Women and Men in the Academy: Beyond Bias and Barriers:

Alice M. Agogino Yale University April 12, 2007

DONNA E. SHALALA [IOM] (Chair), President, University of Miami, Miami, Florida ALICE M. AGOGINO [NAE], Roscoe and Elizabeth Hughes Professor of Mechanical Engineering,

University of California, Berkeley, CaliforniaLOTTE BAILYN, Professor of Management, Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute

of Technology, Cambridge, MassachusettsROBERT J. BIRGENEAU [NAS], Chancellor, University of California, Berkeley, CaliforniaANA MARI CAUCE, Executive Vice Provost and Earl R. Carlson Professor of Psychology, University

of Washington, Seattle, Washington CATHERINE D. DEANGELIS [IOM], Editor-in-Chief, Journal of the American Medical Association,

Chicago, IllinoisDENICE DENTON*, Chancellor, University of California, Santa Cruz, CaliforniaBARBARA GROSZ, Higgins Professor of Natural Sciences, Division of Engineering and Applied

Sciences, and Dean of Science, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

JO HANDELSMAN, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin

NAN KEOHANE, President Emerita, Duke University, Durham, North CarolinaSHIRLEY MALCOM [NAS], Head, Directorate for Education and Human Resources Programs,

American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, DCGERALDINE RICHMOND, Richard M. and Patricia H. Noyes Professor, Department of Chemistry,

University of Oregon, Eugene, OregonALICE M. RIVLIN, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution, Washington, DCRUTH SIMMONS President, Brown University, Providence, Rhode IslandELIZABETH SPELKE [NAS], Berkman Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge,

MassachusettsJOAN STEITZ [NAS, IOM], Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Howard

Hughes Medical Institute, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, ConnecticutELAINE WEYUKER [NAE], Fellow, AT&T Laboratories, Florham Park, New JerseyMARIA T. ZUBER [NAS], E. A. Griswold Professor of Geophysics, Massachusetts Institute of

Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Women As a Percentage of Doctoral and Professional Degree Recipients in the US, 1966-2000

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1966 1969 1972 1975 1978 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999

Doctorate Professional

Source: National Center for Education Statistics, "IPEDS Completions Survey," taken from WebCaspar (IPEDS includes Doctorate Records File Data).

More women are earning science and engineering doctorates

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cent

Wom

en P

hDs

Social Sciences

Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Engineering

Per

cen

t W

om

en P

hD

s

But women are leaving academic careers

Increasing the number of women earning science and engineering doctorates will have little effect on the number of women in academic positions, unless attention is paid to recruiting women to these positions and retaining them once hired.

Women as a Percent of New UCB Faculty Appointments 1984-2006

32%

23%

29%

26%

33%

27%

31%

40%39%

32%30%

26% 25%

21%

27%29%

34%

48%

28%

37%

33%

29%26%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

19

84

19

85

19

86

19

87

19

88

19

89

19

90

19

91

19

92

19

93

19

94

19

95

19

96

19

97

19

98

19

99

20

00

20

01

20

02

20

03

20

04

20

05

20

06

Pe

rce

nt

Wo

me

n

Source: Academic Personnel Records, 1984-2006.

Nu

mb

er

Faculty Headcount by Gender and Rank

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

10001992-9

3

1993-9

4

1994-9

5

1995-9

6

1996-9

7

1997-9

8

1998-9

9

1999-0

0

2000-0

1

2001-0

2

Female Assistant Professor Male Assistant ProfessorFemale Associate Professor Male Associate ProfessorFemale Full Professor Male Full Professor

Women have the capability to succeed in Science & Engineering

• Studies of brain structure and function, of hormonal modulation of performance, of human cognitive development, and of human evolution have not found any significant biological differences between men and women in performing science and mathematics that can account for the lower representation of women in academic faculty and scientific leadership positions in these fields.

