The conventional separation of “work” and “life” in academia encourages faculty to ignore or even actively undermine their well-being. This week, we feature several publications that extol the need to prioritize self-care in higher education. Although work-life balance is important for all academics, certain groups face more emotional fatigue from microaggressions, relentless inequities and the . . .
Topics related to gender or gender expression
The well-known 1999 report on space allocation at MIT by Nancy Hopkins alerted the research world to gender-based inequities in lab space allocations. In light of that report, the results of a recent assessment at Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) are both stunning as well as concerning. The May 2022 “Space Allocation” report confirms that women scientists . . .
This year, women had to work until March 14th in order to earn the same compensation as men did during the previous year. That pay gap has changed very little, decreasing by only 2 percent in the last 20 years. In 2022 in the general workforce, women earned about 82 cents for every dollar men . . .
Women’s History Month inspires both celebration and reflection on the role of women scientists/engineers across the STEM fields: women have contributed to scientific endeavors throughout history despite disparagement, marginalization, discrediting, and invisibility. This week, we call attention to some tributes to STEM women. For example, the recently published 600+-page Palgrave Handbook of Women and Science . . .
In a previous Weekly Roundup, we highlighted a meta-analysis of funding by the National Science Foundation over a 10-year period. To review, in 2019, NSF funded 31.3% of proposals from White scientists, but only 22.4% for Asian scientists; the overall funding rate was 27.4%. This translates into a single year award surplus of 798 grants . . .
In a previous Weekly Roundup, we highlighted a meta-analysis of funding by the National Science Foundation over a 10-year period. To review, in 2019, NSF funded 31.3% of proposals from White scientists but only 22.4% for Asian scientists; the overall funding rate was 27.4%. This translates into a single-year award surplus of 798 grants for . . .
The trap of service tasks that take time and energy but are not considered to be significant in promotion decisions was addressed in a recent article in Nature [https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03677-6]. The authors describe themselves as the “No Club” because they have both experienced and researched the ineffectual advice to women academics of “just say no” to . . .
Recently the White House released a roadmap that will expand the federal collection of data about sexual orientation and gender identity in order to advance equity for LGTBQI+ Americans. However, advances in measurement will be needed at all levels, including at universities. The management adage that you can’t improve what you don’t measure applies to . . .
As summarized in the recent Harvard Business Review article, 5 Ways Managers Can Support Pregnant Employees, there are ways to reduce detrimental experiences that affect health and well-being outcomes for pregnant faculty, staff, students, and their babies. The article links to two studies that examined workplace experiences related to pregnancy discrimination specifically and to health-related . . .
Several recent reports warn that despite promising announcements about increasing faculty diversity, the actual increase has been sluggish. As summarized by Inside Higher Ed writer Colleen Flaherty, realizing racial parity between the professoriate and the general U.S. population within the next thirty years requires a rate of change that is 3.5 times the current pace. . . .