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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 425 685 HE 031 735 AUTHOR Wenniger, Mary Dee Ed. TITLE Women in Higher Education, 1998. ISSN ISSN-1060-8303 PUB DATE 1998-00-00 NOTE 196p. AVAILABLE FROM Wenniger Company, 1934 Monroe St., Madison, WI 53711-2027; Tel: 608-251-3232; Fax: 608-284-0601 (annual subscription $79, U.S.; $89 Canada; $99 elsewhere). PUB TYPE Collected Works Serials (022) JOURNAL CIT Women in Higher Education; v7 n1-12 1998 EDRS PRICE MF01/PC08 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS College Administration; *College Faculty; *College Students; *Females; Feminism; *Higher Education; Leadership; Sex Discrimination; Womens Athletics; Womens Education ABSTRACT This document consists of the twelve consecutive numbers of the newsletter "Women in Education", published during 1998. This newsletter focus on issues concerned with women students, women faculty, and women administrators in higher education. Each issue includes feature.articles, news items, and profiles of significant people. Feature articles address the following topics: the media, women's athletics, conflict resolution, feminist scholarship, gender equity goals, women and campus leadership, Hispanic American women in higher education, lesbian faculty, gender politics, affirmative action, marketing women's athletic teams, Title IX of the Higher Education Act, gender pay equity, sexual harassment, women college presidents, networking, women as leaders of campus security forces, the Internet and classroom teaching, court litigation, violence prevention on campus, lesbian administrators, compensation equity for athletic coaches, mentoring at community colleges, teaching leadership skills, measuring faculty productivity, the exploitation of graduate students, women in Catholic higher education, career development, women as chief financial officers, female middle administrators, and women's studies. (DB) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ******************************************************************************** WOMENEDUCATION BEST COPY' AVAILABLE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND Office of Educational Research and Irnprovement DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION BEEN GRANTED BY CENTER (ERIC) O This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. O Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES o Points of view or opinions stated in this 2 INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) document do not necessarily represent 1 official OERI position or policy. JANUARY 1998 Volume 7, No. 1 Respond to Backlash by Controlling Your Media Message With more women assuming campus leadership jobs, Turn around rhetorical questions. some men feel threatened by their competence and Taught to be polite, women believe every challenged to protect the previously exclusive male do- question deserves an answer. When an main. Collectively, their reaction is called backlash. interviewer or audience member asks a Communicating a positive message in response to pointed but irrelevant question, do you backlash is important. Whether you're an administrator or try to explain your position to build un- faculty member responding to backlash attacks or initiat- derstanding through dialog? "They aren't ing a specific message, you can manage how and what asking to get a better understanding, Lisa Lederer you communicate. Lisa Lederer and Gretchen Wright of they're trying to challenge you. It's PR Solutions in Washington DC offered tips for handling worded as a question so you'll respond, but it's a rhetori- the media at the Women's Leadership Conference held in cal question," Lederer said. Washington DC in November 1997, sponsored by the Stay on message. The forum belongs to you, not to American Association of Colleges and Universities. your audience or to the interviewer. Don't Basics of media communications let them lead you where you don't want to Public relations has an arithmetic all its own: 7 x 1 = 0, go. Don't wait for someone to ask the right but 3 x 3 = 2. If someone hears seven messages once, she question; rather, use every opening to re- remembers none. If someone hears three messages three state your central message. Don't get de- times each, she may remember two of them. With disci- fensive, repeat a negative question or use pline you can communicate up to three messages over the an adversary's language; your words may course of a year, issue or project. If you try to say more, Gretchen come back to haunt you in tomorrow's pa- your listeners may not hear a thing. Wright per. Turn around a stupid question by us- Once you pare down the message, the more places you ing phrases like: repeat it, the better. Consider student newspapers, faculty "The issue here is not ... The issue is newsletters, alumni magazines or newsletters, university "No, that's not really accurate, but I can tell you ..." radio,or television stations, local daily newspapers, com- "I think what we're really getting at here is ..." munity or alternative newspapers, local radio call-in pro- Learn when to confront. Raised to be "nice," women grams and local radio or television public affairs shows. are often reluctant to make their points in a conflict situa- As for message length, again less is more. "You can say tion. Whether to speak up when something offends your something brilliant in 20 seconds or you can say some- thing pretty smart in 8 seconds. We're always going to take the eight seconds," they said. Radio and television What's inside this January 1998 issue... reporters need sound bites, short complete sentences that How to use the media to respond to backlash 1 can stand on their own. Newspaper and magazine report- Supporting women's sex conference brings SUNY $350,000 2 ers need something simple enough to capture on a Newswatch: Gendered politics at work on campus 3 notepad, preferably with numbered points. Lederer fol- Use ethical pragmatism, not just rules, to solve conflicts 6 lowed her own advice with three short points: Generation affects how women view role on campus 7 1. Know what you want to say. Can women athletes today avoid land mines in their paths? 8 Today's feminist scholars want to reach ordinary women ..22 2. Find a way to communicate it that's clear and succinct. 23 3. Repeat it over and over again and don't let anyone de- WILL program for women educates the total student Confessions of a new evening class teacher 24 rail you. PROFILE: Theo Kalikow gives new meaning to "up front" 25 Avoid ways women get sidetracked Opportunities for women on campus 26 Learn to handle interruptions. Women get inter- Adult women speak of their first semester as new students27 rupted more often than men. Respond by making your Editor: 1998 inspires refined strategies for success 28 voice louder and deeper: "If I may finish, please..." PLUS: 85 great jobs on campus waiting for women candidates! 3 principles is your choice. An instructor challenged the of the audience or interviewer. thinking of a sorority pledge who came to class in a de- By controlling your communications, you stand the meaning cow outfit with udders in the crotch. The student best chance to get your message across through the media said the instructor as a woman should support her right to that filter news to the public. la choose. It became a huge campus controversy. Finally the SC instructor chose to quit the debate: She had raised the PR Solutions offers free resources to help build your skills. Ask question, but could not be responsible for the outcome. for the media training videotape and workbook Making Diversity On the other hand, direct attacks or inaccuracies about News, being developed at the Ford Foundation Campus you or your school require a response. Controlling the Diversity Initiative. And check the Web at http:/ / agenda doesn't mean leaving lies unanswered. Evaluate www.inform.umd.edu/diversityweb to read Diversity Digest, which PR Solutions produces with the Association of American the challenge and its significance. You can probably ignore Colleges and Universities. PR Solutions, 1420 New York Avenue a single grumbling individual, but it's worth a private NW, Suite 650N, Washington DC 20005; (202) 371-1999; e-mail phone call to one who's spreading false rumors. Be quick [email protected] to confront someone who misquotes you to distort your meaning. If an attack hits the media, you must respond. A female $350,000 Honors Prez of SUNY-New Paltz professor faced possible dismissal for insensitive behavior toward students with disabilities. She invited journalists For Defending Women's Sex Conference Remember Roger Bowen, president of SUNY-New to her faculty senate hearing, where she tearfully said it Paltz, who last month we reported was on the firing line was a personal attack based on her gender. Sympathetic with some irate trustees and the governor of New York for reporters agreed. Because the college unwisely decided allowing a conference on women's sexuality? not to respond, the story spun out of control for several He got a major pat on the back for standing up for days. A better way would have been for the college to re- women's rights, a $350,000 donation to a new museum on spond with a statement, guest editorial or letter to the edi- campus. It's "another form of moral support," Bowen told tor declaring the issue was professional rather than per- the Associated Press, as reported on The Chronicle of Higher sonal, and it would be handled according to school poli- Education website on December 15, 1997. "Some people cies. pat you on the back, others give you a check for $350,000." Anticipate issues and situations At the time, Bowen said, "If the university cannot host Since the same questions often arise each year, you can speakers and conferences of all ideological and philo- usually predict them, so you also can plan your answers.