The History of Women in Rotary

It was in May of 1987 that the United States Supreme Court ruled that Rotary clubs may not exclude women from membership on the basis of gender. In that same year, Rotary International issued a policy that any Rotary club in the United States could admit qualified women into membership. This is the 30^th anniversary year of that decision.

It all started in 1977 when the Rotary Club of Duarte CA admitted three women into their club. When they submitted their names to Rotary International, they used initials instead of first names for the women. RI eventually found out about the women members, and when they did, they terminated the club's charter.

The Duarte club decided to go to court over the issue, and it eventually worked its way to the Supreme Court. It was a great decision for women—and for Rotary. Clubs all over the United States began inviting women to join, and their clubs became stronger in the process.

In 1989, Rotary International changed their constitution to eliminate the requirement that membership in Rotary was limited to men. Women were welcome to join Rotary clubs all over the world.

Currently, women make up 15% of Rotarians worldwide and 22% in North America. In our Rotary Passport club, nearly 50% of our members are women!