Transcript Future of - Association of American Colleges and Universities

Strategies for Effecting Gender
Equity and Institutional Change:
Lessons from ADVANCE Institutions
Ann Austin & Sandra Laursen
AAC&U Annual Meeting-- January 2015
Acknowledgments: Missy Soto, Dali Martinez,
Study participants, Advisory Board, Colleagues
ADVANCE PAID grant #HRD-0930097
The Issue:
The Need to Recruit and Retain Women
Faculty in STEM Fields
Underrepresentation of women
Why is underrepresentation a problem?
– Importance of diverse perspectives to address questions
– Impact on talent pool available to address societal problems
– Availability of female faculty influences choices of young female
scholars considering careers in STEM fields, including academe
The Challenge
 “There is increasing recognition that the lack of
women’s full participation at the senior level of
academe is often a systemic consequence of
academic culture. To catalyze change that will
transform academic environments in ways that
enhance participation and advancement of
women in science and engineering, NSF seeks
proposals for institutional transformation.”
(NSF ADVANCE, 2001)
The Need
 Understand how universities can create institutional
environments that support the success of women
scholars in engineering and other STEM fields
 Need for systemic efforts toward organizational change
that:
Remove organizational constraints contributing to
gendered biases
Create institutional environments that support the
recruitment, retention, and success of women faculty
Purpose of this Session
 Highlight key findings from NSF-supported ADVANCE
institutions on organizational change strategies to create
institutional environments, supportive of women
scholars, especially in STEM fields
 Provide an overview of the StratEGIC Toolkit
 Facilitate discussion of ways to use the StratEGIC
Toolkit to support change initiatives responsive to unique
institutional contexts
Our ADVANCE PAID Study
 Research Questions
 What strategies have been used to create institutional
environments to encourage the success of women scholars?
 Which strategies work and which don’t? Why?
 What are the affordances and limitations of particular
strategies?
 How does organizational culture relate to change
interventions?
 Study Design
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19 ADVANCE IT institutions funded in Rounds 1-2 (2001-2003)
Document review
Interviews with leaders
Intensive case studies at 5 universities
Theoretical Perspectives
Universities as complex systems—successful change efforts
are non-linear
Bolman & Deal’s multi-frame model of organizational analysis
Four perspectives that serve as “lenses” through which to
consider potential strategic interventions to promote change:
– Structural
– Human resources
– Political
– Symbolic
Structural Strategic Interventions
Emphasis on identifying and improving formal
policies and organizational arrangements
Examples:
– Analysis, revision, and tracking of tenure and promotion
policies
– Creation, dissemination, and tracking of work/life policies
– Analysis and adjustment of space allocation
Political Strategic Interventions
Emphasis on issues of leadership, power, and
resource allocation and how these can be deployed in
support of the intended change
Examples:
– Leadership development for deans, chairs, and committee
chairs
– College-level equity advisors
– Institution-level policy or action committees
– Institutional data-gathering and dissemination
Human Resource Strategic Interventions
Emphasis on addressing the demographics,
experiences, needs, and aspirations of the people in
the organization
Examples:
–
–
–
–
–
–
Pipeline professional development
Mentoring and coaching programs
Skill development workshops
Career and life stage-oriented grants
Networking and support grants
Support for personal needs
Symbolic Strategic Approaches
Emphasis on issues of meaning within an
organization
Examples:
–
–
–
–
Publicity and communication
Awards
Events
Visiting and in-house scholars
The StratEGIC Toolkit
 Users’ Guide
 Description of the research
 Key points on org change from social science research
 Suggestions for using the Toolkit to support organizational
change to support the advancement of STEM women scholars
Briefs
 Frequently used interventions are described and analyzed to
help institutions construct their own change portfolios
Institutional narratives
 Examples of how specific institutions have developed
comprehensive strategic change plans
Organization of each Brief
 Introduction
 Rationale
 Purpose
 Audience
 Models
 Examples
 Evaluation
 Affordances and Limitations
Using the Toolkit
 Intended to support institutional change initiatives
to support the advancement of STEM women
scholars
 Designed for practical use
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Developing proposals
Developing an institution-appropriate change plan
Charging task forces
Designing & implementing specific change interventions
Refreshing or expanding existing programs
Intervention Briefs
1
Faculty professional
development programs
7
Strengthened accountability
structures
2
Grants to individual faculty
8
Flexible work arrangements
3
Mentoring & networking
activities
9
Practical family-friendly
accommodations
4
Development of institutional
leaders
10 Support for dual-career couples
5
Inclusive recruitment & hiring
6
Equitable processes of
tenure & promotion
11 Strategies for improving
departmental climate
12 Visiting scholars
13 Enhanced visibility for women
and women’s issues
Small Group Discussion
 Choose one of the following Briefs:
2 - individual grants
5 - recruitment & hiring
8 - flexible work arrangements
12 - visiting scholars
11 - improving departmental climate
 Discuss:
What ideas in the Brief are exciting or useful to you?
How might you use the Briefs in your own setting?
 Summarize key ideas & share key discussion
points with the whole group
Looking Ahead
 Approaches to combining interventions to create
effective and systemic organizational change
plans
 Cross-cutting issues to consider in developing
organizational change initiatives to advance
STEM women scholars (e.g., leadership,
identifying allies, evaluation)
Related Resources
Bilimoria, D., & Liang, X. (2011). Gender Equity in Science and
Engineering: Advancing Change in Higher Education.
Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (2013). Reframing Organizations: Artistry,
Choice, and Leadership.
Bystydzienski & Bird, Eds. (2006). Removing Barriers: Women in
Academe Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.
Stewart, Malley, & LaVaque-Manty (2007). Transforming Science
and Engineering: Advancing Academic Women.
Sandra Laursen
Ethnography & Evaluation Research
University of Colorado Boulder
303-735-2942
[email protected]
Ann E. Austin
Higher, Adult, & Lifelong Education
Michigan State University
517-355-6757
[email protected]
www.strategicToolkit.org