Access
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Processing Information
Biography
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Related Material
Contributing Institution:
California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
Title: Ronnie Sandler Collection
Identifier/Call Number: SPC.2016.014
Physical Description:
27 boxes
Physical Description:
16.28 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1942-2016; undated
Date (bulk): 1990-1998
Abstract: This collection documents the work of Ronnie Sandler, an activist in the tradeswomen's movement. Much of Sandler's work focused
on expanding women's access to fields where they had not traditionally been employed, such as building trades and transportation.
The bulk of the collection focuses on Sandler's efforts to organize with tradeswomen's organizations to access funds from
the Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991, in order to train women for nontraditional jobs;
reports, contracts, proposals and other documents regarding various Compliance U.S.A. projects, a company Sandler founded
that consulted on employment and civil rights related matters for construction projects; and material related to Northeast
Women in Transportation (NEWIT) and consulting projects. The collection contains organizational papers and correspondence
related to these organizing efforts, as well as numerous manuals and reports related to women's employment; documents generated
by various tradeswomen organizations; and materiral related to tradeswomen events and conferences. For digitized material
related to all tradeswomen archives collections please consult the
Tradeswomen Archives Project .
Language of Material:
English
.
Access
There are no access restrictions on this collection except where noted at folder-level.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives
and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical
materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Donated by Pat Williams as part of the Tradeswomen Archives project at California State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH).
Processing Information
Collection processed by Evan Tucker, 2016.
Biography
Ronnie Sandler grew up in northern New England and earned a BA in psychology and education from Franconia College in New Hampshire
in 1971. In 1972 Sandler began her career as a carpenter in New Hampshire, and would later go on to become a union activist
in her chosen profession. In 1976 she became the first woman to join a trades union in Michigan when she became a member of
the Detroit local of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America. While in Michigan Sandler started a program
called STEP-UP for Women, to prepare women for successful entrance into apprenticeship programs. In 1985 she created another
iteration of this program in Vermont with funding from the Vermont Department of Education.
In 1987 Sandler founded Northern New England Tradeswomen Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women enter
nontraditional careers. As executive director of Northern New England Tradeswomen Inc. Sandler was an active member of a coalition
called Northeast Women in Transportation (NEWIT). This coalition was created to help the member organizations and other women's
advocates learn about accessing funds from the Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991, to train
women for jobs in the transportation industry. Sandler worked with NEWIT to put on several conferences about accessing ISTEA
funds to involve more women in transportation careers. Sandler went on to start the firm Compliance U.S.A. which consulted
on employment and civil rights related matters for construction projects.
Scope and Content
The papers and audiovisual materials comprising the Ronnie Sandler collection (1942-2016; undated, bulk 1990-1998) document
her career as an active member of the tradeswomen's movement.
Much of the correspondence and organizational materials in this collection are related to Ronnie Sandler's efforts to organize
with other tradeswomen's organizations to access funds from the Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA)
of 1991, to train women for non-traditional jobs. These efforts include lobbying members of congress, the U.S. Department
of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Labor, and state transportation agencies. ISTEA, which was signed into law in 1991
and expired in 1997, contained a provision in which ¼ of 1% of funding received by states could be used to train women and
minorities for transportation jobs. As the executive director of Northern New England Tradeswomen Inc. Sandler also participated
in coalition of organizations called Northeast Women in Transportation (NEWIT) that was dedicated to making ISTEA funds available
for job training for women. NEWIT organized conferences called IT'S ISTEA TIME and ISTEA II to strategize how to secure these
funds from transportation agencies throughout the United States. Also included are reports, contracts, proposals and other
material from Compliance, U.S.A.- a company founded by Sandler.
The bulk of this collection consists of reports and manuals; as well as Compliance U.S.A. and NEWIT project contracts and
proposals; and other consulting projects such as: Better Jobs for New Hampshire Women, CareerInRoads, On-The-Job-Training
Program, and projects through the New Hampshire and Maine Departments of Transportation. The most frequent topics addressed
in the reports and manuals are: ISTEA, women in non-traditional jobs, and sexual harassment in the workplace. Some of the
documents are official statistics or reports from government agencies but the bulk of the manuals are from tradeswomen's organizations
like NEWIT.
Formats include organizational records, calendars, promotional materials, scholarly articles, business cards, newsletters
and other publications, newspaper clippings, books, correspondence, receipts and financial documents, handwritten notes, photographs,
VHS tapes, and tote bags.
Arrangement
Arranged in seven series:
- Series I. Correspondence (1989-2001)
- Series II. Organizational Materials and Notes (1978-2000; undated)
- Series III. Consulting Projects and Compliance U.S.A. (1988-2012; undated)
- Series IV. ISTEA/NEWIT (1990-2002; undated)
- Series V. Tradeswomen Organizations, Events, and Programs (1970-2016; undated)
- Series VI. Reports and Manuals (1977-2013; undated)
- Series VII. Publications, News Media, and Promotional Materials (1943-2006, bulk 1989-2006)
Related Material
For related collections please consult: Lynn Shaw Collection; Oregon Tradeswoman Collection; Pat Williams Collection; Vivian
Price Collection; Madeline Mixer Collection; Kelly Baar Collection; Jane Templin Collection; and Molly Martin Collection.
For digitized material related to all tradeswomen archives collections please consult the
Tradeswomen Archives Project .
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Affirmative action programs -- United States
Apprenticeship programs -- United States
Building trades -- United States
Diversity in the workplace -- United States
Nontraditional employment for women -- United States
Occupational training for women -- United States
Women -- Employment -- United States
Sexual harassment -- United States
Discrimination in employment -- Law and legislation -- United States
Sex discrimination in employment
Andrews, Thomas H. (Thomas Hiram), 1953-
Brown, Hattie
Butler, Linda Lyons
Dassler, Lee
Frank, Sandra
Gilbert, Jane
Golding, Priscilla
Morella, Constance A., 1931-
Leahy, Patrick
Mitchell, George J. (George John), 1933-
Perkins, Janet
Sanders, Bernard
Takagi, Tani
Women's Project
Boston Tradeswomen's Network
Ms. Foundation for Women (U.S.)
Northeast Women in Transportation (NEWIT)
Northern New England Tradeswomen, Inc.
National Tradeswomen's Network
Sheet Metal Occupational Health Institute Trust
Sheet Metal Workers' International Association
Tradeswomen of Philadelphia/Women in Non-traditional Work, Inc. (TOP/WIN)
Wider Opportunities for Women, Inc.
Women in the Building Trades
WOMEN Unlimited, Inc.
Maine. Department of Transportation
New Hampshire. Department of Transportation
Wisconsin. Department of Transportation
United States. Federal Highway Administration
United States. Department of Labor
United States. Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act of 1991
McCormick, Dale