At one extreme, there’s a lot of talk–rightly or wrongly–about administrative bloat. At the other, it might strike as absurd that gender equity issues would fall to volunteers. Please advise.
At one extreme, there’s a lot of talk–rightly or wrongly–about administrative bloat. At the other, it might strike as absurd that gender equity issues would fall to volunteers. Please advise.
I agree. I think a professional would be more successful at changing the climate and addressing issues like salary equity, promotion preparation, biased course evaluations. The SOM has an office to support women faculty that has been very successful.
There are others who can cover some needs, in principle. Vice Deans for Faculty can examine pay equity. Vice Dean for D&I can help with climate. OIE already takes harassment reports. Still, an ADVANCE office (see UMich or OSU) could serve as a central clearinghouse.
It seems that the issue of collecting data (such as how the percentage of women in leadership compares to peer institutions mentioned in the previous posts) or researching successful policies at peer institutions should not fall on volunteers…whether that is a new position or a role for a position that already exists.
As part of the role of the OIE is to defend the University against discrimination complaints, they are not really in a position to advocate for women.