BALANCING
THE EQUATION: WHERE ARE WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SCIENCE
AND TECHNOLOGY?
Scientists,
Activists, and Educators Explore the Status
of Women in Science at Barnard
New
York, N.Y., February 18, 2002 – Great strides
have been made for women and girls in science,
but there is still a lot of work to be done.
That was the message from a group of distinguished
scientists, educators, and activists, who gathered
at Barnard College on Thursday, February 7,
to discuss and develop strategies to open scientific
study and work to women and minorities.
"We are at a critical juncture, where there
is a rapidly growing need in the technology
and science work force, and we cannot afford
to waste anybody. Women’s and girls’
experience is needed to contribute to the development
of these fields," said Linda Basch, executive
director for the National Council on Research
for Women.
The day-long conference, which drew about 200
guests to the James Room, was sponsored by the
Barnard Center for Research on Women with the
National Council for Research on Women (NCRW),
based on the findings of a groundbreaking study,
Balancing the Equation: Where are Women and
Girls in Science, Engineering and Technology?
by NCRW, on the progress of women in the sciences
over the past two decades.
Barnard President Judith Shapiro noted that
colleges for women – which have been at
the forefront of opening scientific fields for
women – have a special interest in seeing
additional progress. She said Balancing the
Equation gives a clear picture of where
women have inroads have been made and where
progress has stalled, as well as suggesting
strategies for further progress.
"We need to focus on mentoring, recruiting
researchers, and exploring these various alternatives
in greater depth," Shapiro urged.
Basch said the study, which was based on an
analysis of 20 different reports on the subject,
found that attracting women to scientific fields
was not enough – because women tend to
drop out of the field at a faster rate than
men.
"Retention is a huge problem – women
hold well under 10 percent of the leadership
positions in the sciences. We have a lot of
work to do and need researchers, activists,
and educators to discuss this problem,"
Basch said.
Envisioning the future: the importance of
personal attention
The morning opening plenary session, Envisioning
the Future, moderated by Judith Shapiro,
set forth the vision for the day with panelists
including: Evelynn Hammonds, director, Center
for the Study of Diversity in Science, Technology,
and Medicine at MIT; Nancy Hopkins, professor
of biology, MIT; Sue Rosser, dean, Ivan Allen
College, Georgia Institute of Technology; Marisa
Buzzeo ’01; Barbara Lazarus, associate
professor of academic affairs, Carnegie Mellon
University; Valerie Reidy, principal, Bronx
High School of Science; and Virginia Valian,
professor of psychology and linguistics, Hunter
College and CUNY Graduate School.
Shapiro opened the panel by asking Hopkins of
MIT to comment on the status of women scientists
at the institution. Hopkins, in addition to
her contributions to molecular biology and cancer
research, chaired the first Committee on Women
Faculty at MIT. The report, based on the Committee’s
work, received national attention and has generated
on-going debate among the scientific community.
Hopkins said she had assumed that women’s
advancement in science was not a problem, but
after years of observation (including losing
a fight to a male colleague over a request for
additional lab space) gradually realized it
was.)
"I thought all the gender and racial equity
issues were solved during the Civil Rights Movement,"
Hopkins said. "First, I denied and ignored
it. It took me about fifteen years before I
admitted that gender discrimination was not
solved. Since I am a scientist, it took me another
five years of experiments before I could prove
that it existed." She praised the administration’s
resolve and commitment, but noted that progress
resisted easy solutions.
Lazarus of Carnegie Mellon interjected and said
that sometimes it is beneficial to be in denial
as Hopkins was, and not notice gender inequality
until you are senior enough to be able to do
something about it.
She noted that "A lot of the burden in
the family gets placed on the women, since women
tend to have the multitask-approach versus the
single-minded approach of men." Rosser
agreed and, argued that institutions needed
to facilitate the balancing of work and family,
because according to recent studies women scientists
continue to list negotiating the demands of
work and family as their number one concern.
Reidy, principal of the Bronx High School of
Science, said that there was some good news
to report with the prestigious Intel Science
competition. In the past two competitions, two
women had captured top prizes. Reidy said that
role models were a critical force for progress,
but also criticized the entry exams for college,
saying, "We tend to weed out instead of
encouraging students to apply for science majors."
Buzzeo, a chemistry major at Barnard who will
pursue her doctoral studies in the field, agreed
with Reidy, and stated how important it was
to get special attention in the beginning of
your studies.
