Women In Astronomy: AASWOMEN Newsletter for April 30, 2021

AAS Committee on the Status of Women AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of April 30, 2021
eds: Heather Flewelling, Nicolle Zellner, Maria Patterson, Alessandra Aloisi, and Jeremy Bailin

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. Be well! --eds.]

This week's issues:

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

1. CSWA is recruiting new members. Deadline extended to May 12.
From: Nicolle Zellner via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy, CSWA, is recruiting new members. Everyone is welcome to apply! The deadline for applications has been extended to May 12.

Find out more at

http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2021/04/seeking-cswa-members.html

Apply at

https://forms.gle/EafYySQkcSdoH5s56

2. Proposed House Bill Would Direct Agencies to Examine Sexual Harassment in STEM
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu]

By Brandi Vincent

"A bipartisan pair of senior lawmakers introduced legislation that would prompt multiple federal entities to comprehensively study—and inform new policies to reduce—sexual harassment impacting America’s science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM workforce.

Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, and Frank Lucas, R-Okla., on Tuesday put forth the Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act.

If passed, the bill would direct the National Science Foundation to implement a competitive grant program for academic institutions and nonprofit organizations to extend research into sexual and gender harassment among STEM personnel, and interventions to lessen incidents and the consequences of such behavior. NSF also would be required to convene a working group with others from federal statistical agencies to gather national data and craft questions to potentially be used in future surveys around the “prevalence, nature and implications” of sexual harassment in higher education."

Read the proposed bill text at

https://science.house.gov/imo/media/doc/JOHNTE_002_xml.pdf

3. Minority representation in US science workforce sees few gains
From: Nicolle Zellner [nzellner_at_albion.edu]

By Chris Woolston

Members of minority ethnic groups have made only modest inroads into US science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) positions in recent years, according to an analysis of nearly 20 million people.

The analysis was conducted by the Pew Research Center, a non-profit organization in Washington DC, and used data collected by the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series American Community Survey. It found that Black people accounted for 9% of the STEM workforce in 2019. That’s the same proportion as in 2016, suggesting a lack of progress at a time when many companies and universities had pledged to promote diversity. Over the same period, the proportion of Hispanic workers in STEM jobs rose from 7% to 8%. Black and Hispanic people make up 12% and 17% of the US workforce, respectively.

See the report at

https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2021/04/01/stem-jobs-see-uneven-progress-in-increasing-gender-racial-and-ethnic-diversity

4. The moon’s craters are the muse for Concordia researcher’s science-based art
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu]

By Patrick Lejtenyi

"Bettina Forget is a Public Scholar and PhD candidate in art education in Concordia’s Faculty of Fine Arts. She is studying ways in which the arts and sciences can merge to encourage women to enter STEM fields. This includes astronomy, another discipline heavily dominated by men and whose early pioneers had the privilege of naming discoveries after themselves. As a result, says Forget, far more astronomical bodies bear the names of men than women. It was this discrepancy that inspired Forget to begin two related art projects: Women With Impact and One Small Step, about which she recently published an article in the journal Leonardo. Women With Impact is a series she began in 2016 of hand-drawn illustrations of the 32 craters named after women. Her second project, One Small Step, brings the craters off the page and makes them tangible. Forget used her home 3D printer to create miniature replicas of the craters, each small enough to fit on the sole of a shoe."

5. Review of The Disorder Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred
From: Jörg Matthias Determann [jmdetermann_at_vcu.edu]

"Much has been written about diversity and, increasingly, inclusion and equity in astronomy. Many scientific organizations now have officers and committees tasked with promoting under-represented groups, like women and members of ethnic minorities. One of the rationales for this development is that by having people with multiple experiences and perspectives on board, research teams are better at solving problems and making discoveries. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, a Black, Jewish, bisexual and disabled cosmologist at the University of New Hampshire, has become one of the loudest diversity advocates since joining Twitter in 2008. In her first book, The Disordered Cosmos, she has shifted the emphasis of her activism towards freedom and justice."

Read the full review at

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-021-01313-3.epdf

6. “#IfThenSheCan – The Exhibit” Featuring More Than 120 Female STEM Ambassadors From Across the Country Debuts May 15
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu]

#IfThenSheCan -- The Exhibit, the largest collection of statues of women ever assembled in one location, opens in Dallas on May 15 and runs through October. Originally scheduled for 2020 but postponed due to the pandemic, the exhibit celebrates the more than 120 AAAS IF/THEN Ambassadors, including astronomers and astrophysicists Miriam Fuchs, Erika Hamden, Kelly Korreck, and Burçin Mutlu-Pakdil.

