Women in Higher Education, 1996. REPORT NO ISSN-1060-8303 PUB DATE 96 NOTE 280P

DOCUMENT RESUME ED 401 855 HE 029 708 AUTHOR Wenniger, Mary Dee, Ed. TITLE Women in Higher Education, 1996. REPORT NO ISSN-1060-8303 PUB DATE 96 NOTE 280p. AVAILABLE FROMWenniger Company, 1934 Monroe Street, Madison, WI 53711-2027 (yearly subscription, $79; $89 Canada [U.S. funds]; $99 elsewhere). PUB TYPE Collected Works Serials (022) JOURNAL CIT Women in Higher Education; v5 n1-2 1996 EDRS PRICE MFO1 /PC12 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Affirmative Action; College Administration; College Athletics; College Faculty; Comparable Worth; *Educational Environment; *Females; Feminism; *Higher Education; Leadership; Newsletters; *Organizational Change; *Sex Discrimination; Women Administrators; Womens Athletics; Womens Education IDENTIFIERS Bennington College VT; Ohio State University; University of Akron OH; University of Michigan ABSTRACT This document consists of the issues of a 1996 newsletter on women students, teachers, and administrators in higher education. Each issue includes feature articles, news on higher education, profiles of significant people in the field, and job announcements. The issues' main articles concern:(1) a successful campaign to increase female representation throughout the University of Michigan campus;(2) how downsizing integrated work/family issues on the Ohio State University campus;(3) American Bar Association suggestions on how to end law school sexism;(4) Bennington Coll'ege's efforts to link student and academic services;(5) how leaders can create ethical campus climate;(6) the stir caused by a poster of women artists 24 years after its creation;(7) how homophobia intimidates women athletes;(8) organizations' need for the human spirit;(9) campuses joining to "right the standard" that waivers; (10) maintaining diversity amid threats to affirmative action; (11) University of Akron women fighting back after gender purge; and (12) a consultant's prediction that in 10 years, half of Higher Education Chief Executive Officers will be women. Individual issues also contain additional articles, news items, research briefs. (MAH) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** BEST COPY AVAILABLE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) This document has been reproducedas received from the person or organization "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS Vginating it. MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Mary Dee Wenniger Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." JANUARY 1996 IllliGHElliciEDUCATION Volume 5, No.1 Michigan's 'Agenda for Women' Offers Support From the Top They said it couldn't be done, but they haven't women, include adding more women as tenured been to the University of Michigan, where a campaign faculty, administrators and students, especially in to increase female representation throughout the non-traditional fields. Here's how they're doing. campus is proving successful. More Women Faculty Begun in April 1994, the Michigan Agenda for Nationally, women hold 45% of part-time and Women outlines how the university will achieve 33% of full-time professorships. At Michigan, about gender equity for women by the year 2000. They're off 20% of the professors are women, and most are to a great start. clustered in the lowest level as non-tenured lecturers. In just 18 months, the increase in the number of Only 9% percent of full professors are women. women as tenured faculty, administrators and students At nearby Wayne State University, 52% of full- in non-traditional fields is impressive. Michigan is a and part-time faculty are women, and at Michigan model for what can be done, even in a large research State University, 23% of tenured faculty are women. university, with commitment from the top. Thanks to its agenda for women, the University "We have accomplished much over this first year, of Michigan is making progress. At the May board of but there is obviously much to be done," President regents meeting., more than 30% of the 135 faculty James Duderstadt says. "We have to remember that we recommended for tenure in 1995-1996 were women, a still live in a culture created by white males to benefit school record. white males." A Presidential Commission Credit the Women Helping spur those tenure offers was a new In his fall 1995 progress report, he credits "years of presidential commission created to evaluate and hard work by women leaders who have pulled, pushed restructure tenure policies. and sometimes dragged the institution along the path The commission set aside funds to hire 10 senior toward equality for women." faculty women over the next five years. Leaders at Michigan noticed in the early 1990s that It also created a faculty career development fund they were below national averages for women faculty, that awards $5,000 to 40 women faculty members staff and