Women's Policy Group records

Originally established in 1988 as the Women and Children's Policy Group, the Women's Policy Group (WPG) is a non-profit organization in the state of Georgia with an office in Atlanta. With Stephanie Davis as its first executive director, WPG initially had a two-part mission: to be "a source of research and information for legislators considering policies affecting women," as well as "a convenor of women for an annual meeting on shared policy concerns and interests." Because of its focus on the legislature, the organization wanted to have a voice at the Georgia General Assembly. This created the need for two separate organizations: the Women's Policy Education Fund (which is tax-exempt and recently changed its name to Georgia Women for a Change) and the Women's Policy Group (still so named and not tax-exempt). Although separate, the two organizations share their main mission, which is to bring interested parties together to study the problems that keep women and their families underemployed, impoverished, and underserved in order to find workable solutions. Over the years, the organizations have produced a number of important research papers and projects on a variety of issues impacting women.

When the WPG first met as a group, members decided that they did not want to be a formal organization, but rather preferred to meet regularly in order to learn about issues of importance, including child care, child support, health issues, employment issues, violence against women and children, reproductive freedom, and tax policies that particularly affect women and children. A steering committee was formed to be responsible for continued communication and programming.

For 20 years the WPG raised enough money to be able to hire a lobbyist to represent women's voices in the Georgia General Assembly, which has been vital to the organization's success. Much of this money was raised through auctions organized solely by volunteers. Funds were also raised by individuals, corporations, and foundations to convene the annual Women's Assembly which drew at least 100 participants every year for 20 years (typically with a national speaker). Over the years, the WPG has held monthly "Brown Bag Forums" that are be open to everyone and which serve as a vehicle for exploring problems and solutions for issues. It has also maintained a very successful "Bookmark" series which was developed as a way to inform legislators and others working at the Capitol about critical issues affecting women.