1- The Michigan Daily - Friday, September 5, 1997 FRIDAYFOCUS L L \ \ ' % at , 1 , Y y y[, t S r _ 'V L J! e R';S Provost Nancy Cantor is the first woman to assume the post of the University's second in com- mand. Women hold deanships of schools and colleges and chair some of the Universty's most prestigious departments. As women fill the ranks of academia, they often encounter new obstacles, and are creating new visions for those who will follow. T hrough affirmative action programs and Appointments like that one are a real boost feel was a pers shifts in social attitudes, women have for the morale of women on campus." obstacle for, had opportunities to excel in academia Cantor attributes her success to her ability said Vice Presic like never before - simultaneously, many to embrace and use the experiences of being for Student Aff claim that the world of academia has not come woman in shaping her values, both profes- Maureen Hartf far enough. sionally and personally. "Those were alw Patty Stroud, director of the legal advocacy "In many respects, I feel extremely fortu- fields where wo fund of the American Association of nate to be nurtured along the way," Cantor could move up." University Women, said the path is still long said. "I wouldn't trade being a woman and and wide. being an academic for the world." Breaking t "I know we haven't come far enough," Because women typically feel responsible gender barri4 Stroud said, noting that the number of women for juggling more than one priority in their Some believe lag far behind the number of men in many sci lives, including family, job and community, concept of a b ence departments. "The challenges are many. Cantor said, they are more prepared to adjust ceiling creates lit onal me," dent fairs ord. qays men he e. . the lass mits Women, far more than men, cluster in the lower-paying fields. . They more often follow the untenured track. The barriers to the tenure track are clear." Stroud cited University, statisticsH to demonstrate the { imbalance of female and male professor- ships. She noted that the University employs 724 male professors and 98 femaes. a "There is about a $10,000 difference between the pay rates of men and women at the University of Michigan, with women making less," , Stroud said. "Women are basically still earning 87 percent of what men in acade- mia are earning. "One of the major with changing circum- Some stats on women in academia: U At the University, 12 percent of full professors are women, while 36 percent of assistant professors are women. stances. "Out of it comes a sense of being adapt- able and flexible and light on your feet," Cantor said. "They don't take themselves quite as grandly or seriously as some male colleagues may." ® Nationally, only5 percent of enginee are women, while 4 humanities profess 0 Thirty percent of professors are won S As of 1992, 32.5 percent of facultyA O From 1990 to 19 proportion of fema' School of Educatio -Sources: Education Chraracter, " a 5.9 ring professors Susan Montgomery, 40.8 percent of assistant professor of ors are women. chemical engineering, said the differences flaw school between men and nen. women need to be acknowledged and accommodated. were women. Experiences, such as 996, the pregnancy and child 9,aul the rearing, have very le faculty in the specific effects on n nearly tripled, women's lives. "Being treated U.S. Department of equally is not neces- and "Climates and sarily the answer," University report. Montgomery said. "I think that women fac- ulty have difficult bal- ances to make between family and careers." Montgomery said she is getting off the tenure track to concentrate more fully on her family. The chemical engineering department has supported her decision, she said. Stroud said that many women are punished for taking legal maternity leave. "Many times, women leave work due to pregnancy and take their legal, rightful leave," Stroud said. "There are instances when officials in charge of promotions take the leaves into account and interpret it as a lack of commitment to their career, and they receive a penalty for it. We need to look at the universities. We need to be beyond this. The laws in the books say it is illegal to discrimi- nate based on sex." Many women said being a woman did not for women in acade- mies and other fields, and spurs the momentum of opposing opinions against .women 's causes. Linda Gillum, assistant dean of the Medical School, said the perception of a glass ceiling for women often under- mines other traits. "I guess I've always been one to question the whole proverbial glass ceil- ing," Gillum said. "The glass ceiling is not necessarily the barrier it's perceived to be." Gillum said more factors than gender contribute to a per- son's professional rise, including eth- Provost Nancy Cantorf nicity and religion. University's second in ( Women reach pinna- cles in their careers not entirely based on their gender, and other obstacles may indicate that one's path might need rerouting rather than a halt, Gillum said. Dean of Nursing Ada Sue Hinshaw said the pipeline of women in all fields, including non- traditional fields like engineering or business, are expanding because of a gradual shift in viable options, starting as early as kinder- garten and elementary school. "We have a lot of work to do in those early years to open those options for young women, as well as for young men," Hinshaw said.- Gillum said that women medical students currently have excellent opportunities in pre- professional programs and advancement. "I'm always out there recruiting excellent students," Gillum said, adding that she gets' excited to give young prospects the "motiva- WARREN ZINN/Daily former dean of the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, recently assumed the position of the command. Prior to coming to the University, she was chair of Princeton's psychology departmert.. problems is that there are vastly more men," Stroud said. "Why is this happening?" Finding a balance For the greater part of the 20th century, women who pursued careers in higher educa- tion found themselves halted by so-called g;las ceilings that did not exist for their male counterparts. Gradual strides made during recent decades haye led to more gender-blind opportunities, which is evident in the University's adminis- Iation and faculty. University women celebrated the recent appointment of Provost Nancy Cantor, the fist woman to fill the position, as an emblem to this progress. "A great many people are encouraged by diversity includes advancing women in high- er education positions, as well as increasing the number of female students. The stressing of diversity includes creating more attractive opportunities for women and other tradition- ally underrepresented groups, Hartford said. "Certainly, the number of women in more senior professorial levels has increased over the past few years, and also in non-traditional roles. I think there have been more women in the pipeline," she said, adding that people should not only look at the number of women who hold full professorships, but also the number of women who are assistant profes- sors. 'Those glass ceilings are now fading' "I think the barriers and obstacles, be them the appointment of Nancy Cantor to the hinder their careers because the road had tional speech" and extends the invitation to in institutions and schools, are begin- provost," said Associate Vice President for already been paved for them, since they were all students that she is accessible for advice ning to break," Cantor said. "I think University Relations Lisa Baker. "Both men traditionally female-oriented fields. concerning the medical field, they will break down if people and women know how outstanding she is. "(Being a woman is) not something that I Hartford said the University's emphasis on realize it takes work to change tradition." Cantor said efforts can be funneled in more . than one direction," including continuing the creation of oppor- tunities for women in, higher education, making those opportunities recog- nizable at early ages and acknowledging the strides; women have made contribute to,women's advancement, Cantor said. .' "Part of it is numbers," Cantor said. "Part' of it is celebrating these advances and building a pipeline in middle and elementary schools. 'Stroud said it is necessary for female students to, have the opportunity to be taught by female professors. "If I am a stu- dent in a program that is all taught by men, where am I to find a role model? I begin to think, 'Why am I such a minority? Can I suc- "Many times when women are enrolled in programs that are traditionally male they find hostility, such as instances of sexual harass- ment or direct harassment. It becomes hard for the student to moe..thropgh the program awithout a mentor tostake themnthrough it and <,,helpt'them know what the, can do i and haven't seen it," Cantor said. Hinshaw said that as long as a person whether male or female, has defined the* goals and vision regarding their careers, gen- der transcends obstacles. "The gender is not so much of an issue in that case," Hinshaw said, adding that interac- tion between men and women enhances the final product. "But you also bring a different perspective on the way you see things and handle issues," Hinshaw said. "You're now part of the team." Hinshaw said that both female and male deans share many of the same stories an relate well to each other in their positions.1W "I don't think there's any difference between the male and female deans," Hinshaw said. "They tend to be much of the same stories." Hinshaw attributed the increase of ,opportunities for women and the use of programs for support and guidance as ways to boost the number of women in academi and other fields. Hinshaw predict- ed that women will continue to break barriers. "'It will happen. I'm firmly convinced of that," she said. "Those glass ceilings are now fading.." Stroud said her office; which provides financial support to women suing institutions of higher education for sexual discrimina- tion, takes on about 10 cases annu- ally. "We get approximately 10 cases, a year, but we get between five and 25 calls a week from women considering suing or that have sued," Stroud said. "Obviously, I find it rather shocking that 20 years after the Civil Rights Act there, is still the number of case- coming to me. "Women are still suffering discrimination in higher education. Enforcement is still in the works," Stroud said. "This is one q f the fears with Proposition 209 and bans on affirmative action. '"(This legislation) says that 'we are an equal society.' This is simply not true"