The collection includes internal and external organizational records for the National Organization of Women (NOW), the Wisconsin Governor's Commission on the Status of Women, the Interstate Association of Commissions on the Status of Women, the National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year, the University of Wisconsin Women's Education Resources Program, the Wisconsin Women's Council, the Citizen's Advisory Council on the Status of Women, the National Commission on Working Women, the Wisconsin Women's Network, and the Association of Faculty Women at the University of Wisconsin. These records contain meeting minutes, agendas, publications, correspondence, conference proceedings, correspondence, legislation, speech transcripts, photographs, and recorded speeches. The collection also includes Clarenbach's personal correspondence, calendars, speech transcripts, and recordings of her appearances at conferences and on radio programs.
Series 41/4/4/4/1 National Organization for Women contains material from the National Organization for Women (NOW) collected by Clarenbach from 1964 to 1988, including during her time as chair of NOW's board from 1966 to 1970 and as President of NOW's Legal Defense and Education Fund 1981. The series includes: materials related to individual NOW chapters; correspondence with other NOW leaders including The Feminist Mystique author Betty Friedan and Black feminist civil rights lawyer Dr. Pauli Murray; conference materials related to NOW National Conventions; NOW board meeting minutes and related correspondence; and agendas, meeting minutes, and publications from NOW's Legal Defense and Education Fund.
Series 41/4/4/4/2 Governor's Commission on the Status of Women contains material about the Wisconsin Governor's Commission on the Status of Women dating from 1948 to 1989. Clarenbach worked with state women's organizations to pressure Governor John Reynolds to establish the commission in 1964. She served as chair of the commission from 1964 to 1969 and from 1971 to 1979. This series includes correspondence with the Governor and other key players, reports, conference proceedings, executive orders, legislation, publications, meeting minutes, and clippings documenting how the commission empowered activists across the state and influenced new more equitable legislation regarding divorce, marital property, and equal pay.
Series 41/4/4/4/3 Interstate Association of Commissions on the Status of Women covers Clarenbach's involvement in the Interstate Association of Commissions on the Status of Women reorganized as the National Association of Commissions for Women in 1975. The materials date from 1972 to 1977. The organization was founded in 1970 as a national federation of official government commissions and equivalent agencies created to enhance the status of women. Clarenbach served as the first president of the organization from 1970 to 1972. It includes convention materials, correspondence, annual meeting minutes, and resolutions.
Series 41/4/4/4/4 National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year details Clarenbach's leadership in The National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year and includes publications, correspondence, meeting minutes, programs, and photographs related to the National Women's Conference in Houston in 1977. The National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year was established by President Gerald Ford to promote observance of International Women's Year. Clarenbach served as consultant on the Commission's Arts and Humanities Committee and as deputy coordinator of the 1977 National Women's Conference observance of International Women's Year. The 1977 conference was a watershed event in the feminist movement which produced a National Plan of Action for women's rights and pressured the Senate to grant an extension on the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Series 41/4/4/4/5 Women's Education Resources contains correspondence, clippings, conference materials, publications, reports, speeches, programs, committee records, and brochures related to University of Wisconsin Extension's Women's Education Program from 1960 to 1980. Topics covered include the Women's Education Resources Program, the E. B. Fred Fellowship, a scholarship for non-traditional women students, women's opportunities in apprenticeships, and rural women's education.
Series 41/4/4/4/6 Wisconsin Women's Council Records, Miscellaneous Organizational Records, Correspondence, Speeches, and Conference Materials includes a variety of materials related to Clarenbach's involvement in the Wisconsin Women's Council, International Women's Year, the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women, the Citizen's Advisory Council on the Status of Women, and numerous conferences from 1962 to 1994. After Governor Lee Drefus eliminated the Wisconsin Commission on the Status of Women in 1979, Governor Tony Earl codified the Wisconsin Women's Council in 1983 with the mission to continue working to improve the status of women in the state. The materials in this series include publications, transcripts of Clarenbach's speeches, calendars, correspondence, clippings, meeting minutes, course materials, reports, and ephemera. This series includes additional materials related to the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women, including transcripts, meeting minutes, and correspondence. Conference materials cover numerous events such as the 1985 Second National Conference on Women and the Arts, which included notable speakers including Clarenbach, Robin Morgan, and Betty Friedan. Transcripts of Clarenbach's speeches from 1967 to 1987 cover numerous topics including the Equal Rights Amendment, the lives of homemakers, labor protections for women, and the peace movement.
Series 41/4/4/4/7 Association of Faculty Women, National Commission on Working Women, and Equal Rights Amendment records also contains a mix of organizational records, speeches, and conference materials. The series includes numerous clippings regarding the Equal Rights Amendment, maternity benefits, and labor rights. It also includes transcripts of Clarenbach's speeches (some categorized by location) and correspondence. Organizational papers include correspondence, meeting minutes, conference materials, and photographs regarding the National Commission on Working Women the Wisconsin Women's Network, and the Association of Faculty Women at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Series 41/4/4/4/8 Audio-Visual Media includes audio reels and audio cassette recordings of Clarenbach's speeches, sessions of the 1969 Governor's Conference on the Status of Women, Clarenbach's appearances on radio shows like "On the Record," and conferences like the 1983 National Organization for Women Conference.
Series 41/4/4/4/9: Memory Books includes four memory books filled with clippings, sympathy cards, memorial programs, and correspondence related to Clarenbach's memorial service. The correspondence includes messages from Governor George McGovern and feminist luminaries including Betty Friedan and Barbara Cox.
