Quota International, Inc. is an international
service organization
A service club or service organization is a voluntary nonprofit organization where members meet regularly to perform charitable works either by direct hands-on efforts or by raising money for other organizations. A service club is defined firstly ...
that, provides basic needs to women, children, the
deaf
Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...
, and hard of hearing in communities around the world. Quota International's world service projects were aligned with the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
'
Millennium Development Goals
In the United Nations, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight international development goals for the year 2015 created following the Millennium Summit, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration. These w ...
. Specifically, Quota clubs worked towards UN MDG Goals 1 and 3: to eradicate
extreme poverty
Extreme poverty is the most severe type of poverty, defined by the United Nations (UN) as "a condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, ...
and hunger, and to promote gender equality and empower women, respectively. The organization was founded in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
, in 1919 by Wanda Frey Joiner, as a service club for women similar to that of popular all-male clubs.
History
Wanda Frey Joiner
Wanda Frey Joiner was born in
Odessa
ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...
in 1882. Her father, Alexander Frey, was of German heritage and studied at the
Imperial Academy of Arts
The Imperial Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by Ivan Shuvalov, the founder of the Imperial Moscow University, under the name ''Academy of th ...
in
St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...
. Shortly after her father's death, Wanda and her mother immigrated to the United States. Her maternal grandfather, Ludwig Koehler, was a noted German poet and doctor of philosophy. In 1907 Wanda Frey was married to Robert Parks Joiner, but was widowed only three years later. After her husband's death she took an extensive business course at Caton's National Business College in Buffalo. Joiner found work in the Buffalo paint and glass industry as a filing clerk. Over the years she worked her way up the ranks. She became a member of the board of directors, president and general manager, and eventually helped lead two firms to multimillion-dollar status. Joiner founded Quota International, Inc. with four other female business colleagues. Joiner served as the first International President of the Quota International. Throughout her life she continued to build upon her business ventures while also devoting time to Quota International. In 1968 Joiner died at her home in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. In accordance with her will, a memorial fund was established in her name to help in the establishment of new Quota clubs and to strengthen existing clubs.
Early years
Formation
Less than a month after the end of the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the idea for an international women's service organization arose at a ladies Christmas party at the
Kiwanis Club
Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...
in Buffalo, New York in 1918. During the war, many women found ways to assist the war effort by joining the workforce and organizing campaigns to support troops abroad. When the war ended, many women wanted to continue down the road of female employment and empowerment. Quota international was formed from that fervor.
The organization was founded by Wanda Frey Joiner and four other prominent female businesswomen from the Buffalo area: Florence M. Smith, Alice C. Sauers, Ora G. Cole, Jean Ware Redpath. These women joined together to charter and incorporate an all-female service club on February 6, 1919. This feat was impressive because it took place one year before U.S. women were granted their right to vote via the
19th Amendment. After Quota's initial charter and incorporation the organization began establishing local clubs in nearby states.
International influence
Quota International established its first club outside of the United States in
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...
, Canada, in 1925, making Quota the first international women's service organization. Although
Altrusa International Altrusa International, Inc (Altrusa) is an international non-profit organization focused on community service. It was founded in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1917 by Dr. Alfred Durham as a chain of national clubs for business and professional women.
H ...
was formed as a women's service club in 1917, it was incorporated as a national organization. Its title was ''The National Association of Altrusa Clubs,'' before it became an international service organization in 1935. After Quota's foundation in February 1919, other women's service organizations formed in the same manner.
Zonta International
Zonta International is an international service organization with the mission of Building a Better World for Women and Girls, in support of Sustainable Development Goal 5. Alan Axelrod, ''International Encyclopedia of Secret Societies and Frate ...
was established in Buffalo, New York, in November 1919 to advance the status of women and became an alternative to Quota International.
Soroptimist International
Soroptimist International (SI) , founded in 1921, is a global volunteer service for women with almost 66,000 members in 118 countries worldwide. Soroptimist International also offers Associate Membership and E-Clubs.
Soroptimist International h ...
was formed in October 1921 as a community service organization for business and professional women. After establishing an international base, Quota International, Inc. continued to grow in Canada and eventually to Australia, New Zealand, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, Fiji, Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Eustatius, the Netherlands, and Suriname.
During the early years of Quota, the organization's focus targeted and promoted: good citizenship, crime prevention, extending friendly relations, gaining recognition for the achievements of women, and international relations. However, with the outbreak of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, priorities for the club changed. Quotarians worked together to raise funds to purchase two ambulances for the
Red Cross
The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...
and worked on a variety of other war and defense projects, including: joining the
civil defense
Civil defense or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from human-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency management: Risk management, prevention, mitigation, prepara ...
, helping at nurseries, canteen work, selling
war bonds
War bonds (sometimes referred to as victory bonds, particularly in propaganda) are debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war without raising taxes to an unpopular level. They are ...