Women have the drive to succeed in Science & Engineering

• The drive and motivation of women scientists and engineers is demonstrated by those who persist in academic careers despite barriers that disproportionately disadvantage them.

It is not lack of talent or drive, but rather unintentional biases and outmoded institutional structures that are hindering the access and advancement of women.

Evidence Refuting Commonly-Held Beliefs about Women in Science and Engineering.

Belief

Women are not as good in mathematics as men.

Finding

Female performance in high school mathematics now matches that of males.

Belief

It is only a matter of time until the proportion of women on faculties increases.

Finding

Women’s representation decreases with each step up the tenure-track and academic leadership hierarchy--even in fields that have had a large proportion of women doctorates for 30 years.

University of California, Berkeley (2002)

Untenured faculty,Lecturers

Staff

Tenured faculty

Mary Ann Mason “Babies Matter”

PhDReceipt

GraduateSchoolEntry

AssistantProfessor(Tenure Track)

AssociateProfessor(Tenured)

FullProfessor(Tenured)

Leaks in the Academic Pipeline for Women*

Leak!! Leak!! Leak!! Leak!!

Womenwith Babies

(28% less likely than women without babies to enter a tenure-track

position)

Women, Married

(21% less likely than single

women to enter a tenure-track

position)

Women(27% less likely than

men to become an Associate Professor)

Women(20% less likely

than men to become a Full

Professor within a maximum of 16

years)

Women PhDsWater Level

Women PhDsWater Level

Women PhDsWater Level

• Preliminary results based on Survival Analysis of the Survey of Doctorate Recipients (a national biennial longitudinal data set funded by the National Science Foundation and others, 1979 to 1995). Percentages take into account disciplinary, age, ethnicity, PhD calendar year, time-to-PhD degree, and National Research Council academic reputation rankings of PhD program effects. For each event (PhD to TT job procurement, or Associate to Full Professor), data is limited to a maximum of 16 years. The waterline is an artistic rendering of the statistical effects of family and gender.

Belief

Academe is a meritocracy.

Finding

Scientists make biased decisions including factors such as race, sex, geographic location of a university, and age that have nothing to do with the quality of the person or work being evaluated.

Belief

Changing the rules means that standards of excellence will be lowered.

Finding

The current process does not optimally select and advance the best scientists and engineers, because of implicit bias and disproportionate weighting of qualities that are stereotypically male.

Belief

Women are more interested in family than in careers.

Finding

Many women scientists and engineers show high levels of dedication to their careers despite severe conflicts between their roles as parents and as scientists and engineers.

Belief

The system as currently configured has worked well in producing great science; why change it?

Finding

The global competitive balance has changed the current science and technology climate. Traditional methods may no longer suffice.

The time to act is now.

The consequences of not acting will be detrimental to the nation’s competitiveness.

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

NAE Engineer of 2020

• Phase I – The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century

• Phase II – Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century

Rising Above the Gathering Storm

• Energizing and Employing America For a Brighter Economic Future

• Frightening Statistics• Powerful

Recommendations

The Nations New Majority

• Women and under-represented groups make up a 1/2 to 2/3 of the population of the United States and comprise the nation’s New Majority.

• If the US is to maintain economic leadership and be able to sustain its share of high technology jobs, it must draw on all of the talents in our population . . . Innovation is the key.

Shirley Jackson, President of RPI

The Nations New Majority

White / Asian93.2%

Black3.4% Hispanic

3.1%

Other0.3%

White / Asian93.2%

Black3.4% Hispanic

3.1%

Other0.3%

White / Asian79.1%

Black10.7%

Hispanic10.1%

Other0.1%

White / Asian79.1%

Black10.7%

Hispanic10.1%

Other0.1%

Science and Engineering Workforce U.S. Workforce

2020?

