>newground
Women in Science Progarm
While the belief in women's lesser aptitude for science may have once been a convenient fiction, their scientific talents are a much more convenient fact. Indeed, cultivating these talents is now an economic necessity. And that is precisely what the Women in Science program is designed to do. As Pam Crowell, director of the IUPUI program, explains, the Women in Science program addresses a national problem: "Foreign countries are training more scientists and engineers than ever before. For the U.S. to remain competitive in global science and technology markets, we must support and encourage talented students to study science."
More than half of all college students are women. Yet a very small fraction of them pursues a career in science. As studies have shown, the pattern begins in elementary school and continues through college. And the higher up you go in the academic ranks, the fewer women there are. In the IUPUI School of Science, for example, only 20 percent of the faculty is female and none of these women are full professors. Psychology and biology attract more women than physics, mathematics, and computer science.
To reverse these trends, the Women in Science program creates a learning environment which sustains and supports women's interest in science. Its scope goes well beyond the classroom, starting with the place where students live and branching outward to both older and younger women and the community at large.
This past fall, 30 students moved into the Women in Science House, the program's on-campus residential living and learning center. The participating students will have personal contact with board members, engage in community outreach activities, and help raise awareness about science among high school women and elementary students. Special monthly programs in the house include workshops on careers in science and how to have a successful college experience.
Each student receives a $1,000 scholarship, funded in part by private support. To date, commitments of nearly $15,000 come from corporate donors and advisory board members, women with leadership positions in Central Indiana science-related business, education, and community service organizations.
Among these many distinguished board members is BioCrossroads Vice President Ann Shane. As she confirms, the program's purpose goes hand in hand with the BioCrossroads initiative to promote the life sciences industry across the state.
"We feel that any program that increases the number of people with science degrees in the state of Indiana is a positive step," she says. "And of course, if it promotes gender equality, all the better. We need to look at all groups that are underrepresented in the sciences, and encourage their interest."
Or as IUPUI Chancellor Charles R. Bantz said recently, "Each of us can contribute to growing a stronger economy in the state by encouraging girls to become scientists and engineers. IUPUI," he points out, "is boldly putting this simple idea into practice."
Liz Rosdeitcher
Hear firsthand about one student's experience in the program
www.indiana.edu/~firstyr/omosegbon.