, performing
blood typing
Blood compatibility testing is conducted in a medical laboratory to identify potential incompatibilities between Human blood group systems, blood group systems in blood transfusion. It is also used to diagnose and prevent some complications of pr ...
, sewing and knitting, and attending first aid courses. Upon the conclusion of the war, the organization modified its objectives. At the 1946 convention it was decided that Quota International would now emphasize service for the needs of the deaf and hard-of-hearing, while continuing to support and empower women and children.
Name
The group of founding women wanted to select a short and memorable name that reflected their values and goals for the club. One member looked through the dictionary and came upon a Latin word , meaning "a share of one part to a whole." They named the organization, Quota Club International, Inc., which was shortened in 1961 to simply, Quota International, Inc.
World Center for Women's Archives
At Quota International's 20th Convention in 1939, the organization promoted the World Center for Women's Archives in New York, which had formed in 1935. This World Center was also supported by many famous women's rights activist, including:
Inez Haynes Irwin
Inez Haynes Irwin (March 2, 1873 – September 25, 1970) was an American feminist author, journalist, member of the National Woman's Party, and president of the Authors Guild. Many of her works were published under her former name Inez Haynes Gi ...
,
Florence E. Allen,
Dorothy Thompson
Dorothy Celene Thompson (July 9, 1893 – January 30, 1961) was an American journalist and radio broadcaster. She was the first American journalist to be expelled from Nazi Germany, in 1934, and was one of the few women news commentators broadc ...
,
Ida Tarbell
Ida Minerva Tarbell (November 5, 1857January 6, 1944) was an American writer, Investigative journalism, investigative journalist, List of biographers, biographer, and lecturer. She was one of the leading muckrakers and reformers of the Progre ...
,
Mary R. Beard, and
Rosika Schwimmer
Rosika Schwimmer (; 11 September 1877 – 3 August 1948) was a Hungarian-born pacifist, feminist, world federalist and women's suffragist. A co-founder of the Campaign for World Government with Lola Maverick Lloyd, her radical vision of world ...
. Despite Quota's efforts, the Women's Archives closed and dissolved in 1940 due to inadequate funding and internal disputes.
Dissolution
On September 30, 2020, the Quota International Board of Directors voted to propose the dissolution of Quota International, Inc., The primary cause for this decision was the drop of Quota's membership below a level that was viable to sustain the organization going forward. Thirty-two clubs had dissolved since October 1, 2018, and Quota's membership at that time had dropped to a new low of 3,638 members, a drop of 416 members and 32 clubs as of October 1, 2018—just one year before.
Purpose
Mission
Quota International is a non-profit organization empowering women, children, the deaf and hard-of-hearing, and people with speech difficulties in local communities around the world.
The objectives of Quota International shall be to seek individuals committed to sharing their time, talent, and resources to meet Quota International's service goals, and more particularly:
*To serve country and community;
*To promote high ethical standards;
*To emphasize the dignity of all useful occupations;
*To develop good fellowship and friendship; and
*To advance the ideals of righteousness, justice, international understanding, and good will.
Motto
The motto of Quota International, Inc. is "We Share." The founders hoped to share their talents and abilities to help people in need. Members continue to uphold this motto through community service, developing meaningful friendships, and promoting international understanding.
Organization
Board of directors
The organization is supervised by a 5-member board of directors. Every two years the organization holds an international convention where international officers are elected by the membership. These international officers are guided by the ''Quota International Bylaws and Rules of Procedure'' which were created in 1919 and are amended annually.
Regional directors
In 2014, Quota International updated its organizational structure, dissolving the 43 districts that had been in place since 1933. The new structure allows for 20 regions, each with its own regional director. These new regional directors are elected every two years.
Clubs and membership
"Quotarians"
This is the name given to members of Quota International. Quotarians are located in many countries around the world working to better their communities and serve others. There are approximately 5,600 Quotarians who comprise 270 Quota clubs. Every two years Quotarians come together for an international convention to share ideas and service projects, vote on changes to club leadership and organization, and build fellowship.
Notable Quotarians
*The Honorable
Ruth Bryan Owen
Ruth Baird Leavitt Owen Rohde (née Bryan; October 2, 1885 – July 26, 1954), also known as Ruth Bryan Owen, was an American politician and diplomat who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1929 to 1933 and served as ...
– Florida's first female representative in the
U.S. Congress
The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...
and diplomat; elected honorary member in 1934
*Viscountess
Nancy Astor
Nancy Witcher Astor, Viscountess Astor (19 May 1879 – 2 May 1964) was an American-born British politician who was the first woman seated as a Member of Parliament (MP), serving from 1919 to 1945. Astor was born in Danville, Virginia and rai ...
– First female member of British Parliament in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
; elected honorary member in 1938
*Ms.
Nanette Fabray
Nanette Fabray (born Ruby Bernadette Nanette Theresa Fabares; October 27, 1920 – February 22, 2018) was an American actress, singer and dancer. She began her career performing in vaudeville as a child and became a musical-theatre actress dur ...
