What will it take to achieve gender equality in science?
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International Day of Women and Girls in Science shines a light on the need for equal access to and participation in scientific fields for women and girls. And this year's theme is about women as agents of change. These are topics that are important to me and everyone I know and work with at JMP.
I asked JMP colleagues who studied and worked in various STEM fields to share their thoughts on what it would take to achieve gender equality in science and how women are acting as agents of change. Here are their responses.
“The systems we have in scientific fields evolved from a society where only men were allowed to pursue higher education. As such, despite the great advances in gender equality over time, the core of these systems continues to be biased toward men. One possibility for achieving gender equality in science would entail conceiving of what these systems would look like today if it had been women, and not men, who founded scientific fields, societies, universities, etc. Identifying the most drastic differences through this exercise might help us understand the key needs of women, which can aid in revamping current systems, and ultimately, help us achieve women’s full participation in science.”
– Laura Castro-Schilo, Senior Research Statistician Developer, PhD in Quantitative Psychology
“In my experience, to achieve gender equality in scientific fields, early exposure is key. Not only exposure to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) concepts but exposure to women working in STEM careers. Girls should be involved in STEM activities as early as preschool. Early exposure to STEM, in addition to music, art and dance is key. Girls do not have to choose science over the arts or vice versa - music, art, dance all contain elements of STEM leading them to create and design real-world solutions.
“Women like myself working in the field of mathematics and statistics as well as college-age young ladies are serving as agents of change by volunteering our time sharing our experiences with elementary aged girls. When my daughter was in kindergarten, I participated in her elementary career day – I explained what a statistician does in a way that the young students could understand. We sorted M&M’s, created histograms with them based on color, and of course, there were extras to eat later! Also, while in elementary school, my daughter participated in hands-on-activities in After-School with a great organization, FEMMES+ (Females and Allies Excelling More in Math, Engineering and Science), affiliated with Duke University. FEMMES+ offers After-School and Saturday programs introducing STEM concepts using hands-on-activities, such as creating clouds in a bottle. If they have exposure in those primary grades along with mentoring in the higher grades, more girls will pursue STEAM (STEM + ARTS) careers – closing the gender gap.”
– Nicole Jones, Director of Advanced Analytics, MS in Statistics and Operations Research
“If boys and girls work and play together more, then perhaps young men and women entering the workforce will be more effective working together as teammates. My own perspective is that "kids these days" already play across gender lines more freely than in my youth.
It may never be the case that all boys and girls want to work and play together in the same way. It may never be the case that men and women pursue the same career paths at the same rates. I think that's OK. We will have achieved gender equality when men and women feel equally that there is a place for them in STEM. What it will take to get there is probably more complex than any one of us understands.”
– Aurora Tiffany-Davis, Principal Software Developer, MS in Computer Science
“I see more and more women are volunteering, contributing back to the community and society, using their field knowledge and expertise to mentor other women and educate girls. That’s so encouraging!”
– Pin Hu, Senior Systems Engineer, MS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
“In my experience, it will take mentorship from both women and men to achieve gender equality in scientific fields - whether in the classroom, the lab or at work. We all can benefit from a career scientist sharing tips on how they handled the challenges along the way – and we can share our own stories as well.”
– Shannon Conners, R&D Director, PhD in Bioinformatics
“I have noticed over the years that when girls are interacting from a young age regularly with female scientists and engineers, enough so that they’re confidently engaged, and have full STEM support from their educators, that these girls are drawn to more scientific fields. Because they are often entering these college studies with a near-empty set of professional connections, once in the field, women (and minorities) benefit the most from strong mentors and the connections these relationships forge.”
– Annie Zangi, Senior Research Statistician Developer, MS in Statistics
“I believe we need more adults modeling to young people how to be brave and try new things, new projects and tasks as they go through daily life. Cooking, cleaning, building something – following instructions, is a basic way to learn how to be more organized and complete a task. I’ve benefited by working with other talented, strong leaders, sharing experiences and receiving encouragement myself. Those experiences pushed me towards a more technical job today, partly by believing I could do anything, after encouragement from others.”
– Mandy Chambers, Principal Test Engineer, BA in Mathematics
“I believe it will take women and men encouraging girls and women to explore and pursue various areas of science that they might not have previously received encouragement to consider, fighting stereotypes about people who work in science, and highlighting women scientists as role models.”
– Laura Lancaster, Principal Research Statistician Developer, PhD in Management Science
“The inequality is still real, and it will take time to change. Succeeding in scientific research is hard work and is even harder for women. I had to choose between pursuing a scientific research career and raising a family. I had to change my career path, which ultimately I do not regret. I hope that those types of career decisions will never have to happen again in a future where women and men are equally treated.”
– Valérie Nedbal, Senior Systems Engineer, PhD in Molecular Biology
“In my career, I have been influenced by the women around me. I’ve seen other women having an impact, being in positions of leadership, and having confidence in their roles, while still maintaining a work-life balance that is important to many women. Some of these women have taken time to share advice and insights with me. Having good role models has motivated me to take on the hard challenges, and their support is invaluable. I’m doing what I can to pay it forward.”
– Audrey Shull, Senior R&D Manager, BS in Statistics
“It will take mutual respect, trust, efforts and cooperation from both women and men to achieve gender equality in scientific fields. We have common interests and a passion for science and technology. We need to share knowledge, ideas, and experience, complement each other, and accomplish together in the journey of gender equality.”
– Wenjun Bao, Chief Scientist and Senior Manager, PhD in Biochemistry
“Keep the confidence, and don't forget to look at all that has already been done. Then, persevere and go towards what remains to be done.”
– Florence Kussener, Senior Systems Engineer, MS in Mathematics
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