OUR HISTORY
Celebrating over 100 years of community, advocacy, education, and service.
The College Women’s Club of Montclair (CWCM) is a 501c3 nonprofit composed of women with post-secondary education who believe strongly in the advancement of women through education and advocacy. We work to promote educational opportunities for women, provide financial aid to high school seniors pursuing higher education, and gather for social events.
FOUNDING
On May 25, 1911, a group of college women living in Montclair organized the College Women’s Club. Its first objective, promoting congenial sociability, expanded within the year to include a second, that of providing college scholarship aid to girls graduating from local high schools.
In 1928 the Club became a Branch of American Association of University Women which now includes more than 140,000 members banded together “to enable college women to continue their own intellectual growth, to further the advancement of women, and to discharge the special responsibilities to society of those who have enjoyed the advantages of higher education.” Members attended state and regional meetings and workshops and the biennial national convention.
FUNDRAISING
In 1970, the College Women’s Club of Montclair (CWCM) was incorporated and a year later was determined a tax-exempt organization. It has raised funds for fellowships and awards in several ways, chiefly through a semi-annual USED BOOK, MOVIE & MEDIA SALE. Many members contribute a significant amount of time to sorting and pricing the books donated by the community for our twice yearly Book Sale.
In 2010, we celebrated 75 years of our Book Sale, which has generated over two million dollars in scholarship aid to area girls since its inception. For this event, we hosted local authors with a keynote by Dorothy Benton Frank.
CENTENNIAL
In 2011, we celebrated the 100th anniversary of our CWCM with a tea and program at Liberty Hall Museum, former home of the Livingston and Kean families, at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. The CWCM has members from the surrounding communities of Wayne, Little Falls, Caldwell, Bloomfield, Cedar Grove, and Glen Ridge, in addition to Montclair. We hold monthly meetings, have special interest groups, and host one fundraising activity a year, in addition to our Book Sale.
RECENT EVENTS
In 2011, we welcomed the Livingston Branch of AAUW, founded in 1960, to merge with us. Although we have enjoyed our long association with AAUW, the CWCM severed its connection with the national organization in December 2023 to concentrate on the CWCM Book Sale and local community activities in the towns from which we draw our members.