Women In Astronomy

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues

1. AAS SMRG Gender Statistics - Response
From: Eric Jensen [ejensen1_at_swarthmore.edu]

[Two weeks ago we posted the AAS Small Research Grant Gender Statistics. We received one clarification which appear below. -- eds.]

First, thanks for all of your good work on the CSWA newsletter - I really appreciate and value it.

It may already have been pointed out by others, but the last sentence of the statistics in the second paragraph may be a little confusing:

"Of the 47 successful proposers, 32 (47%) are male and 15 (54%) are female."

Those percentages must be the percentages of male and female proposers, respectively, who are successful. So the male/female split still ends up about 70%/30% in the awards, but that reflects the demographics of the applicant pools, and shows roughly equal success rates among all proposers.

Thanks again for your work,

Eric Jensen

2. Report from Special Session on Diversity at AAS Austin
From: Hannah Jang-Condell [womeninastronomy.blogspot.com]

The CSWA helped sponsor a Special Session entitled "Increasing Diversity in Your Department" at the 219th AAS Meeting in Austin last week. We had four terrific speakers for this session, and the CSWA will post their slides on our website soon. For now, I'll highlight some key points from their talks.

Caroline Simpson chaired the session, and spoke about 'Best Practices in Hiring: Addressing Unconscious Bias.' Andrew West spoke about 'Tools for Recruiting a Diverse Applicant Pool,' and his talk focused on recruitment of under-represented minorities (URMs). Van Dixon spoke about 'Recruitment and Retenion of LGBTIQ Astronomers.' In case you are wondering, LGBTIQ = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Questioning. Caty Pilachowski spoke about 'Getting to Family-Friendly in Your Department.'

To read Hannah's highlights, please see

http://www.harpercollins.com/browseinside/index.aspx?isbn13=9780060959623

3. You Just Don't Understand: Women and Men in Conversation
From: Bruce Elmegreen [bge_at_us.ibm.com]

Bruce Elmegreen recommends 'You Just Don't Understand: Men and Women in Conversation' by Deborah Tanner, Ph.D. The book is about how men and women speak different languages in ways we don't usually recognize.

[You can browse the book at the publisher's website:

-- eds.]

4. STScI Summer Intern Program
From: Lisa Frattare [Frattare_at_stsci.edu]

Please blog, tweet, facebook, forward to faculty or place in the hands of students who could benefit from a summer internship at STScI. We are looking for excellent students for research, outreach, technical, engineering, and support projects. The deadline is January 25th!

Women, minorities, and those dedicated to diversity and multiculturalism are strongly encouraged to apply.

The SASP website and the application form can be reached at:

http://www.stsci.edu/institute/sd/students

Thanks,

Lisa Frattare Head, STScI Summer Intern Program

5. IBM Research Internship for Undergraduate Women
From: WIPHYS, January 11, 2012

APS and IBM co-sponsor a research internship program for undergraduate women. The goal is to encourage women students to pursue graduate studies in science and engineering. The internships are salaried positions typically 10 weeks long at one of three IBM research locations (San Jose, CA, Austin, TX, or Yorktown Heights, NY), and give the opportunity to work closely with an IBM mentor. For more information, please see

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/ibm/index.cfm

6. Job Opportunities

Full Professor, Theoretical High Energy Physics, Columbia University http://careers.physicstoday.org/jobs/4628562/faculty-position-theoretical-high-energy-physics

7.How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

1. 2012 George van Biesbroeck Prize

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Report from Special Session on Diversity at Austin AAS

2012-01-18T20:09:00.000-05:00

Caroline Simpson chaired the session, and spoke about "Best Practices in Hiring: Addressing Unconscious Bias."Her talk was a recap of Abby Stewart's talk from the 2011 winter AAS Meeting on unconscious bias, but it's a message well worth repeating. The main points of Dr. Simpson's talk were that
- increased diversity leads to increased excellence,
- we all think about the world in terms of schemas that lead to unconscious biases,
- we can fight our unconscious biases by becoming aware of them
- and we should be sure to use objective criteria to evaluate job candidates.
The University of Michigan ADVANCE program has a handy toolkit available for use.
Andrew West spoke about "Tools for Recruiting a Diverse Applicant Pool," and his talk focused on recruitment of under-represented minorities (URMs). Key points from Dr. West's talk were
- unfortunately, there's no magic bullet
- fortunately, most techniques for recruiting URMshelp everyone
- the numbers of URMs earning PhDs in astronomy is really small, like <10 per year
- the biggest drop off in URMs in physics and astronomy is after the first year in college
- historically black small colleges produce 55% of the BS and BA physics degrees, so establishing relationships with those colleges is a good way to keep URMs in the pipeline
- directly ask people to apply for jobs, and post ads broadly
Van Dixon spoke about "Recruitment and Retenion of LGBTIQ Astronomers."In case you are wondering, LGBTIQ = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Questioning. The main points for making workplaces more friendly to LGBTIQ astronomerswere
- make an explicit commitment to inclusion in policies
- be aware that benefits such as health insurance for same-sex partners are taxable, which you can offset by "grossing up" wages
- remove discriminatory health insurance exclusions for transgendered people
- make policies friendly to non-traditional families, like including adoption and domestic partnerships in leave benefits
- advertise your inclusive policies
Finally, Dr. Dixon announced and announced that a Working group on GLBTIQ Equity (WGLE)has just been formally approved by the AAS Council. Huzzah!
Caty Pilachowski spoke about "Getting to Family-Friendlyin Your Department." The main point of her talk was that it's one thing to have a written policy of family-friendliness, but another to have a family-friendly department culturethat is supportive of work-life balance. Ways to create a culture of family-friendliness include
- make families visible by recognizing family milestones, including families in department events, and setting up a department family bulletin board
- recognize that families include kids, parents, pets, etc.
- bring your kids and pets to work
- offer help to others in need
- leave visible copies of Status and Spectrum around
Dr. Pilachowski acknowledged that cultural change is hard, and must be done incrementally, but in the end it benefits everyone.