Read more about the AAAS IF/THEN Ambassadors at

https://www.ifthenshecan.org/ambassadors

7. U.S. national academy picks record number of women, minorities, including 9 women astronomers, planetary scientists, and astrophysicists
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu] and Heather Flewelling [flewelling.heather_at_gmail.com]

By Jeffrey Mervis

"The U.S. National Academy of Sciences (NAS) chooses its members in a process that has long discriminated against female and minority scientists, as well as those from less prestigious universities. But NAS officials have begun to tinker with that process with the goal of increasing gender, racial, and geographic diversity. And this year’s class, announced today, shows the impact of those changes.

One-half of the members of this year’s class—59 of 120—are women; 10 years ago it was roughly one-quarter. The new cohort also includes nine Black scientists; NAS officials say there were never more than three in previous classes, and often the number was zero."

The NAS inductees include 9 astronomers, planetary scientists, and astrophysicists who are women: Frances Baganel, Debra Fischer, Angela Olinto, Anneila Sargent, Ellen Zweibel, Lisa Kewley, Linda Elkins-Tanton, Alessandra Buonanno, and Elena Aprile.

See the full list of inductees at

http://www.nasonline.org/news-and-multimedia/news/2021-nas-election.html

See the AAS press release on the 9 AAS members elected at

https://aas.org/posts/news/2021/04/aas-members-elected-national-academy-sciences

8. Three women astronomers among new AAAS members
From: Nicolle Zellner [nzellner_at_albion.edu] and Heather Flewelling [flewelling.heather_at_gmail.com]

By AAS

"The American Academy of Arts & Sciences, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has announced the election of 252 new members, of which 55% are women. Among the astronomers and astrophysicists in the class of 2021 are three AAS members: Vicky Kalogera (Northwestern University), Angela V. Olinto (University of Chicago), and Jill Tarter (SETI Institute)"

See the full list of inductees at

https://www.amacad.org/new-members-2021

9. New Name-Change Policy Supports Greater Inclusion in Publishing
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu]

By Ethan Vishniac

"The AAS has adopted a new policy that will allow authors to change their names on previously published research. The policy was developed by IOP Publishing, the Society's partner in journals and ebooks, and reflects both organizations' commitment to ensuring an open, supportive, and inclusive research environment.

The policy covers changes to names, pronouns, author photographs, and contact details. People change their name for a variety of reasons, including gender identity, marriage, divorce, or a change in religion. In many cases, particularly for trans and non-binary authors, changing names needs to be approached with discretion and sensitivity. Respecting authors' right to privacy is a key tenet, with assurance of full confidentiality and the option to change a name with or without a public notice. The new policy offers a simple and seamless approach, with no requirement to disclose the reason for the request nor the need to provide proof of a legal name change."

10. Professional Development Through Access to Diverse Viewpoints: Creating a More Inclusive Career Panel
From: Jeremy Bailin [jbailin_at_ua.edu]

Daina Bouquin reflects on the Wolbach Library at the Center for Astrophysics's efforts to organize a career panel for its early career researchers that had a more inclusive and representative range of panelists, including the impetus, logistics, and outcomes.

11. 2021 Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disability in Science and Engineering report released
From: Karen Hamrick [khamrick_at_nsf.gov]

Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering provides statistical information about the participation of these three groups in science and engineering (S&E) education and employment. Its primary purpose is to serve as a statistical abstract with no endorsement of or recommendations about policies or programs.

12. Understanding Diversity in STEM: Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering 2021 (WMPD)
From: Crystal Coleman [crcolema_at_associates.nsf.gov]

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) invites you to participate in Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering (WMPD) Day on May 12, 2021. Registration is required.

The theme of this year’s WMPD Day is Recognize. Celebrate. Build.

Recognize. The gains that have been made and the gaps that remain. Celebrate. The stories of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities in STEM making a difference in our communities and around the world. The organizations creating opportunity and empowering the next generation of women, minorities and persons with disabilities in STEM. Build. New ways to empower a more diverse and dynamic STEM workforce

Read more at

https://ncses.nsf.gov/wmpd

https://sri.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_uhopx_4dSryY9LyAzIY1vw

13. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

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15. Access to Past Issues

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Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

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Women In Astronomy

Friday, April 30, 2021

AASWOMEN Newsletter for April 30, 2021

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