White / Asian93.2%

Black3.4% Hispanic

3.1%

Other0.3%

White / Asian93.2%

Black3.4% Hispanic

3.1%

Other0.3%

Science and Engineering Workforce2000

2020 U.S. Workforce

Slice 50.0%

White / Asian79.1%

Black12.8%

Hispanic17.0%

Other6.5%

Slice 50.0%

White / Asian79.1%

Black12.8%

Hispanic17.0%

Other6.5%

Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fulfilling the Potential of

Women in Academic Science and Engineering

Recommendations

Recommendations for Universities

Trustees, university

presidents, and provosts

Deans, department

chairs, and tenured

faculty

LEADERSHIP

CLIMATE

HIRING, TENURE, PROMOTION POLICIES

RECRUITING

MONITOR AND EVALUATE

Provide clear leadership in Provide clear leadership in changing the culture and changing the culture and structure of their institutions structure of their institutions to recruit, retain, and to recruit, retain, and promote women—including promote women—including minority women—into minority women—into faculty and leadership faculty and leadership positions.positions.

Trustees, university presidents,

and provosts

Trustees, University Presidents, and Provosts

LEADERSHIP

University leaders University leaders should take action should take action immediately to immediately to remedy inequities in remedy inequities in hiring, promotion, hiring, promotion, and treatment.and treatment.

Trustees, university presidents,

and provosts

REMEDIES

University leaders should, as part of their mandatory overall management efforts, hold leadership workshops for deans, department heads, search committee chairs, and other faculty with personnel management responsibilities that include an integrated component on diversity and strategies to overcome bias and gender schemas and strategies for encouraging fair treatment of all people.

It is crucial that these workshops are integrated into the fabric of the management of universities and departments.

Trustees, university presidents,

and provosts

LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

Workshops for Search CommitteesUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

ParticipatingDepartments

Non-ParticipatingDepartments

1999-20022003-2005

Percentages of women and minority faculty hired increased by 19% for those who attended “fair hiring” workshops compared to a 23% decrease to those who did not.

University leaders should require evidence of a fair, broad, and aggressive search before approving appointments and hold departments accountable for the outcomes even if it means canceling a search or withholding a faculty position.

Trustees, university presidents,

and provosts

FACULTY RECRUITMENT

Expand faculty recruitment efforts to ensure that they reach adequately and proactively into the existing and ever-increasing pool of women candidates.

RECRUITMENT

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

The Pool Problem at UC Berkeley: Ladder Rank Faculty

30%

70%

40%60%

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Women Men

Actual UCB Applicants Potential UCB Applicant Pool*

*Data prepared by Angelica Stacy, Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Equity, UCB. Potential UCB Applicant Pool is derived from NCES data on PhD degrees granted in 2000, cut to a selected groupof top-ranked graduate institutions and cut to relevant disciplinary fields for UCB.

UCB Faculty STEM* by Rank, Gender, and Ethnicity, 2005-06

Faculty Headcount Source: UCB Faculty Pers. Rec. 2006.

*STEM=Division of Physical Sciences, College of Engineering, College of Chemistry, and School of Info. Manag. Syst. (SIMS). **URM=African Amer., Hispanic Amer., and Native Amer. ***Chair/Dean (2006-07) figures are broken down only by gender because of low counts. ****Source: UCB Faculty Applicant Pool Database, 2001-2006. Not all departments have responded. *****Based on PhDs granted to U.S. Residents, 1997-2001, at the 35 Institutions producing the most PhDs at Top Quartile Rated doctoral programs (National Research Council Reputation Ratings), Survey of Earned Doctorates.

15%

10%

10%

5%

14%

5%

4%

5%

2%

3%

0%

17%

4%

4%

3%

2%

4%

3%

12%

24%

24%

15%

13%

11%

63%

56%

57%

76%

66%

81%

6% 0%

0%

2%

83%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

US PhD Pool*****

UCB Appl. Pool****

Assistant

Associate

Prof. (<Step 6)

Prof. (Step 6+)

Chair/Dean***

White Women Asian Women URM Women** WomenURM Men** Asian Men White Men Men

N=

68

220

136

41

5367

18

13792

University leaders should develop and University leaders should develop and implement hiring, tenure, and promotion implement hiring, tenure, and promotion policies that take into account the flexibility that policies that take into account the flexibility that faculty need across the life course, allowing faculty need across the life course, allowing integration of family, work, and community integration of family, work, and community responsibilities.responsibilities.