All in all in was a good session. We had about 60 people in attendance, many of whom were early-career. I would have liked to see a room full of department chairs, since they are the ones who are in the best positions to make changes. I wish these sessions didn't feel so much like preaching to the choir, and the CSWA is constantly trying to come up with better ideas for bringing in a wider audience. Ideas, anyone?-Hannah

AASWOMEN for January 13, 2012

2012-01-16T13:28:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of January 13, 2012
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. 'Geek' Perception of Computer Science Putting Off Girls, Expert Warns

3. Women Need More Role Models, Tech Leaders Tell CES Panel

4. Secretary Clinton Announcement at the "Celebrating Women in Science" Event

5. Boston's Women in Bio Aims to Fuel STEM Curiosity in Middle Schoolers

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. 2012 George van Biesbroeck Prize
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

CSWA has just learned that the 2012 George van Biesbroeck Prize will be awarded to one of our own, Meg Urry, for her tireless efforts to enhance the participation of women in astronomy! The citation will read as follows:

"The 2012 George van Biesbroeck Prize, which honors an individual for long-term extraordinary or unselfish service to astronomy, is awarded to Dr. C. Megan Urry for her sustained efforts to increase the number of women in astronomy. She was one of the five original organizers of the first "Women in Astronomy" meeting in Baltimore, was coauthor of the "Baltimore Charter" and persuaded the AAS council to endorse the charter's goals. She also organized the second of these meetings in Pasadena in 2003. In addition to encouraging many young women scientists on an individual basis, she revived and edited for seven years STATUS, the newsletter of the Committee on the Status of Women of the AAS. She also published the results of key statistical studies, wrote numerous articles and gave many lectures on the status of minorities in the sciences. Through the years she has helped transform our field from one with a rather restrictive view of who belongs in the profession to one that is n ow held as an example for other disciplines on how to diversify the field. She did all this while at the same time achieving a distinguished career in astrophysics herself."

Congratulations, Meg!

2. 'Geek' Perception of Computer Science Putting Off Girls, Expert Warns
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Jessica Shepherd, education correspondent for the guardian.co.uk, wrote:

One of the world's leading computer scientists, Professor Dame Wendy Hall, has warned that girls are increasingly shunning her subject at school and university.

Hall, who invented a forerunner to the World Wide Web, said the problem of a scarcity of girls studying computer science was "getting worse" despite huge efforts from the scientific community to address the issue.

Hall, the dean of the faculty of physical and applied sciences at the University of Southampton, told the Guardian that girls still perceive computing to be "for geeks" and that this has proved to be a "cultural" obstacle, so far impossible to overcome.

Hall played a prominent role in shaping science and technology policy as well as carrying out pioneering research, but said computer science had to be "given a buzz" to all pupils in primary schools and children needed to be shown how vital the discipline is to society.

She said instead of showing pupils how computers work, they were being taught about how to use a computer to produce spreadsheets, presentations and other documents. Hall said this had exacerbated the shortage of girls taking up computer science.

"Girls have been further put off by dumbing down computing to IT literacy ... They think that if they study computing they are going to become secretaries."

3. Women Need More Role Models, Tech Leaders Tell CES Panel
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Jay Greene wrote this article for CES.CNET:

LAS VEGAS--Even though women have taken great strides in technology, a panel of top women in the industry suggested that great role models could help them gain more.

Those role models shouldn't be merely top executives, said Cisco Systems Chief Technology Officer Padmasree Warrior, one of the highest ranking women in the industry. Young women considering pursuing careers in tech need to see accomplished women in a variety of jobs.

"We need to have successful role models at every level," Warrior said during CNET Women in Tech panel at the Consumer Electronics Show here this afternoon.

Warrior was joined on the panel by Google Vice President Marissa Mayer, Flickr founder Catarina Fake, and Lindsey Turrentine, editor-in-chief of CNET Reviews. Warrior told the panel, moderated by CNET Executive Editor Molly Wood, that women didn't need "heroes." What helps, though, are women who can talk about the struggles they've faced, and the tactics they've used to overcome them.

"There is value in sharing your experiences," Warrior said.

4. Secretary Clinton Announcement at the "Celebrating Women in Science" Event
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Press release from the U.S. Department of State:

On Nobel Prize Day, December 10, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton launched the NeXXt Scholars Initiative in a video address at the New York Academy of Sciences event, "Celebrating Women in Science" honoring the 100th anniversary of Marie Curie's second Nobel Prize in science. This new partnership initiative responds to the Secretary's core mission of empowering women around the world, by educating them to be the leaders of tomorrow.

The NeXXt Scholars Initiative engages young women from predominantly Muslim countries to pursue an undergraduate degree in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) at U.S. Women's Colleges. In addition to a high-quality STEM education, this U.S. Government partnership with nearly 40 women's colleges will provide mentorship, networking, support, and enrichment activities for these international NeXXt Scholars and an American student nominated to be her STEM-Sister. The New York Academy of Sciences will support these efforts by providing Academy memberships and mentorship to these women, connecting NeXXt Scholars with a large network of women in STEM fields through its Science Alliance program.

Dr. E. William Colglazier, the Science and Technology Adviser to Secretary Clinton, gave remarks at the event about the Department's commitment to this initiative and praised the spirit of collaboration of all partners including EducationUSA Centers, U.S. Agency for International Development, New York Academy of Sciences and nearly 40 U.S. women's colleges. Attendees included an influential group of scientists, as well as leaders from government, academia, industry, and philanthropy. A host of notable women participated in the event, including honorary guest Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Science Envoy and President of Lehigh University, Dr. Alice P. Gast, and keynote speaker Dr. Ellen Kullman, chair of the board and CEO of DuPont. Representatives from 19 of the 37 women's colleges partnering in the NeXXt Scholars Initiative were in attendance, including the five 'sister' colleges: Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Wellesley, as well as, College o f Saint Benedict, Carlow University, Agnes Scott, Spelman, and Simmons Colleges. The presidents of Bennett College for Women, College of Saint Elizabeth, Douglass Residential College of Rutgers University, Saint Joseph, Bay Path, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Scripps, Stephens, and Columbia Colleges were all in attendance for the launch of this partnership initiative. NeXXt Scholars recruitment is currently underway for the first cohort entering this fall.

5. Boston's Women in Bio Aims to Fuel STEM Curiosity in Middle Schoolers
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Amy Speak posted this article on Xconomy:

According to the National Science Foundation, eighth grade girls are half as likely to be interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers as boys-a dramatic change from second grade, where the numbers are roughly equal. This trend continues through high school, college and into the workplace, as even women with advanced science degrees tend to leave the field at higher rates than their male counterparts. The numbers also show that careers of men and women in bioscience progress at markedly different rates; while women and men each hold about half of the graduate degrees in biology, far more senior leadership roles are held by men than women (17 percent vs. 83 percent, respectively.)

Women In Bio Greater Boston (WIB-GB) is one group that is trying to change that. It is the newest chapter of a fast-growing international trade association aimed at fostering leadership, entrepreneurship and careers of women in the biosciences. Comprised of professionals across the career continuum-from those just starting out to industry veterans-the group plans to leverage the region's strong biotechnology supercluster to provide career development opportunities for women in New England. Programming being planned for 2012 includes networking, mentoring and educational events specifically geared at the interests of and challenges faced by women working in this industry.

6. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues

3. Women in Physics InSight Slideshow

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWOMEN for January 6, 2012

2012-01-09T09:41:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of January 5, 2012
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

1. Happy New Year

2. AAS SMRG Gender Statistics

4. UN Gender Equity Award

5. CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month - Nominations

6. Undergraduate Planetary Science Research Conference

7. SDE/GWIS National Fellowships Program

8. PS/IBM Research Internships for Undergraduate Women

9. Job Opportunities

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/womanofthemonth.cfm

1. Happy New Year
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

On behalf of all the editors of AASWomen and the entire Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy at the AAS, we wish you a happy new year and many felicitous returns in 2012!

2. AAS SMRG Gender Statistics
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

Rick Fienberg, Press Officer/Education amp; Outreach Coordinator, AAS, has kindly gathered two years worth of gender data (to July 2011) regarding the AAS Small Research Grant (SMRG), a program that is funded by a grant from NASA at the request of M.M. Montgomery.

Of 96 applicants, 68 (71%) are male and 28 (29%) are female. Of all of these applicants, 47 (49%) were successful in earning at least a portion of their requested funds. Of the 47 successful proposers, 32 (47%) are male and 15 (54%) are female.

The total amount requested by all applicants was $474,000. Of the successful applicants, a total of $180,000 (38%) was awarded. The average request across all proposals was $4,938. The average award for the successful applicants was $3,833 (78% of the requested amount). The average grant for males was $3,663 (75% of the requested amount), and the average grant for females was $4,198 (84% of the requested amount).

Congratulations to the AAS SMRG program for having gender balance in these statistics.

3. Women in Physics InSight Slideshow
From: WIPHYS, December 21, 2011

Physics InSight is a special powerpoint slideshow designed to inform and excite students about physics and physics careers (including astronomy --eds.). The show contains career profile, statistics about physics employment, and information on special opportunities for physics students. The show is designed for display on LCD monitors and computer screens in common areas. Simply download the zipped folder for the desired show, and extract the files. You should be able to run the slideshow by double clicking on the power point file in this folder - it will automatically start in slideshow mode.

PC Widescreen Version: http://apps3.aps.org/aps/insight/Physics_InSight_Womens_2011.zip

PC Standard Version: http://apps3.aps.org/aps/insight/Physics_InSight_Womens_2011_pc.zip

Mac Widescreen Version: http://apps3.aps.org/aps/insight/Physics_InSight_Womens_2011_macwide.zip

Mac Standard Version: http://apps3.aps.org/aps/insight/Physics_InSight_Womens_2011_mac.zip

4. UN Gender Equity Award
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

In addition to the general SEED Awards, the UN announces a special gender equity award as part of the SEED's partnership with UN Women. This award is dedicated to women-led or women-owned enterprises, for example. One of the 35 SEED award winner's in 2011 developed solar ovens for use in Burkina Faso, Africa.

For more information and a complete list of winners from 2011 proposals, please see

http://www.seedinit.org

5. CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month - Nominations
From: WIPHYS, December 21, 2012

Beginning January 2012, the Committee on the Status of Women in Physics (CSWP) will start featuring the CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month. The award is intended to recognize female physicists that have positively impacted other individual's lives and careers and/or are worthy of recognition. The nominee does not need to be an APS member. Each CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month will be featured on the Women in Physics website, announced in the Gazette, and recognized at a reception at an APS national meeting. For more info, please visit:

6. Undergraduate Planetary Science Research Conference
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

An Undergraduate Planetary Science Research Conference will be held on Sunday, March 18th, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The meeting is in conjunction with the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC). The conference includes panels on How to Choose the Grad School Right for You, Alternative Careers in Science, and Women in Planetary Science. In addition, a mentoring program is provided where students, paired with a scientist for part of the LPSC meeting, can learn how to engage at a scientific conference. Some travel support is available to students, with funding priority given to students of diverse backgrounds. Application deadline is February 10, 2012. To register, please go to

https://www.lpi.usra.edu/meeting_portal/iofi/index.cfm?mtg=yssurc2012/.

7. SDE/GWIS National Fellowships Program
From: WIPHYS, December 16, 2011

The SDE/GWIS National Fellowships Program is proud to offer fellowships in 2012 to help increase knowledge in the fundamental sciences and to encourage research careers in the sciences by women. Current career level is graduate student to assistant professor. This year's application deadline is January 15, 2012 with awards being announced on or before July 1, 2012 for funding in the 2012-2013 academic year. For more information and to apply, visit:

http://www.gwis.org/programs.html

8. PS/IBM Research Internships for Undergraduate Women
From: WIPHYS, December 16, 2011

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/ibm/index.cfm

9. Job Opportunities

a. Science Data Management Archive Manager (B.S. degree needed), NOAO http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

b. Science Educator (B.S. degree needed), NOAO http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

c. Post Doc, high redshift galactic evolution, NOAO http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

d. Post Doc, Mc-Math Pierce Solar Telescope, NOAO http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

e. Post Doc, Johns Hopkins University, Particle/Cosmology Theory http://physics-astronomy.jhu.edu

f. Tenure Track, Extragalactic Astronomy, Georgia State University http://www.chara.gsu.edu/extragalactic.html

10.How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

12. Access to Past Issues

1. Family Leave Policies for Astronomers

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWOMEN for December 16, 2011

2011-12-19T09:16:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of December 16, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Autumn Conferences

3. CSWA Web Resources

4. Giving the Tech Industry a Makeover Will Draw More Women

5. America's Women

6. Minorities, Women Often Discouraged from Entering Engineering, Science Fields

7. Job at Florida International University

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Family Leave Policies for Astronomers
From: L. Trouille_at_Women_in_Astronomy_Blog, Dec 14, 2011

In the interest of fully supporting the intellectual efforts of astronomy graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, we* have created a petition to encourage the establishment of family leave policies by Astronomy Departments and Fellowship Committees. These policies will provide these astronomers with the freedom necessary to excel in academic pursuits while raising a family.

Please indicate your support by signing the petition at:

http://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/aaron-geller/petition/index.php

We will then share the document with all Fellowship program officers and Department chairs.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please email:

astrofamleave_at_gmail.com

Thanks for your support.

*Emily Freeland, Aaron Geller, Nick Murphy, Laura Trouille and the AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy

To add to the wiki of current departmental and postdoctoral fellowship family leave policies, please visit:

http://www.astrobetter.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Leave+Policies

2. Autumn Conferences
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

If you have attended a conference this autumn, please help CSWA update its list of % women invited speakers:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/percent.html

If you would like to add a conference, please carefully check the gender of all the invited speakers and send the information given in each column of this table to the CSWA webmaster, Nancy Morrison [nmorris_at_utnet.utoledo.edu]. Please remember to include only invited speakers on research topics, no popular lecturers.

3. CSWA Web Resources
From: Nancy Morrison [NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu]

CSWA has compiled a list of resources on unconscious bias and the impostor syndrome:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/unconsciousbias.html

Unconscious bias may be one of the most important obstacles to women's professional success today. Especially noteworthy is a Feb 2011 article from The New York Times entitled, "Cracking the Male Code of Office Behavior," by Shaunti Feldhahn:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/jobs/06pre.html?_r=1&ref=jobs

Victims of imposter syndrome feel that they are not as competent as their peers think they are. Lately, some resources with positive suggestions for addressing this problem have become available.