– American actress, dancer, and singer who overcame hearing impairment and became an advocate for the rights of the deaf and hard-of-hearing; elected honorary member in 1976
*Ms. Edna P. Adler – Member of the Rehabilitation Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Education, researched and developed comprehensive rehabilitation services for the deaf and hard-of-hearing; elected to honorary recognition in 1980
Quota International Club
These are the general local clubs associated with Quota International, also known as QI clubs. Both women and men can join QI clubs around the world. Each club can generate its own goals and service projects to help women, children, the deaf, hard-of-hearing, speech-impaired, and community members in need. QI clubs must apply to become legal entities before being granted charter.
Silver Q Quota Club
These clubs are targeted at an older population of Quotarians. Q clubs tend to focus on short-term and simple acts of service and promoting fellowship among members. Many Silver Q Quotarians are retired and can devote more time to many small service projects to help their community.
Next Gen Quota Club
These clubs are targeted at a young adults, parents, and professionals. Next Gen Quota Clubs tend to be flexible to meet the busy schedules of their members. These Quotarians participate in service projects and programs, act as community leaders, and network with other like-minded individuals wishing to serve their community.
Junior Quota Club
These clubs are branches of a Quota International club and are targeted at students in primary and secondary school and even college. Junior Quotarians typically assist their supporting Quota International clubs in service projects. In addition, some Junior Quota clubs develop their own service events to improve their schools or assist other areas in need.
Service projects
The three areas of focus for Quota International Service Projects are: "World Service", "Disadvantaged Women & Children", and "Hearing & Speech". Quota Clubs around the world work together to perform service projects and develop programs in their communities based on these platforms. Some of the projects performed by local clubs entail: promoting healthy hearing habits, helping to empower impoverished women and children, developing literacy programs, providing comfort and mentoring programs, etc. Clubs hold fundraisers throughout the year to raise money for their charitable projects. The "Listen Up, Turn It Down" public awareness campaign has been popular among many Quota clubs.
We Share Foundation
The We Share Foundation is a charitable organization established to support club service projects and programs in critical areas. "Quota's We Share Foundation provides training, guidance, technical support, publications, and grants, including sharing time, talents, and resources to those who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, or speech-impaired."
[Noisy Planet, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders](_blank)
/ref> Donations to the We Share Foundation also contribute to ''the Quotarian'' magazine, a publication about Quota projects, events, and members.
Hand-in-Hand World Service
This program was developed in 1983, under the name Club-to-Club, to organize Quota clubs in developing countries
A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed Secondary sector of the economy, industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. ...
. There are 21 Quota Club projects in six developing countries: Fiji
Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
, India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, the Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, Suriname
Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...
, and Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...
. The program was set up to assist individuals and also increase the awareness of international issues around the world.
200px, Philippine School for the Deaf (Quota International of Manila)
200px, Philippine National School for the Blind (Quota International of Manila)
Partnerships
Since its inception, Quota International has partnered with a number of organizations that help women, children, the deaf, hard-of-hearing, and speech-impaired. These organizations include:
*The United Nations ECOSOC
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is one of six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization, specifically in regards to the fifteen specialized ...
: NGO in Consultative Status
* UNA-USA Council of Organizations: Member Organization
*UNICEF
UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...
* HHS: National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
*CARE
Care may refer to:
Organizations and projects
* CARE (New Zealand), Citizens Association for Racial Equality, a former New Zealand organisation
* CARE (England) West Midlands, Central Accident Resuscitation Emergency team, a team of doctors & ...
: the Quota International-CARE "Key to Development" project was developed to establish clean water sources to Kenyan villages; Quota Assisted in the CARE-MEDICO program that trained nurses in Afghanistan
*National Association of the Deaf (United States)
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) is an organization for the promotion of the rights of deaf people in the United States. NAD was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1880 as a non-profit organization run by Deaf people to advocate for deaf r ...
(NAD): Organizational Affiliate
*Youth Service America
Youth Service America (YSA) is an international nonprofit organization promoting youth service, youth voice and youth volunteerism.
Summary
The purpose of the YSA is to support and promote youth voice, youth service, and service-learning t ...
: National partners
Controversy
Over the years there has been some controversy over the name "Quota", specifically in the United States and Australia. Some have thought it to be a negative term, especially in the context of women, having to do with regulations, limited quantities, and affirmative action
Affirmative action (also sometimes called reservations, alternative access, positive discrimination or positive action in various countries' laws and policies) refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking ...
.
In addition, there has been tension about the organization's logo and motto. Some individuals believe changes within the organization would be positive, while others wish to keep the status quo.
There was also some discontent with regards to the restructuring of the organization, as stated above: Organization
An organization or organisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences) is an legal entity, entity—such as ...
.
References
* {{commons category-inline
International women's organizations
Service organizations based in the United States