comprised of five (5) local Leagues and hosts the donation page for the LWVAZ Ed Fund. The League of Women Voters of Arizona, ( LWVAZ) created the LWVAZ Ed Fund to allow donors to make tax deductible donations. LWVAZ Ed Fund monies are designated by donors to the state League or to local Leagues to assist them in providing voter services and educational programs, such as Vote 411.org, voter registration events, voter information publications and announcements, public policy forums, and candidate forum and debates.

Programs Funded by Generous Donations to the LWVAZ Education Fund

VOTE411

LWVAZ, in concert with all Arizona local Leagues, provided extensive candidate and initiative election information through the national League of Women Voters (LWV) website: Vote411.org.

VOTER REGISTRATION

A core program of the state and all Arizona local Leagues is voter registration.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Local leagues provide programs to community partners and create opportunities for members to engage in community outreach activities.

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

At both the state and local level, educational programs are provided to both League members and the public on policy issues of interest. Not all public programs use LWVAZ Ed Fund monies; some are funded through the state and local Leagues’ general operating funds.

NATIONAL LWV EDUCATION FUND

LWV of Metro Phoenix (LWVMP) and LWV of Greater Tucson (LWVGT) used LWVAZ Education Fund monies to pay for membership dues to the League of Women Voters United States, representing the portion of their operations devoted to voter educational activities. LWVAZ, LWVGT and LWV of Central Yavapai County (LWVCYC) provided registration fees for delegates to attend the LWVAZ State Council and LWV national convention.

ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

Administrative expenses for the LWVAZ Education Fund for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024 represented 2.46% of total revenues and 4.67% of total expenses.

LOCAL LEAGUE PROGRAMS FUNDED THROUGH LWVAZ EF

During the fiscal years ending June 30, 2023, and June 30, 2024, programs funded by the LWVAZ ED Fund have included:

LWV Greater Tucson (LWV GT) provided voter registration services to underserved communities and county schools. LWV GT published seven (7000) thousand Citizen’s Directories of Elected Officials covering City, County, Tribal, State, and National elected officials as well as including voter registration information for Pima County.

In addition, LWV GT hosted three and two (2) candidate forums and programs on public policy issues. These forums can be found on the LWV GT website. LWV GT conducted the “Ready, Set, Vote” information campaign designed to explain changes and information about voting, and “Running and Winning”, an interactive leadership workshop for high school girls.

LWVGT used Ed Funds to assist in providing financial support for 25 of its members to visit the Tohono O’odham Cultural Center to continue to build relationships with the O’odham people. They also used funds for community outreach through tabling and radio messaging to their local Latino community and through local events.

LWV Central Yavapai County (LWVCYC) provided a $ $1000 scholarship in memory of Elisabeth Ruffner, a long time League member and 2015 inductee into the Arizona Women’s Hall of Fame. These funds came from LWVAZ Education Fund donations designated for LWVCYC restricted to the Elisabeth Ruffner Scholarship Fund.