Making a Difference
by Elizabeth Ferry

Education:
A Cooperative Mainstay

When the Rochdale Pioneers established their successful consumer cooperative in Rochdale, England in 1844, they encouraged their members and shoppers to be informed consumers by providing speakers, courses, free libraries, and reading rooms. Today, the importance of education, training, and information for members is reinforced as the fifth Cooperative Principle.

Education for members of the Hanover Consumers Club began immediately with the publication of two weekly bulletins that covered cooperative and consumer issues. The 1936 bylaws of the Club include the provision for a standing committee to be known as the "Education and Membership Committee, composed of three or more members, (which) shall strive toward the education of members and consumers at large in the significance of social and economic problems as they affect consumers as such, and in their role as producers."

The Co-op’s first official Education Secretary was Sally Gerstenberger, wife of Harry Gerstenberger, the Co-op’s General Manager from 1949 to 1965. Although she was never a paid employee of the Co-op, Sally’s efforts as a volunteer and her enthusiasm for cooperatives left a lasting legacy in the Co-op’s commitment to providing consumer information and cooperative education. Working with other committee members, Sally produced the Co-op’s monthly bulletin and other forms of education. She bought space in the local newspaper to promote the Co-op message, using it to educate readers about cooperative principles and benefits of member ownership rather than to advertise goods. At one point, Sally plastered the front windows of the store with canceled refund checks to illustrate the money given back to the community.

In 1972, the Board hired Harrison Drinkwater as its first on-staff Education Director. The purpose of the half-time position was "educating membership and public at large in matters of consumer concern, nutrition, environmental problems; encouraging members; promoting cooperative principles." This was to be accomplished through the monthly bulletin, weekly specials sheets, advertising copy, educational demonstrations in-store, tracking consumer legislation on the state and national level, comparative shopping, monitoring and reporting on product quality, and educating the staff in co-op principles.

The Education Director position eventually became full-time, and when Kate Read joined the staff as education assistant in 1987, the Education Department was born. Kate succeeded Harrison as Education Director in 1990 and held that position for eight years until she left the Co-op in 1998. Today, in addition to Director Rosemary Fifield and five information desk personnel, the department includes six professional staff.

While the department name was recently changed to Education and Member Services, the educational mission remains the same: to provide members and shoppers with truthful, trustworthy information about consumer and membership issues. This is accomplished through the Co-op News, the web site, in-store displays, brochures, hand-outs, store tours, and direct contact by e-mail, phone, and in person.

In addition, Education staff produce community events like Dairy Day, annual meetings, cooking classes, and in-store recipe programs and demos. They rent out infant car seats; run food drives; coordinate volunteers; administer the Community Gardens and Harvest Partners; run the Fedco seed program; write, design, and publish the Co-op News; and do outreach to schools, senior centers, employee health programs, and other organizations looking for information on food, nutrition, environmental issues, and other topics.

True to the Co-op’s Rochdale ancestors, Education staff also arrange for speakers and panels on current food topics and maintain a lending library upstairs in the Hanover store. Members are welcome to borrow books and video tapes on a variety of relevant topics that will help keep them the informed consumers of today.

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