Celebrating the Nineteenth Amendment


by on

On the AMERICA online magazine, here is an interesting profile of one of our upcoming authors:

“Ninety years ago this week Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment, giving women a right to vote that should have been inalienable. This week, Joanne Gavin continues apace in coauthoring her third book, Live Your Dreams: Change Your World, a powerful guide for women that offers scientific approaches from fields of business management, cognitive and executive psychology, stress management and preventative medicine. The book is set for 2011 publication by American Mental Health Foundation Books.

“Gavin is chair of the Department of Management in the Business School at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York. (disclaimer: I am Gavin’s colleague at Marist and serve on the AMHF Board.) Gavin is coauthoring her latest book with her authors of The Financial Times Guide To Executive Health, Second Edition. These include James Campbell Quick, stress expert and Fellow of the American Psychological Association, Cary Cooper, and Jonathan Quick, MD.

“‘We are asking women to take stock of their physical, emotional, and spiritual health,’ Gavin says. ‘Although we celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment this week, many women still need to fight to obtain access to equal opportunity in many settings.’

“‘The stresses faced create a perfect storm of hurdles, frustrations, demands from others, as well as internal doubts. Women still bear the bulk of child care/household work, and have the additional pressure of careers and service in the community. Many women now have the double responsibility of taking care of children and aging parents.’

“‘In the United States, women’s lifespan traditionally have been longer than men’s. ‘Women’s life expectancy is going down as women continue to assume the double responsibility of home and career,” Gavin said, “and the gap between their lifespan and men’s is narrowing.’

“In their upcoming book, Gavin and her coauthors offer cognitive therapy approaches as well as medical findings on stress management. The role of spirituality in certain situations is examined, as this is now considered one of the areas to be assessed in executive health. One situation where spirituality comes into play is when women face situations that cannot be changed, and here Gavin suggests the use of the traditional serenity prayer: ‘Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.'”

Gavin and her husband, David, have been married for thirty-six years. Gavin believes herself fortunate in having been a full-time mother, and after this experiencing a challenging and rewarding career.


Filed under: