In addition to the many benefits and opportunities available to women as members of JLNVB, joining our League automatically grants you membership into the Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI), and access to its vast network of knowledge and benefits as a result. 

For more than a hundred years, The Junior League has been at the forefront of social reform, addressing some of the most challenging problems facing our society. In that time, AJLI has grown to include more than 140,000 members in 291 Leagues throughout Canada, Mexico, the U.K. and the U.S. Collectively, it is one of the most powerful women’s leadership organizations in the world. In support of the fulfillment of the shared Junior League Mission, AJLI is committed to providing continuity and support, guidance and leadership development opportunities to its member Leagues. It has developed an expansive and comprehensive library of resources, as well as membership benefits, which are available to all current JLNVB members via the AJLI Member Central website. 

To access the AJLI Member Central website, JLNVB members should log in via www.ajli.org. The link to log in can be found on the top right utility bar, as displayed in the image above (be sure to check out JLNVB Member Jillian Goodwin, who is featured on the AJLI.org homepage for her 2019 Rising Star Award—how cool!) You will log in using the same username and password you use on jlnvb.org. 

Once logged in, you will see the main categories on the navigation bar, including Resources, Services, Governance, Meetings & Trainings, Leagues Today and Transformation. The remainder of this blog will highlight just a few key areas within these sections. Members are encouraged to explore all of Member Central on their own time.

RESOURCES: 

As a training organization, AJLI provides countless resources to its members to support both league operations and individual development. 

JL Directory 

The JL Directory is an interactive directory that provides detailed information on leagues around the world. The directory is populated by information submitted by all 291 Leagues within the Association. Here, you can explore how leagues handle a variety of key topics including community impact, fund development, governance, training, member and marketing/communications. The directory uses Q&As to populate charts, which provide a visual comparison between leagues, including your own League. Your League’s answer to the selected question is always found at the very top of the page. A few examples of questions include: 

• How many elected and voting members sit on your League’s governing Board?
• What is your annual budget for Communications/Advertising/Marketing/PR?
• Is your League’s trainings open to non-League members?
• In your most recent League year, what percentage of new members became Actives?

RESOURCE LIBRARY

The Resource Library is by far one of the most expansive and comprehensive resources available to members. This asset library includes toolkits, reports, books, templates, brand assets, videos, podcasts, case studies, conference materials and more! The entire library is searchable and all resources are tagged with filters, which can be viewed on the left-hand side. These filters include the kind of resource, the council/function (community, fund development, membership, etc.) and even topics such as Literacy! 

ONLINE LEARNING

Similar to the Resource Library, the Online Learning section of the Member Central includes tools and information to support league members’ development as community and civic leaders, at the time, place and pace that works for their schedule. This initiative includes self-paced courses, web workshops, webinars and on-demand recordings. 

Here, you will find AJLI’s popular Webinar Wednesdays series. These sessions, typically one-hour in duration, are designed to appeal to every Junior League member, regardless of age or current engagement in her community, as an easy way to increase her knowledge of and interest in community and civic leadership. Webinar Wednesdays runs from September to June, typically on the second and fourth Wednesday of the Month at 1 p.m. (EST), but a full archive of past webinars is available as well. And don’t forget, JLNVB members can receive 1 training hour for every webinar they complete! Simply email leadershipinitiatives.jlnvb@gmail.com with the title of the webinar you watched and a short paragraph about what you learned from it to receive credit! 

HELP DESK

The AJLI Help Desk is an initiative designed to provide more efficient, effective and expeditious customer service to Leagues and League members across the Association. The Help Desk includes hundreds of FAQs that have been submitted by League members in recent years. You can browse by category or search for a specific topic. A few examples include: 

• Are my dues tax deductible in the United States?
• What is the difference between volunteerism and voluntarism?
• What online resources are available on the AJLI website for fund development research?
• Does your League have a Community Relationship Manager role?