They should provide uniform policies and They should provide uniform policies and

central funding for faculty and staff on leave central funding for faculty and staff on leave and should visibly and vigorously support and should visibly and vigorously support campus programs that help faculty with campus programs that help faculty with children or other caregiving responsibilities to children or other caregiving responsibilities to maintain productive careers. maintain productive careers.

These programs should, at a minimum, include These programs should, at a minimum, include provisions for paid parental leave for faculty, provisions for paid parental leave for faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate staff, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate students; facilities and subsidies for on-site and students; facilities and subsidies for on-site and community-based child care; dissertation community-based child care; dissertation defense and tenure clock extensions; and defense and tenure clock extensions; and family-friendly scheduling of critical meetings.family-friendly scheduling of critical meetings.

Trustees, university presidents,

and provosts

HIRING, TENURE, HIRING, TENURE, and PROMOTIONand PROMOTION

POLICIESPOLICIES

*All of these policies were first instituted by UC Office of the President in July,1988, with subsequent modifications.

Existing Family Friendly Policies for Ladder-Rank Faculty*

• Active Service-Modified Duties (ASMD) — Ladder-rank faculty who have substantial responsibility for the care of a newborn or a newly placed child under age five (placed for adoption or foster care) may upon request be granted a temporary relief from duties (normally partial or full relief from teaching for one semester or quarter).

• Tenure-Clock Stoppage — Tenure-track faculty who have substantial responsibility for the care of a newborn or a newly placed child under age five may request a year stoppage of the tenure clock (capped at a total of 2 years).

• Paid Leave — Childbearing leave is granted on request to an academic appointee, before, during, and after she gives birth to a child. Academic Senate members on childbearing leave may receive base pay for up to six weeks. Those who need additional leave for medical circumstances may request it.

• Unpaid Leave — The Chancellor may also grant academic appointees up to one year of unpaid parental leave to care for their own child, their spouse’s child, or the child of their domestic partner. If this unpaid leave is combined with childbearing leave, family and medical leave or a period of Active Service-Modified Duties, the total period may not normally exceed one year for each birth or adoption.

New or Proposed Elements of a Family Friendly Package for UC Ladder-Rank Faculty

• A flexible part-time option for ladder-rank faculty with substantial familial care giving responsibilities.

• A guarantee to make high quality child care and infant care slots available to ladder-rank faculty, particularly new hires.

• An institutional commitment to assist new faculty with spousal/partner employment and other familial-related relocation or location issues.

• Reentry postdoctoral fellowships to encourage parents who have taken time off to return to the academy.

• Discounting of familial-related resume gaps in the hiring of faculty.• An establishment of school-break childcare and summer camps.• Emergency back-up child care programs.• Marketing of the Family Friendly Package as a major recruitment tool.• Building the necessary institutional mechanisms to assure success of

new and existing policies (e.g. “School for Chairs,” “Family Friendly Brochures,” “New Faculty Orientation,” “Work and Family Web Sites”, etc.)

• Result—University of California will enjoy a competitive advantage in hiring and retaining the best and brightest faculty in the country, particularly women faculty.

Faculties and their senates should immediately review their tenure processes and timelines to ensure that hiring, tenure, and promotion policies take into account the flexibility that faculty need across the life course and do not sacrifice quality in the process of meeting rigid timelines. HIRING, TENURE, HIRING, TENURE,

and PROMOTIONand PROMOTIONPOLICIESPOLICIES

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

Should take responsibility for creating a productive environment and immediately implement programs and strategies shown to be successful in minimizing the effect of biases in recruiting, hiring, promotion, and tenure.

