Tools for Change

Women now represent a large part of the talent pool for research science but many studies show they are more likely than men to “leak” out of the science pipeline before obtaining tenure at a college or university (Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, 2007; Goulden, Mason & Frasch, 2009). While women comprised 40% of the earned doctorates in science and engineering in 2006, only 19% of full-time full professors in science and engineering were women. Moreover, among women full professors in science and engineering, only 5% are Asian, just under 5% are African American, and just over 3% are Hispanic/Latina (National Science Foundation, 2009). The brain drain among women severely impacts the long-term dependability of a highly trained U.S. workforce, and America’s global preeminence in the sciences is in question. The most straightforward way to maintain a competitive workforce of trained professionals in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) disciplines is to staunch the flow of women out of these professions. Two prominent researchers who have focused for more than two decades on documenting the reasons STEM disciplines’ have been unable to attract and retain women have partnered with the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) to leverage their extensive research to create sustainable tools that level the playing field for women in academic STEM disciplines. Level the Playing Field Workshops We offer a series of short visual presentations aimed at a variety of audiences for use in different settings. These workshops review all we have learned about what works and what doesn’t in creating a workplace that doesn’t push women out of the STEM pipeline.