"At Barnard, the resources are available
and the staff is there to help you immediately
if you have an interest in science." She
added that the opportunity for one-on-one collaborative
research at an institution like Barnard was
priceless, as was the opportunity to volunteer
at the local hospitals.
Increasing the ranks of women minority scientists
poses additional challenges, Hammond said. "When
I was a student in the ‘70s, I was concerned
whether a black person could be a scientist.
There was no written information on black female
scientists, and I dealt with a lot of discrimination
and marginalization issues. We still do not
have science books on blacks and we need to
address these historical roots of the problem,"
she said.
Hammonds added that attention to diversity has
had the unintended effect of making some question
the excellence of minority scientists. "The
persisting problem with minorities at the top
institutions is that there is a double bind;
you are included in the programs because the
institutions care about diversity – not
because you are excellent. In fact, diversity
and excellence have become mutually exclusive,"
she said.
Strategies for progress: work, family and
charisma
The working luncheon discussion, titled Advancing
Women to the Highest Levels of Leadership-Issues
and Strategies, was moderated by Basch.
The panel hosted experts from several model
programs created to advance women into leadership
positions in the sciences, including: Jane Zimmer
Daniels, program director, Henry Luce Foundation;
Harriet Edelman, chief information officer,
Avon Products, Inc.; Ted Greenwood, program
director, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; Rosser;
Sara Lee Schupf, advocate for science and science
education for women and girls; and Ruta Sevo,
senior program director, National Science Foundation.
The Henry Luce Foundation has contributed $84
million in scholarships, fellow- and professorships
in sciences, and so far 119 women professors
have been funded through the program, Daniels
noted. "The aim of these scholarships is
to provide flexibility and relief with child
care and research activities. These policies
have resulted in a good track record."
Each year the Sloan Foundation gives out $6.5
million, Greenwood, said, identifying the problem
for women faculty in a changing society as:
"Three jobs and two people. In addition
to a career of teaching and research, most women
still have to take care of the family, and by
and large academic institutions have not taken
this into account."
Schupf pointed out that there is a lot of good
research available, but what is really needed
now is action. She cited an experiment at Skidmore
College, where a chair was created for women
scientists several years ago. "This three-year
rotating position has changed science at Skidmore,"
said Schupf. She further added that the goal
of the new chair at Skidmore was to hire women
with "charisma" in order to make science
more contagious.
Sevo of the National Science Foundation said
that it was important that women scientists
speak in high schools and in the community.
Her organization gives $10 million annually
for various programs for women and girls. Some
programs are showing promising results in gender
equality, and 80 percent of them are continued
by the institution even after the grant ends.
Edelman stated that Avon Products had made a
deliberate 100 percent commitment to women by
using computer technology to help women work
more efficiently. "We also provide college
tuition assistance, on-site daycare, dry cleaners,
and an ATM. Small things -- like closing two
hours early on Halloween, helps, so that mothers
can attend to their children."
The luncheon panel was followed by the afternoon
break-up sessions, moderated by Susan Riemer
Sacks, senior lecturer in education and chair
of the education program at Barnard; Janet Jakobsen,
director of the Barnard Center for Research
on Women,which cosponsored the conference; and
Basch.
The closing panel, Next Steps for Policy
and Action, was moderated by Elizabeth S.
Boylan, provost, dean of the faculty, and professor
of biological sciences at Barnard. This panel
focused on the questions of what schools of
education, boards of education, and business
leaders must do to engage women and girls in
the sciences. The panelists included Esther
Dyson, founding chairman, ICANN, chairman Edventure
Holdings, and Harold Levy, chancellor, New York
City Board of Education. Arthur Levine, president
of Teachers College, Columbia University, was
not present due to illness.
Dyson said that in addition to supporting women's
advancement in large corporations, we need to
develop means of providing support for women's
entrepreneurship. Levy offered a statistical
analysis of where and how girls and young women
are or are not getting involved in science.
The final panel ended with a broad discussion
of whether single-sex education was an answer
to some of the problems. Shapiro pointed out
that single-sex education can provide part but
not all of the answer.
Contact: Petra Tuomi, Barnard Public Affairs,
212-854-7907, ptuomi@barnard.edu
For free press copies of Balancing the Equation,
please call Lotti Silber, 212-785-7335 x 24.
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