Deans, Department Chairs, and Tenured Faculty

CLIMATE

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

Note: Yellow shading denotes p<.05 significant difference based on chi-square.

Methods Used to Encourage Women Applicants

Rank

Order Possible Methods Used by Departments to Enhance Pool

Self Evaluation Women Hired

All Dep.(n=59)

Exc.(n=25)

Not Ex.(n=29)

1 Listed faculty positions in multiple venues 96% 97% 96%

2 Job descrip. made clear wom./urm faculty encourg. to apply 76% 90% 84%

3 Made personal calls to enc. potential candidates to apply 84% 86% 84%

4 Selected diverse search committees 92% 79% 84%

5 Included graduate student input in search process 92% 72% 82%

6 Made calls to colleag. asking them to enc. wom./urm to apply 80% 83% 80%

7 Circulated job descr. among networks wom./urm educators 88% 72% 79%

8 Designated an affirmative action officer to serve on search 64% 90% 77%

9 Approached or interviewed applic. at professional meetings 72% 72% 73%

10 Established relation. with local/national women/URM org. 68% 52% 59%

11 Educated search committee members on div./equity/affirm. 52% 55% 54%

12 Discounted care-giving related resume gaps 32% 41% 36%

13 Prioritized sub-disciplines w. high diversity 36% 31% 32%

14 Encouraged UC President's Postdoctoral Fellows to apply 36% 31% 32%

15 Interviewed candidates at a variety of conferences 36% 21% 27%

Note: Light Green shading denotes p<.10 significant difference based on chi-square.

Faculties and their senates should initiate a full faculty discussion and evaluation of climate issues.

CLIMATE

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

Themes from Woman & Minority Focus Group

– A change in the culture of engineering (practice) is desired• Less unrewardingly competition, more collaboration • Changes in the types of problems we decide to solve• Diversity and quality are seen as complementary• Greater value placed on family issues (women)• More equitable access to engineering careers (minority)

– Strategies to get there• Radical change in the power structure (as it relates to

who decides what problems are important)• Decision-makers represent a more diverse group• New strategies for assessment; more equitable K-12

preparation; allow alternative paths into the profession

Develop and implement programs Develop and implement programs that educate all faculty members and that educate all faculty members and students in their departments on students in their departments on unexamined bias and effective unexamined bias and effective evaluation.evaluation.

• These programs should be integrated These programs should be integrated into departmental meetings and into departmental meetings and retreats, and professional development retreats, and professional development and teacher-training courses. and teacher-training courses.

• For example, such programs can be For example, such programs can be incorporated into research ethics and incorporated into research ethics and laboratory management courses for laboratory management courses for graduate students, postdoctoral graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and research staff; and can scholars, and research staff; and can be part of management leadership be part of management leadership workshops for faculty, deans, and workshops for faculty, deans, and department chairs.department chairs.

EVALUATION

Deans, department chairs, and

tenured faculty

Even without additional resources, federal agencies should move immediately to enforce the federal anti-discrimination laws at universities and other higher education institutions through regular compliance reviews and prompt and thorough investigation of discrimination complaints.Federal agencies

MONITORMONITOR

Federal Enforcement Agencies

Call to Action

The fact that women are capable of contributing to the nation’s scientific and engineering enterprise but are impeded in doing so because of gender and racial/ethnic bias and outmoded “rules” governing academic success is deeply troubling and embarrassing.

It is also a call to action.

Our nation’s future depends on it.

For more National Academy study links:www7.nationalacademies.org/womeninacademe/ www.engineeringpathway.com/

University of California Family Edge: http://ucfamilyedge.berkeley.edu/

Chairs and Deans Toolkit for Creating a Family Friendly Department: http://ucfamilyedge.berkeley.edu/Chairs%20and%20Deans%20Toolkit%20FINAL.pdf

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