We have also included some updates to the work-life balance page.

If you know of any good on-line resources that are not yet included, please send links to the address above.

4. Giving the Tech Industry a Makeover Will Draw More Women
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Leah Eichler wrote this article for Saturday's Globe and Mail:

Women in technology love to talk about the lack of women in technology, especially those who reside at the top. So on Jan. 1, 2012, when Virginia Rometty takes the helm of IBM Corp. as its first female chief executive officer, joining Meg Whitman as the CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co. as one of the few women in charge of a high-profile tech company, we should interpret this as success, right?

Probably not. As many in the tech industry argue, the dearth of women in the industry overall contributes to that lack of representation at the C-suite level. And the lack of women in the industry can be traced back to the small numbers who pursue relevant degrees in science and tech.

"It's always encouraging to see women take on leadership positions of such global and influential firms, but I would not interpret that as success," said Mic Berman, chief operating officer of Toronto-based FreshBooks, an online billing service.

5. America's Women
From: Joannah Hinz [jlhinz_at_gmail.com]

[This is a teaser for a book review that will appear in the Jan 2012 issue of STATUS, the semiannual magazine of CSWA. - Eds.]

America's Women: Four Hundred Years of Dolls, Drudges, Helpmates, and Heroines

by Gail Collins

America's Women is a roller coaster ride through the milestones, large and small, of the women upon which this country was settled, built and developed. The chronicles of these fierce females elicit the same screams and cries, the same heart-in-mouth feeling, as every twist and turn of an amusement park ride. Each event is told in detail, beginning with the journeys of pioneers of the Mayflower and ending with protesters of the 1970's. The same dizziness and weak-leggedness you might feel disembarking from the roller coaster occurs when a chapter ends. You're a bit breathless from having the wind full force in your face for that long, and you wonder if you are able to steady yourself before getting back in line for the next ride . . .

To read more, look out for the next issue of STATUS!

6. Minorities, Women Often Discouraged from Entering Engineering, Science Fields
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Cathy Bonnstetter wrote this article for The State Journal:

Many female and minority chemists and engineers say they were discouraged from going into their chosen profession, according to a study released this week by Bayer Corp.

The company released results from its Bayer Facts of Science Education XV survey, "A View from the Gatekeepers," which was an online poll of science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, department chairs at America's top 200 research institutions.

The survey showed that 40 percent of minority and female chemists and engineers polled said they were discouraged from studying STEM subjects. Forty-four percent said their college professors were the sources of the discouragement.

"We wanted to find out if this discouragement is still occurring," said Mae Jemison, aphysician, astronaut, college professor and Bayer spokesperson for the company's Making Science Make Sense Initiative. "We found out it is."

The majority of department chairs polled in this year's survey gave their institutions grades of C or lower when it came to recruiting and retaining women and minorities in STEM programs. Bayer USA Foundation executive director Rebecca Lucore said the survey illustrated the gaps in the fields.

7. Job at Florida International University

Instructor, Department of Physics, Florida International University

http://casgroup.fiu.edu/physics

8. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

1. "Womanspace" Nature article follow-up

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Petition, Please Sign, Family Leave Policies for Astronomers

2011-12-14T14:15:00.016-05:00

In the interest of fully supporting the intellectual efforts of astronomy graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, we* have created a petition to encourage the establishment of family leave policies by Astronomy Departments and Fellowship Committees. These policies will provide astronomers with the freedom necessary to excel in academic pursuits while raising a family.

Please indicate your support by signing the petition at:

http://faculty.wcas.northwestern.edu/aaron-geller/petition/index.php

Update: Since posting this message on Tuesday (Dec. 13), over 590 astronomers have signed. Thank you for this support. And thank you for forwarding the message to your departments and institutions. Let's particularly encourage faculty (currently 13% of signatures), staff scientists (currently 8% of signatures), and other mid/late career astronomers to sign.

We will then share the document with all Fellowship program officers and Department chairs and move on to the next phase of this effort.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please email:

astrofamleave@gmail.com

Thanks for your support.

*Emily Freeland, Aaron Geller, Nick Murphy, Laura Trouille

and the AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy

To add to the wiki of current departmental and postdoctoral fellowship family leave policies, please visit: http://www.astrobetter.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Leave+Policies

AASWOMEN for December 09, 2011

2011-12-12T10:22:00.002-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of December 9, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson amp; Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Impostors Welcome

3. Water, Ice, and the Origin of Life Summer School

4. Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunities

5. Job Opportunities

6. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. "Womanspace" Nature article follow-up
From: Lucianne Walkowicz [l.m.walkowicz_at_gmail.com]

Thought you might be interested to see responses to the "Womanspace" article that ran in Nature's correspondence section: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v479/n7373/full/479299c.html http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v479/n7373/full/479299b.html

[Female Science Professor also addressed this article in her blog: http://science-professor.blogspot.com/2011/11/nature-error.html --eds.]

2. Impostors Welcome
From: Ed Bertschinger at womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

I experienced Impostor Syndrome vividly when I started teaching as a faculty member at the very university that rejected me for undergraduate admission. How could I ever hope to teach such brilliant students? Although no one had told me about the syndrome, I knew instinctively that I just had to persevere through my fears. Experience and hard work came to my aid. The lesson? Persistence matters. [...]

See the full post at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2011/12/impostors-welcome.html

3. Water, Ice, and the Origin of Life Summer School
From: Wolf Dietrich Geppert [wgeppert_at_hotmail.com]

In the 2009 Nordic-NASA summer school, slightly more women than men attended. The goal is to further achieve gender balance for the 2012 Nordic-NASA summer school to be be held in Iceland from 2 to 15 July 2012 on 'Water, Ice, and the Origin of Life in the Universe.' The aim of the school is to give graduate students and early career scientists (up to 5 years after their first Ph. D. in a related field) a thorough high-level introduction into the role of water in the evolution of life in the cosmos, starting from formation of water molecules in space and ending with evolution of the first organisms. The school is open to applicants from all nationalities. Detailed information about the summer school and the application procedure (deadline 31 January 2012) can be found here

http://www.nordicastrobiology.net/Iceland2012

Accepted participants will receive free lodging, meals, and excursions. However, accepted participants will have to organize financial means for travel to and from Iceland.

4. Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunities

1. The Solar and Stellar X-ray Group and the Solar, Stellar and Planetary Sciences Divisions at Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The program is open to current undergraduate students who are US citizens. The program will run from June 4, 2012 through August 10, 2012. Successful applicants will receive stipend, lodging, and travel allowance. Applications open on December 1, 2011, and they are due by February 11, 2012. Participants must be full-time undergraduate students, preferably finishing their sophomore or junior years. http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/opportunities/solar_reu/index.html

2. Interdisciplinary Scientific Computation at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio. Project descriptions and on-line application at http://reu.owu.edu .

