"The America Competes Act reauthorization is working it's [sic] way through Congress and the Association for Women in Science has been actively supporting the inclusion of initiatives to support women in academic science and engineering. We are very pleased to report that the proposed amendment offered by Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson to the America Competes reauthorization, "Fulfilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science," was passed unanimously by the House Science Committee on April 28. The amendment includes support for workshops to enhance gender equity and outlines guidance for the collection of data on demographics of faculty for institutions receiving federal funding for science and engineering."
Sample text from the amendment:
"Activities at the workshops shall include research presentations and interactive discussions or other activities that increase the awareness of the existence of gender bias in the grant-making process and the development of the academic record necessary to qualify as a grant recipient, including recruitment, hiring, tenure review, promotion, and other forms of formal recognition of individual achievement, and provide strategies to overcome such bias."
MP: Given the huge gender disparities in higher education in favor of women at all degree levels from associate's degrees up through doctoral degrees (see chart above), shouldn't there be workshops to increase the awareness of gender bias that must run throughout all of higher education, and not just in STEM fields? If enhancing gender equity is a worthy goal, shouldn't colleges take active measures to overcome the underrepresentation of men at all levels until a 50-50 gender ratio is achieved? Or do gender imbalances only matter in one direction and not the other?
HT: Christina Sommers
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