You may submit questions online or by email (info@ajli.org). In addition to providing responses from the AJLI staff, the Help Desk was designed to be an interactive and collaborative effort amongst and between the Association and Leagues. League members who have relevant knowledge and expertise are encouraged to answer queries and contribute to the growing archive of peer-to-peer knowledge.

CONFERENCE MATERIALS

The Conference Materials section under Trainings & Meetings provides current and archived AJLI Training and Meeting speeches, presentations and handouts to all members. These include Annual Conference, Winter and Fall Leadership and ODIs weekends dating back to 2006. Although attending in person is still the best way to take advantage of conference knowledge, these materials are a great resource for members who are looking to expand their league knowledge! 

FACEBOOK GROUPS

To further collaboration between leagues and between members, AJLI created and maintains a number of closed Facebook Groups for members. These groups serve as safe spaces for all Junior League members to connect, learn, network and share anything related to The Junior League. These groups are a resource for members to have constructive dialogue, ask questions, share best practices and promote The Junior League mission. These groups range from being placement specific (i.e. JL Executive Vice Presidents, or JL Nominating Chairs) to council specific (i.e. JL Communications Exchange, JL Membership Exchange, etc), to issues (Literacy or Human Trafficking Network) and event specific (Little Black Dress Initiative or Touch-A Truck Idea Exchange). Take a look at the full list and be sure to join any groups that pique your interest or would be helpful to your current placement!
 

BENEFITS

In addition to learning tools and training resources, the AJLI Member Central provides some fun, unique benefits to league members! 

DISCOUNTS 

Leveraging the collective purchasing power of all 291 leagues, AJLI partners with a number of companies to provide individual and group discounts for a number of products and services. 

These benefits fall into two categories: Member Benefits and League Benefits. Member Benefits are programs, products and services for individual Junior League members, where League Benefits are resources available to League as a whole. The complete list of benefits can be found at the links provided, but a few highlights include: 

• 15-20% discount at 1-800-FLOWERS
• 5% discount on background checks through Alliance Background
• Car rental discounts (multiple vendors)
• Corporate Travel Discount for AJLI-related conferences
• Prescription Savings Cards
• Group Insurance Plans 
  • AJLI partners with a number of vendors to provide various home, auto, term-life, short-term medical, long-term disability, pet and travel insurance. Visit www.AJLIinsurance.com for complete details
• Hospitality and entertainment discounts (hotels, movies, concerts, theme parks, etc)
• Full access to GrantStation.com
• Discounts on various nonprofit management trainings, courses and publications

TRAVEL

If you’re looking for a new adventure with like-minded league ladies, then be sure to check out the travel opportunities section of ajli.org. For several years, AJLI has partnered with  Connoisseurs Tours and Thalassa Journeys to provide specifically-designed domestic and international travel opportunities to league members, as well as their spouses, friends and families. In addition to experiencing the journey of a lifetime with league members from around the globe, these trips are designed with the Junior League mission in mind and often feature impact-driven and enriching programming about the women and children in the local community/region. 

SHOP

The JL Boutique is your one-stop shop for all things Junior League! The online shop is available 24/7 and features an assortment of Junior League branded items including: 

• Apparel (shirts, jackets, scarves, etc.)
• Accessories (totes, bags, hats, etc.) 
• Beauty (cosmetics, nail polish, compacts, etc.) 
• Office essentials (notebooks, pens, magnets, portfolios, stickers, etc.) 
• Kitchenware (water bottles, thermoses and mugs)
• Fine Dining (china and crystal)
• Jewelry (necklaces, bracelets, pins, charms, etc.)

In addition to the boutique, AJLI has an online JL Bookstore where you can find links to purchase more than 230 Junior League cookbooks from other Leagues around the country!

Joining our League here in Norfolk-Virginia Beach means so much more than just membership to a single League. It means you are a part of an international organization committed to helping women become exceptionally qualified civic leaders who improve communities around the world. AJLI is committed to seeing its Leagues and its members succeed and provides a wealth of knowledge, support and resources for them to do so. Be sure to take some time to check out all the sections of the AJLI Member Central website when you have a chance!