3. University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; June 18 - August 24, 2012. Minority group members and women are especially encouraged to apply. All applicants must be US citizens or permanent residents. Admission to the program is competitive and preference will be given to physics majors who will have completed their junior year by Summer, 2012. Online application and further details at: http://www.int.washington.edu/REU

4. The University of Oregon, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Chemistry, Optics and Materials Science. Chemistry or Physics undergraduate with junior standing preferred. http://reu.uoregon.edu

5. SPS internships or Undergraduates: Applications due February 1 These are broad-based learning opportunities for undergraduate physics majors. http://www.spsnational.org/programs/internships

6. Noblis Internship Program for Undergraduates Noblis is now accepting applications for their 2012 Summer Internship Program. Summer internships are available in the Washington, DC area. http://www.noblis.org/Careers/SummerInternships/Pages/default.aspx

5. Job Opportunities

* Asst. Prof in Astronomy, San Francisco State University http://www.physics.sfsu.edu/hiring.html

* Jr. Faculty Search Elementary Particle Theory, The Department of Physics at Yale University http://physics.yale.edu/elementary-particle-theory-junior-faculty-search

* NOAO has a variety of job opportunities available. View the NOAO/NSO Employment Opportunities at http://www.noao.edu

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues

1. Why Aren't Prizes Gender Balanced?

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Impostors Welcome

2011-12-08T17:24:00.002-05:00

My title is one of the slogans proposed to increase awareness of Impostor Syndrome by a group of faculty, staff, postdocs, and graduate students who participated in a facilitated conversation about this subject in my department. Impostor Syndrome is the feeling of not deserving to be in the position you are, and of being afraid that advisors, instructors, or peers will come to realize that you are not as capable as you may seem. The effect can be harmful when it selectively reinforces negative messages and causes people to try less hard because they are convinced they are incompetent when they are not. Conversely, the ability to identify and counter these feelings with positive reinforcement and determination can be very helpful in increasing ability through effort and practice.

I experienced Impostor Syndrome vividly when I started teaching as a faculty member at the very university that rejected me for undergraduate admission. How could I ever hope to teach such brilliant students? Although no one had told me about the syndrome, I knew instinctively that I just had to persevere through my fears. Experience and hard work came to my aid. The lesson? Persistence matters.

When postdoc Kathy Cooksey proposed leading a discussion of Impostor Syndrome in my department, I was delighted that others would learn and share from our collective experience. We also benefitted from an informal survey of graduate students conducted by Stanford Professor Margot Gerritsen. (See her presentation at a career development workshop for graduate students and postdocs in the geosciences.) The survey was not officially endorsed by Stanford nor were the survey questions vetted by experts. Nevertheless, its results ring true and point out a concern for gender equity: women appear to experience Impostor Syndrome more than men. 43% of males surveyed and 62% of females surveyed "often or always" think "I'm afraid to be found out" while 30% of males and 15% of females never or rarely felt that. Responses to these feelings also show gender differences: 52% of males who admitted such feelings felt that their performance was negatively affected compared with 87% of females; 27% of males with such feelings reacted positively ("work harder") while only 7% of females did. Even though the statistical significance of these differences cannot be established, the results are concerning.

It's important for educators to be aware of Impostor Syndrome as well as preventative and palliative measures. It's endemic at my university and maybe at yours. We should educate students that they're not alone in having these feelings and that there are helpful responses. As Kathy suggests, having a malleable rather than a fixed mindset is helpful. Successful people everywhere learn that failure is the first step towards mastery.

Eleanor Roosevelt said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." We must not allow ourselves to retain feelings of inferiority. Had I succumbed to that response 30 years ago, I would not be writing here today.

AASWOMEN for December 2, 2011

2011-12-02T13:00:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of December 2, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson amp; Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Gender Balance Among Tenured Astronomers?

3. Percentage of Women Colloquium Speakers: Information Needed

4. Astronomical Bullying

5. Responses to 'Women as Planetary Science Role Models'

6. Working Women Still Struggling

7. CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month Nominations

8. Wanted: Students to Write on Women in Science for Scientista Foundation

9. Childcare Options at 219th AAS Meeting - Austin, TX

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

1. Why Aren't Prizes Gender Balanced?
From: Hannah Jang-Condell Hannah_at_women_in_astronomy_blog

[Hannah discusses the gender balance of invited speakers and prize recipients at the upcoming AAS January Meeting in Austin. -- eds.]

The CSWA has been making an effort to keep track of the percentages of women speakers at conferences. Recently, we featured a conference with a very high percentage of women speakers, right here on this blog. It's great to see that we are making progress. So, when I received the November 14th mailing from the AAS about the upcoming January meeting in Austin, I couldn't help but read the following enthusiastic description about the invited speakers with some amount of dismay:

To read more, please see:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/percent_tenured.html

2. Gender Balance Among Tenured Astronomers?
From: Joan Schmelz [Jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

CSWA began compiling a list of the percentage of women among the tenured faculty members of Ph.D. astronomy departments in the US. This list has now been expanded to include the percentage of women researchers/faculty/staff with tenure or the equivalent for US astronomy institutes/universities/observatories. Numbers and percentages were confirmed by a member of each organization.

For the rankings, please see

3. Percentage of Women Colloquium Speakers: Information Needed
From: Nancy Morrison, NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu

In keeping with the CSWA's project to disseminate statistics on the status of women in astronomy, we are beginning to gather information on the number of women speakers in astronomy colloquium series. Therefore, we would welcome submissions of numbers of speakers in your department, by academic term. If your organization has a joint physics and astronomy colloquium series - or some other combination of disciplines - please categorize the male and female speakers by discipline. Numbers for the current academic term (quarter or semester) or previous terms are welcome.

Please send the information to the CSWA Webmaster, Nancy Morrison, NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu . Your help will be warmly appreciated.

4. Astronomical Bullying
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

The CSWA will host a Town Hall on the topic of astronomical bullying at the 220th AAS meeting to be held in Anchorage, Alaska. The Town Hall meeting entitled "CSWA: Introduction to Astronomical Bullying" is scheduled for Monday, 11 June 2012, 12:45 PM to 1:45 PM.

New information including this subject can be found at our webpage, under 'What's New'

http://www.aas.org/cswa

5. Responses to 'Women as Planetary Science Role Models'
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

Have you ever wanted to be a fly on the wall and listen to men and women openly discuss the role of women in science? Seventy comments have been posted since April 29, 2011 to Discover Magazine's Bad Astronomy blog on 'Women as Planetary Science Role Models.'

