Joan Wages is the President of the National Women’s History Museum (NWHM), an organization dedicated to educating people about the contributions women have made to history.  The museum’s online site is used by over 21,000 educational institutions and ever since its inception, Joan and many other famous women have been lobbying Congress and the Senate for a permanent facility on the Mall in Washington D.C. Wages returns to Speak Up! to discuss how close they are to this goal, and how all women can help make history.

More about Joan Bradley Wages
Joan Wages is a founding board member of NWHM and worked to raise the money and pass legislation to move the Suffrage Statue depicting founders of the U.S. suffrage movement from the U.S. Capitol Crypt upstairs into the Rotunda where it now stands. For over a decade, she has worked to identify a building site for the Museum and to lobby Congress for a permanent home.  She was elected President of NWHM in July 2007.

Ms. Wages has served as president of Cash, Smith & Wages, a consulting firm with offices in Alexandria, Virginia. The firm specializes in government affairs, developing strategy and communications for getting federal legislation passed. Joan is a registered lobbyist with a wide range of political experience including state and federal legislation, national grassroots lobbying campaigns, lobbying federal agencies to influence the regulatory process, and political campaigns. She writes frequently for national publications.

Ms. Wages has focused on women's issues on Capitol Hill and has worked with legislators, women's organizations and related political activities. Her legislative accomplishments include passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act, the smoking ban on aircraft, numerous aviation security measures and Delaware legislation preventing the take-over of corporations by corporate raiders. As a Political Action Committees (PAC) Director, she has frequent contact with members of Congress. Ms. Wages has been politically active and participated in numerous professional and political organizations. She also served on the Board of the Virginia Alliance for Health Care Freedom.

Ms. Wages has worked in public relations giving radio and television interviews. She frequently speaks to groups ranging from 30 to 500 people and is a published author. She has a B.A. in Mathematics from Auburn University and a MBA degree in Philosophy from Columbia Pacific.

More about National Women's History Museum
The National Women’s History Museum, founded in 1996, is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution dedicated to preserving, interpreting, and celebrating the diverse historic contributions of women, and fully integrating this rich heritage into our nation's history.

Although women constitute a majority of the population, their lives, achievements, and contributions are underrepresented in museums. Recognition of the achievements made by American women will promote a better understanding of our history and culture for all who visit Washington, D.C.

In 1999, The President's Commission on the Celebration of  Women in American History called for a women's history museum on the Mall in Washington, DC, and specifically cited the NWHM in that role.