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Elaine Gordon
1931 - 2000
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Trailblazer
. . Feminist . . Champion of human rights.
These
are the words that best describe Elaine Gordon.
The
Elaine Gordon Scholarship program was established in
2000 to honor the life and work of Elaine Gordon, a
former state legislator who for 22 years championed
equal rights for women.
The
Elaine Gordon Scholarship is open to Women’s Studies
majors or certificate earners in the College of Arts
and Sciences who are full-time students. Additional
eligibility criteria are: GPA of 3.0 or higher; financial
need or explanation; 9 credit hours of WS courses. (See
Application Procedures.)
One
award will be made in Spring 2007 for Fall 2007 and
annually thereafter.
Deadline
for applications: Friday, February 23, 2007, 5pm.
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ELAINE
GORDON SCHOLARSHIP
Application Criteria
and Procedures
Criteria
for the Award:
- Be
fully admitted in the College of Arts and Sciences as a
Women’s Studies Major or Certificate earner.
- Have
completed or be enrolled in a minimum of 9 credit hours
of Women’s Studies courses.
- Be
enrolled as an undergraduate student at the time of application.
- Have
a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.
- Financial
need will be one consideration in awarding the scholarship.
- Undergraduates
with one to two semesters of study remaining are eligible.
In addition, graduating seniors who meet the above criteria
and have proof of admission to a graduate degree program
at FIU for Fall 2006 also are eligible for the award.
To be
considered for this Award, a Student must Submit:
- A resume.
- A
typed, two page essay addressing how the student has and
intends to pursue the principles Elaine Gordon upheld (e.g.,
a commitment to reproductive rights, freedom of choice,
advocacy for abused women, community service, interest in
public life), as well as how this financial assistance will
help achieve those goals. A biography
describing Elaine Gordon’s accomplishments and the principles
she advocated is available to help applicants prepare their
statement.
- Financial
need statement. (Financial need will be one consideration
in awarding the scholarship.)
- Two
letters of recommendation, with at least one letter from
a present or former professor.
- A
current SASS and/or transcript reflecting all course work
completed.
Procedures
- Application
deadline will be February 20, 2006. Applications must be
received at 5pm at DM212, Women’s Studies, FIU, Miami, FL
33199.
Further
questions should be directed to:
Dr.
Suzanna Rose, Ph.D., Director, Women's Studies at 305-348-2408
or wstudies@fiu.edu.
BIOGRAPHY
OF ELAINE GORDON
Elaine
Gordon was born in The Bronx, New York, but became Florida’s
"native" daughter, a devoted public servant who representing
the state’s underrepresented in the Florida legislature for
22 years. She distinguished herself through her knowledge
of the issues, her tireless work, her compassion for people,
and her passion for the democratic process. A person of the
highest character and integrity, her champions and opponents
alike said, "Her word was always good."
Gordon
became an advocate for equal rights in 1964 when, as a divorced
Miami mother of three young children, she was denied opportunities
solely because she was a woman. She was passed over for jobs
that were traditionally given to men and could not even establish
credit as a single woman. She was a founder of the National
Organization for Women and the Florida Women’s Political Caucus
and quickly emerged as a savvy, intelligent, outspoken community
activist, a leader and force to be reckoned with.
Elaine
Gordon was determined to change the system, set an agenda
and make policy that helped people. She knew that change could
be accomplished most effectively from within. She was part
of Florida’s constitutional revision session in 1968, serving
as a legislative assistant. In 1972, with a campaign staff
consisting of her parents and children, she defeated a sitting
mayor and was sworn in as a member of the Florida Legislature,
representing the people of Northeast Miami-Dade County. The
people liked what they saw, she delivered what they wanted,
and they elected her to represent them 11 consecutive times.
Elaine
Gordon’s legislative activities and accomplishments were directed
at helping people. She sponsored and passed legislation to
improve the quality of life for all Floridians, including
the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment and legislation
to protect women and children through child support enforcement
and protection from domestic violence. She was a champion
of Florida’s 1989 hate crimes law, which became a model for
the nation. She was the voice and guardian of abused children,
victims of sexual assault, the elderly, the indigent and the
mentally ill. She also introduced the terms "Ms." and "chairperson"
to the legislature and had smoking banned in the House chamber
and committee rooms more than 30 years ago. In the early 1980s
she crafted and sponsored Florida’s Patients Bill of Rights
legislation. She was a woman ahead of her time.
As a result
of Gordon’s hard work, keen knowledge of the issues, mastery
of the process and the respect of her colleagues, she ascended
to the highest and most influential circles of legislative
leadership that included many "firsts" for women in Florida
politics and government. She was the first woman to chair
a standing committee, the first female Speaker Pro Tempore
and the first woman inducted into the Florida Women’s Hall
of Fame. She was the first recipient of the Florida United
Way Humanitarian Award. She chaired numerous committees during
her tenure and earned the respected title of Dean of the House.
As she accumulated legislative experience and seniority and
became the House’s longest-sitting member, her colleagues
often looked to her for advice and counsel.
Her colleagues
in the legislature rewarded her breadth of knowledge, hard
work and dedication to the people with increased responsibility.
In 1986 Speaker James Harold Thompson tapped her to chair
two major committees simultaneously. She led the committee
on Health and Rehabilitative Services and the subcommittee
on Appropriations, which was responsible for hundreds of millions
of dollars in funding the state’s hospitals, prisons, state
attorneys and public defender’s offices and programs for the
mentally ill, women and children. She was tapped for special
assignments as well, serving on the state’s first comprehensive
water quality committee and on a joint committee for prison
overcrowding.
Gordon
will long be remembered for her indefatigable efforts to ratify
the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970’s. Although she prevailed
in the House, her efforts fell just short in the Senate. Undeterred,
she never stopped fighting for women’s equality under the
law. She just took it piece by legislative piece one
law at a time for more than two decades.
When Elaine
Gordon retired in 1994, she returned home to her family and
the district she represented with distinction. But she did
not retire from serving the public. She became an assistant
vice president at the university she loved just a few miles
from her home, Florida International University. She helped
raise funds for scholarships at FIU’s Biscayne Bay Campus
and for the University’s state-of-the-art conference center.
She also served as proactive liaison to the North Dade community,
establishing new friends and supporters for FIU.
A public
servant, wife, mother and grandmother, Elaine Gordon was quite
simply an extraordinary woman. Her legacy will last a lifetime
-- she left a more tolerant, more compassionate and better
Florida.
Elaine
Gordon died on February 25, 2000 of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma,
at the age of 68.
See Historical
Listing of Elaine Gordon's
Accomplishments.
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