For example,

Patrick says, "Not that many people in general are interested in either science or engineering these days. I?ll guess it?s the ?Science is Hard? issue. The same issues seem to apply to both males and females these days (based on some younger friends I have). Students head off to business schools, law, or humanities because they?re easier and you still get a diploma."

Radwaste says, "Let?s be real skeptics here and get a definition applied. What is not needed is 'gender equity' as 'the same number of female astronomers as men.' What is needed is 'equity' as opportunity not based on 'gender.' In many professions, this distinction is not clear. In my particular location, it meant the hiring of incompetent people to meet a quota. This makes output worse than if they were not hired. What is needed is the abolition of discrimination NOT BASED ON PERFORMANCE. If you can?t do what Phil [Plait, creator of Bad Astronomy] did to get his PhD, then you probably shouldn?t have one. If you can, then I cheer wildly at your achievements, take a bow! I?m sure that?s what Phil had in mind ? I just wanted to make sure it?s clear."

Helen says "Some of these comments are so alienating. I?m a woman and I read the blog, I like science, and I don?t believe in astrology."

To read more on the informing blog and the various takes on the blog, please see

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/04/29/women-as-planetary-science-role-models

6. Working Women Still Struggling
From: John Leibacher [leib@email.tuc.noao.edu]

SINCE 1970 the proportion of women in the workforce across the rich world has increased from 48% to 64%, a sharp rise but one which nevertheless leaves women in rich countries underemployed compared with women in China. There are large variations from country to country, but the broad trend in most places is still slightly upwards. Yet while women have made big strides in all kinds of careers they find it harder than men to bag the most senior jobs. Just 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. And despite sheaves of equal-pay legislation, women still get paid less than men for comparable work. This week's special report explores the reasons why progress seems to have stalled and what can be done about it.

To read more, please see the blog

7. CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month Nominations
From: WIPHYS, November 30, 2011

Do you know an outstanding female in physics who deserves recognition? Nominate her for the CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month! Features start in January 2012:

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/womanofthemonth.cfm

8. Wanted: Students to Write on Women in Science for Scientista Foundation
From: WIPHYS, November 30, 2011

Apply to be a writer for the Scientista Foundation's online magazine! They are seeking talented writers from across universities. For more information, visit this website:

http://www.scientistafoundation.com/12/post/2011/10/join-wise-words-writing-national-and-school-branch.html

9. Childcare Options at 219th AAS Meeting - Austin, TX
From: Joan Schmelz [Jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

The AAS will provide childcare onsite during the meeting through the Kiddie Corps Service. Care will be available Sunday, 8 January 2012 through Thursday, 12 January 2012. The cost of care is per $8 hour. The advance registration deadline is 12 December 2011. To arrange childcare please complete the registration form

http://www.kiddiecorp.com/aaskids.htm

Childcare grants are available for up to $250 per family for those that wish to bring children to the meeting. Parents are responsible for making arrangements for childcare. To apply for a childcare grant please fill out the Childcare Grant Application

http://aas.org/meetings/childcaregrants.php

If requests exceed available funding, preference will be given to those in the early stages of their careers. If you have questions about childcare please contact Debbie Kovalsky at 202-328-2010 ext. 110.

Childcare Sharing Please visit the Childcare Sharing Forum

http://forums.aas.org/viewforum.php?f=10

to find other attendees interested in sharing childcare. You will need to register to view and post on the forum.

10. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

12. Access to Past Issues

1. The Blame-the-Victim Strategy

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Women at Conferences

2011-11-21T17:29:00.001-05:00

"After a weekend of workshops and Historical Astronomy Division (HAD)sessions, the main part of the meeting kicks off Monday morning withthe Kavli lecture by Lyman Page (Princeton University) on neutrinosand the cosmic microwave background. Over the next four days we'llhear about award-winning research from other eminent astronomers,including HAD Doggett Prize winner Woodruff T. Sullivan III(University of Washington) on the early days of radio astronomy, HighEnergy Astrophysics Division Rossi Prize winners Peter F. Michelson(Stanford University) and W. B. Atwood (University of California,Santa Cruz) on doing science with the Fermi Large Area Telescope, andHeineman Prize winner Robert P. Kirshner (Harvard-Smithsonian Centerfor Astrophysics) on Type Ia supernovae and the accelerating universe.
Nobel laureate Steven Weinberg (University of Texas) and Alan Leshner,chief executive officer of the American Association for theAdvancement of Science, will explore the intersection of science,society, and economics in their two invited lectures.Astronomer-astronaut Steven A. Hawley (University of Kansas) will takestock of challenges and achievements in 50 years of human spaceflight.And Linda Tacconi (Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics)will close out the week's plenary presentations with her BerkeleyPrize lecture on molecular gas in star-forming galaxies in the earlyuniverse."

After a bit of investigation, I realized that no, there was actually more than one woman invited to speak at the meeting. It just so happens that only two of the prize winners were women, and it just so happens that one of those women is receiving the woman-only Cannon award, and the other is speaking in the last time slot on the last day of the meeting. That still leaves the question: even if the invited speakers list for the AAS meeting is somewhat gender balanced, why aren't the prizes?

In a similar vein, Female Science Professor proposes boycotting conferences with all-male slates. I wonder if that would really do any good, though, since that might have the effect of skewing the gender balance at that conference to even more all-male. Then again, direct complaints to conference organizers also have a tendency to fall on deaf or denying ears. But then, that's why the CSWA established the conferences webpage in the first place.

EDITED TO ADD:I want to make it clear that I am not at all advocating a boycott of the upcoming AAS Meeting. In fact, I am going myself and look forward to the meeting. (Come see me at the CSWA Special Session on Monday at 2pm!) And I do know that the AAS is sensitive to diversity issues and makes a real effort to achieve diversity of speakers. However, the email advertising the slate of speakers was unfortunate, as it did not give that balanced point of view. So the moral of the story is two-fold: nominate women for prizes, and remember to advertise women as well as you advertise men.

AASWOMEN for November 18, 2011

2011-11-21T09:20:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of November 18, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Advice for an Anonymous Individual

3. Meeting with Extremely High Percentage of Women Speakers!

4. Winterbourn Receives New Zealand's Top Science and Technology Honour

5. "Women on Mars" Conference Speaker

6. Addressing the Shortage of Women in Silicon Valley

7. Jobs at Georgia State University

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. The Blame-the-Victim Strategy
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

I recently tried to explain to several colleagues why victims of sexual harassment in astronomy (and academia in general) are reluctant to come forward and file a complaint, even when the process itself appears to be straightforward. I'm not sure I was particularly successful, but it was only about a month or so later when allegations of sexual harassment against presidential candidate Herman Cain appeared in Politico. We now know the names of two of his alleged victims, and Cain and his supporters have fallen back on an effective strategy: blame the victim. Personal finances, court records, and employment histories become fair game in a smear campaign to tarnish the reputation of the accusers. Add to that the threat of reporters interviewing high school classmates, disgruntled neighbors, and former co-workers looking for any dirt that will grab headlines. What about old boyfriends/girlfriends or ex-husbands/ex-wives looking for their 15 minutes of fame? There is nothing like a juicy sexual tidbit to destroy a victim's reputation in the court of public opinion!

