Women's and Children's Alliance - Boise

The Women’s and Children’s Alliance of Boise (WCA) is a non-profit organization working to educate the public and end domestic and sexual abuse/assault. Formerly known as the Young Women’s Christian Association of Boise (YWCA), the organization is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2011. It is commemorating its anniversary with the publication of a history book, a Centennial Celebration to be held in September of 2011, a Fettuccine Forum presentation in March of 2012, and various other activities.

The YWCA was begun as a program to provide direction to safe housing for young women moving to Boise during the early 1900s, when young women’s housing options were often unsafe or unsanitary. A group of local young women joined together and soon raised both the funds and membership necessary to become a national YWCA affiliate. The YWCA also ran a cafeteria, an employment agency, a safe residence for young women, and various social programs during the first several decades of the 20th century.

During the late 1960s, the YWCA helped sponsor the first tuition-free kindergartens in Boise. The organization soon joined with other area groups to form the Vote Rockers and together the group lobbied the Legislature to make kindergartens a mandatory part of public education. The bill passed in 1975. After their work with kindergartens, the YWCA began working on the elimination of first, racism, and second, sexism. The YWCA soon began working on issues of sexual assault and domestic violence. They formed the Rape Crisis Alliance and a Women’s Crisis Center.

In the late 1990s, the Boise YWCA ran into conflict with the national organization over the inclusion of men as full members. As a result of the conflict, the YWCA disaffiliated with the organization and became the Women’s and Children’s Alliance of Boise.