students. A presidential inquiry led to investi- each year. The funds can be used to buy a computer, gations of why women weren't proportionately repre- attend a conference or hire graduate students to assist sented. in research and teaching. And the president himself demanded solutions. The awards recognize that women professors are The upshot? "Our goal is that by the year 2000, the asked to do far more in university service than their University of Michigan will become the leader among male counterparts. American universities in promoting and achieving the Women are asked to serve more often "because success of women of diverse backgrounds as faculty, there are fewer of them," explains Baker. Everyone students, and staff," says Duderstadt. wants them on their committees, because they're Who Got His Ear? bright and articulate. And women students want t\ For President Duderstadt, the combination of pressure from university women and his own family What You'll Find Inside... .t.\. sold him on the issue. His wife and two daughters, one Michigan Agenda supports women 1 an intern in pediatric medicine and another completing a PhD in engineering, forcefully shared their experi- Newswatch: Gendered politics at work 2 ences with him. Women MBAs earn more, for now 5 "He freely admits that women have been pushing Profile: Gay Culverhouse, Notre Dame College 7 and pulling him on this issue for years," says Lisa Playing politics on campus, and staying clean 8 Baker, associate vice president for university relations. New reports to show equity/bias in athletics....10 He listened to them all. Strategies for pioneer women in a unit 11 Now, gender equity has became "something he's 24 campus jobs seeking women candidates 12 staked his presidency on," Baker says. Highlights of the Michigan Agenda, with the Editor: Error is not a four-letter wrod 20 overall goal of creating a better environment for Your invitation to WIHE open house 20 3 them as mentors and dissertation advisors. Women and Gender Research Agenda Faculty women of color get special help, such as The university also created the Institute for creating networks to end isolation, a speakers series Research on Women and Gender, at the recommen- and financial help. Two thirds of the faculty award dation of faculty members. grants in 1994-1995 went to women of color. Its key functions: provide an institutional um- Where does the money come from, in this age of brella for ongoing faculty research on women and cutbacks and retrenchment? Each department, aca- gender; offer coordination, stimulation and support demic and non-academic, is required to give back 2% for effective interdisciplinary research; and heighten of its annual budget "for academic priorities. This Michigan's national profile as a major source of way nobody takes too big a cut," Baker says. knowledge about women and gender. More Women Leaders Focusing on related multicultural and interna- Michigan also has hired more women leaders since tional issues, the center plans to help Michigan the agenda began. Now five of the 18 deans are achieve the goals it has set for itself. women, and 27% of its executive officers are women, White Male Culture is Suspicious up from 18% two years earlier. And even with board support, there is concern New hires include Roberta Palmer, secretary of the about backsliding. Many white males are pretty board of regents, Cynthia Wilbanks, associate VP for comfortable with the way things are, Baker admits. university relations, Nancy Cantor, vice provost for Among them is English Professor Leo academic affairs in graduate studies, and Noreen Clark, McNamara, a member of the faculty governing dean of the school of public health. board, who has declared the agenda "suspect." The commitment to have women well represented A New President in 1996 in senior administrative positions was spurred by a Believing "it's time for a fresh perspective," drop in their numbers in the early 1990s. In response, Duderstadt will step down as president on June 30, the president met with deans to institute a "mid-search 1996 after seven years, returning to a faculty role. But check" on the diversity of the candidate pool, before a his legacy will continue at the university. search committee can go to a short list of finalists. Several women regents have made it clear that In the works are proposals to modify policies the agenda will be carried on. In fact, a strong com- related to dependent care and work schedules. Not mitment to the agenda will be a prerequisite for his surprisingly, many women staff and faculty cited the successor, Baker says. need for greater flexibility in ways that won't harm The board has held public forums for faculty, their future career opportunities. students and staff to find out what they expect of a "I have sent a communication to 3,000 supervisors, new president.

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