Even honest, hard-working, ethical individuals would have a hard time standing up to such scrutiny. And just in case you think that Republicans might have a lock on the blame-the-victim strategy, remember Paula Jones; Democrats can be just as bad.

How do these political accounts translate to the academic world? Victims of sexual harassment almost always say that they don't want to make trouble. They are rarely out for revenge; they just want the problem to go away. They want to be treated like everyone else. They want a level playing field. They want their reputation to be based on their science, period. They don't want to be known as the "troublemaker" or the "whistleblower." Add to this the standard stresses facing anyone in academia - writing a thesis, finding a job, bringing in money - and the academic anxieties become just as great as the political pressures.

Speaking through her lawyer, one of the Cain accusers said that although she wanted to restore her reputation, she did not want to become another Anita Hill and let the controversy take over her life. She decided not to come forward. Honestly, can you blame her?

2. Advice for an Anonymous Individual
From: Sheryl Bruff [bruff_at_stsci.edu]

[The 28 October issue of the AASWOMEN newsletter included a request for advice from an anonymous individual who wanted to know what to do when unwanted sexual behavior was closer to assault than to harassment. Every situation is different, but we got some great general advice from Sheryl Bruff, Branch Chief of Human Resources at Space Telescope - Eds.]

My heart goes out to this person who has been affected by this kind of deplorable behavior. When Bernice Durand and I spoke at the last AAS, it was clear from the questions that we got from the audience that the issue is pervasive and many feel their campuses are unresponsive. The issue noted by the person you reference raises a good point. There is a serious emotional trauma that accompanies harassment and it lingers, much in the same manner as PTSD. It can undermine confidence, self-esteem, self-worth and a number of other things - like careers. Nagging questions about what you could have, should have or would have done linger. Secrets are crippling to the human psyche and maintain unwanted power over individuals.

My recommendation remains as it did at the last AAS meeting. It is important to tell SOMEONE. Whether a friend, colleague, mentor, advisor, therapist, someone you trust. It is important to get this issue out in the light of day so it can be examined and evaluated and the victim has an opportunity to put the responsibility where it belongs - on the perpetrator - and not to shoulder it her/himself. It is also important for the rest of us who work with these people or know these people, to be intolerant - and I do mean intolerant - of permitting these kinds of experiences to continue, whether in academia or anywhere else. It is vital for all of us to speak up and speak out to perpetrators, victims, administrators, colleagues, etc. We need to ensure that unresponsive campuses understand that their lack of response is not acceptable. One of the reasons that these kinds of things continue is that right-minded people are often afraid to speak up. They assume others will. They ration alize away a need to respond. We cannot assume anyone else will shoulder the burden. We must all understand our individual responsibility to act. Without this, nothing will change. The victims of harassment are not in position to change the environment. It is those of us who watch on the sidelines.

The one area where I will disagree is about not seeking the help of a therapist because s/he may not understand academia. Although there are definitely challenging parameters that are common to academic/research/science careers, the experience is not as unique as you think. Concerns about reputation, future opportunity, careers being short-cut or compromised by speaking up are actually common in all disciplines and industries. Granted, academia/research/science is a smaller community, so the risks may seem more grave, but they are not dissimilar. Therefore, ways to cope or deal discovered in other industries, as well as academia, can be valuable.

I don't know about a hotline, because it is difficult to set up and staff. There may be other social media models (blogs) that might be able to permit discussion about the impacts of these situations, as long as identities (both perpetrators and victims) were protected. There may be some professionals in the field interested in monitoring discussions with the hope of trying to share insights, best practices, past experience, etc. I would be willing to do my share.

I offer to you that if this person feels a need to talk to someone, you can offer my name to contact. I can assure them discretion and confidentiality, but a willing and empathetic ear.

3. Meeting with Extremely High Percentage of Women Speakers!
From: L. Trouille_at_Women_in_Astronomy_Blog, Nov 8, 2011

As you've probably seen from previous posts and mailings, the CSWA (with input from all of you) has been keeping track of the percentage of conference invited speakers who are women (see http://www.aas.org/cswa/percent.html ).

Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting Jorge Moreno, who is organizing a conference on "Interacting Galaxies and Binary Quasars: A Cosmic Rendezvous" (see announcement below). I wanted to highlight here that 76% of the invited speakers for this conference are women (13 women and 4 men).

Jorge explained to me that he is delighted to see so many female astronomers in the list, as well as a few speakers from developing countries. He worries that we are still a long way from gender equality in science, especially in places like his country of origin (Mexico), but he is glad to know that many people are taking steps in the right direction. He feels very lucky to be in this position. He also mentions that he wants to make sure nobody can tell his daughter Camila that she can't pursue a career in science (or in any field she desires).

4. Winterbourn Receives New Zealand's Top Science and Technology Honour
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Paul Gorman wrote this article for the Stuff New Zeeland news site:

Christchurch biochemist and ground-breaking free radical researcher Professor Christine Winterbourn is the first woman scientist to be awarded New Zealand's top science and technology honour in its 20-year history.

Winterbourn, who is director of the free radical research group in the pathology department at the University of Otago, Christchurch, received the 2011 Rutherford Medal and $100,000 from the Government at last night's Royal Society of New Zealand research honours event in Wellington.

Winterbourn told The Press she had never experienced any real discrimination in the science lab, but had seen huge changes since the early 1970s.

"We were very much in the minority - when I did my masters [degree] in chemistry in Auckland there were four women and 30 in total, so you were always working in a minority group.

"But it was just a matter for me of knowing what I wanted to do and just doing it, not being hung up by thinking, `I'm a woman in a man's world'."

5. "Women on Mars" Conference Speaker
From: Philip Massey [massey_at_lowell.edu]

On November 9-10, 2011, Explore Mars, Inc. presented the Women and Mars Conference in Washington, D.C. Topics discussed at the conference included, "Why are so many women involved in Mars exploration?" and "How can 'Mars women' help to advance STEM education for young women and reach non-traditional audiences?" The conference also featured policy discussions, an astronaut panel, and numerous other topics.

Dr. Penelope Boston is the Associate Director of the National Cave and Karst Research Institute in Carlsbad, New Mexico, and founder and director of the Cave and Karst Studies Program at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in Socorro. She gave the summary talk at a conference. What she had to say has a lot of bearing on many women-in-science issues:

http://www.livestream.com/exploremars/video?clipId=pla_05a91dda-2caf-4aab-af31-54f2be3b0324

6. Addressing the Shortage of Women in Silicon Valley
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Wendy Kaufman wrote this story for NPR:

This week thousands of women gathered in Portland, Ore., for the Grace Hopper Celebration, the world's largest technical conference for women and computing. High-tech companies are hiring, but there aren't nearly enough women to meet the demand.

