Joy Simonson
Encyclopedia
Joy Rosenheim Simonson was a women's rights and progressive activist. A New York City
native and graduate of Bryn Mawr College
, she began her career in the 1940s for the War Manpower Commission
.
In 1945, she worked for the U. N. Relief and Rehabilitation Administration in Egypt and Yugoslavia
at the end of the war, then as a civilian for Army headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, until 1948, when she and her husband returned to Washington.
She was a member of the national commission on the International Women's Year and was a delegate from Washington to the 1977 National Women's Conference in Houston. She also attended the U.N. women's conferences in Copenhagen
in 1980 and Nairobi
in 1985.
From 1975 to 1982, Simonson was the executive director of the National Advisory Council on Women's Educational Programs. Under Simonson's leadership the Council helped the Department of Education and the Women's Educational Equity Act Program by preparing some of the first reports on women's studies, sexual harassment, and the first edition of the Handbook for Achieving Sex Equity through Education. With the election of Ronald Reagan
, however, she was fired and replaced by a member of Phyllis Schlafly
's Eagle Forum
.
; president of the D.C. League of Women Voters
; vice president of Executive Women in Government; and was the founder of the D.C. Commission for Women.
From 1982 to 1990, Ms. Simonson worked as an oversight investigator for the House Employment and Housing Subcommittee. In 1992, she was elected to the District of Columbia Women's Hall of Fame.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
native and graduate of Bryn Mawr College
Bryn Mawr College
Bryn Mawr College is a women's liberal arts college located in Bryn Mawr, a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, ten miles west of Philadelphia. The name "Bryn Mawr" means "big hill" in Welsh....
, she began her career in the 1940s for the War Manpower Commission
War Manpower Commission
The War Manpower Commission was a World War II agency of the United States Government charged with planning to balance the labor needs of agriculture, industry and the armed forces. It was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Executive Order 9139 of April 18, 1942. Its chairman was Paul V...
.
In 1945, she worked for the U. N. Relief and Rehabilitation Administration in Egypt and Yugoslavia
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
at the end of the war, then as a civilian for Army headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, until 1948, when she and her husband returned to Washington.
She was a member of the national commission on the International Women's Year and was a delegate from Washington to the 1977 National Women's Conference in Houston. She also attended the U.N. women's conferences in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
in 1980 and Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
in 1985.
From 1975 to 1982, Simonson was the executive director of the National Advisory Council on Women's Educational Programs. Under Simonson's leadership the Council helped the Department of Education and the Women's Educational Equity Act Program by preparing some of the first reports on women's studies, sexual harassment, and the first edition of the Handbook for Achieving Sex Equity through Education. With the election of Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, however, she was fired and replaced by a member of Phyllis Schlafly
Phyllis Schlafly
Phyllis McAlpin Stewart Schlafly is a Constitutional lawyer and an American politically conservative activist and author who founded the Eagle Forum. She is known for her opposition to modern feminism ideas and for her campaign against the proposed Equal Rights Amendment...
's Eagle Forum
Eagle Forum
Eagle Forum is a conservative interest group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. The Eagle Forum has been primarily focused on social issues; it describes...
.
Career
During Simonson's career she was the first woman to serve as chair of the DC Alcoholic Beverage Control Board; President of the Clearinghouse on Women's Issues; chief hearing examiner for the D.C. Rent Commission; Assistant Director of the Federal Women's Program of the U.S. Civil Service CommissionCivil Service Commission
-Chairmen:*John Houghton MHK, 2004-date*George Waft MLC, 1996-2004*Clare Christian MLC, 1981-1982*Noel Cringle MLC, 1992-1996*Walter Gilbey, years unknown...
; president of the D.C. League of Women Voters
League of Women Voters
The League of Women Voters is an American political organization founded in 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt during the last meeting of the National American Woman Suffrage Association approximately six months before the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution gave women the right to vote...
; vice president of Executive Women in Government; and was the founder of the D.C. Commission for Women.
From 1982 to 1990, Ms. Simonson worked as an oversight investigator for the House Employment and Housing Subcommittee. In 1992, she was elected to the District of Columbia Women's Hall of Fame.