Kate Schmalzried, a graduate student at Stanford, recalls one of her very first classes at the university - Computer Science 106A.

"That was really a good introduction to women in tech - there weren't many women in the class," she says, chuckling. "I distinctly remember being the only girl in my section."

It's no secret that beginning in middle school, young women often lose interest in math and science. So it's not surprising that relatively few women sign up for computer courses in college. When they do, they are often at a disadvantage.

"I remember on the first day, the guy sitting next to me telling me how he had coded a search engine - are you kidding me?" she says. "I'd never coded anything."

Schmalzried was able to catch up, but says by the second semester fewer than half the original women were still in the course.

Indeed, nationwide only about 20 percent of the bachelor's degrees in computer science go to women.

Mark Bregman, the former chief technology officer at Symantec, says it's not nearly enough.

"One of the things that's a barrier to our ability to grow is our ability to hire the best talent," he says. "If we could get more women to go into computer science, we would have more talent to hire from."

7. Jobs at Georgia State University

Three Faculty Positions in Stellar Astrophysics at Georgia State University:

http://www.chara.gsu.edu/CHARA/jobs.php

8. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

1. Gender Differences in Self-Promotion

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWOMEN for November 11, 2011

2011-11-14T09:32:00.001-05:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of November 11, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Sexual Harassment Issue, OCUFA Magazine "Academic Matters"

3. Advice for writing recommendation letters for women candidates

4. Dramatized Examples of Bias: Do They Help?

5. March APS 2012 Professional Skills Development Workshops

6. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Gender Differences in Self-Promotion
From: Meg Urry [meg.urry_at_yale.edu]

An interesting article:

http://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2011/11/cover-men.aspx

2. Sexual Harassment Issue, OCUFA Magazine "Academic Matters"
From: Kristine Spekkens [Kristine.Spekkens_at_rmc.ca]

I thought that your readers might be interested in the recent edition of OCUFA's (Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations) "Academic Matters" Magazine, which is devoted largely to sexual harassment policy. The bulk of the articles therein discuss whether current sexual harassment policies have gone too far, and many of the articles suggest that they do. I do not agree with many of the points of view expressed by the authors, but they do provide a different take on the issues surrounding faculty and policy makers.

The article is available at: http://www.academicmatters.ca/2011/10/hot-for-teacher-rethinking-education’s-sexual-harassment-policies

3. Advice for writing recommendation letters for women candidates
From: Perna Rosalba [rosalba_at_jilau1.colorado.edu]

During this important period of letter writing, the research presented in this article should be kept in mind:

http://www.physorg.com/print208513780.html

4. Dramatized examples of bias: do they help?
From: Ed Bertschinger at womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

In his blog post of Nov. 10, Ed Bertschinger discusses the use of short 'plays' put on by trained groups to highlight examples of implicit bias in the workplace. He is looking for input on whether others have seen such presentations, and in which circumstances. He asks "Have any readers seen them in astronomy departments or conferences where more than the equity advocates attended? How was that arranged?"

See the discussion at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

5. March APS 2012 Professional Skills Development Workshops
From: WIPHYS, November 4, 2011

The American Physical Society, with support from NSF, will host two Professional Skills Development Workshops in 2012 for female physicists. Postdoctoral associates and senior-level faculty and scientists are invited to apply for the February 26, 2012 workshop in Boston, MA. Postdoctoral associates and early-career faculty and scientists are invited to apply for the March 30, 2012 workshop in Atlanta, GA. Senior graduate students are also welcome to apply.

Applicants affiliated with a US institution/facility are eligible for travel and lodging funding consideration. Those needing funding assistance are encouraged to apply early. The deadline for the Boston Workshop is November 18, 2011. The deadline for the Atlanta Workshop is December 18, 2011. A link to the online application can be found at http://www.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/skills

6. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues of AASWOMEN

Past issues of AASWOMEN are available at

1. 1000+ Subscribers to AASWomen

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWList mailing list
AASWList@aas.org
Back to top.

Dramatized examples of bias: do they help?

2011-11-10T23:39:00.002-05:00

Although bias is inescapable in human dynamics, I believe it can be recognized and partially corrected like the use of a personal equation by astronomers measuring stellar magnitudes by eye on photographic plates. Dramatized bias refers to dramatic plays that make bias plain enough for anyone to see.

Implicit or explicit bias remains a problem, and refusing to acknowledge it does not make it go away. Sometimes it is as obvious as a sexist remark in a faculty meeting, other times it is the observation by a search committee that "the candidate's research style doesn't match the department". If we're going to achieve equity for all in astronomy (and especially in physics) then implicit bias must be acknowledged and confronted in hiring, promotion, awards, etc.

Many faculty members don't like to hear this. It's the job of a department chair to ensure that equity is not ignored. The question is how to best to assist the chair in communicating these issues to faculty in a way that will be respected.

I've seen three different groups of actors present small plays highlighting implicit bias in the workplace: the Michigan CRLT players, the Harvard Bok players, and CSW Associates. Each group has professional actors who do interactive theater. The first two groups play-act a scene such as a faculty hiring or tenure committee review in which bias is clearly present. The scene is stopped, the audience discusses it, and audience members are invited to replace one of the actors to attempt a more equitable process. CSW Associates doesn't bring audience members into the play, but the actors interact strongly with the audience and reveal their inner thoughts in some powerful moments that help reveal the origins of hidden bias and the complexity of multicultural, real-world situations.

These kinds of workshops have been well received by those who attend voluntarily, or in organizations where employees or students can be "required" to attend -- for example, many business schools are using them as part of required communications and conflict resolution classes. I've certainly enjoyed and benefited from seeing these groups on multiple occasions. Have any readers seen them in astronomy departments or conferences where more than the equity advocates attended? How was that arranged? Could we bring one of these groups to a AAS meeting?

Meeting with Extremely High Percentage of Women Speakers!

2011-11-08T09:54:00.003-05:00

---------------- Conference Announcement from Jorge--------------------------------------

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the SOC & LOC, I am glad to announce the workshop "Interacting Galaxies and Binary Quasars: A Cosmic Rendezvous", organized jointly by SISSA and ICTP, in Trieste (Italy). The dates are April 2-5, 2012 and the venue is the Kastler Lecture Hall, on the ICTP campus, next to the sea and a few steps from the Miramare Castle. Registration is now open with December 10, 2011 as the deadline. Please note than in order to keep this event intimate, the meeting will only 40-45 participants in total. Therefore, early registration is desirable. Applications from women, minorities and people from developing countries is particularly encouraged. For more details, please visit the conference website:

http://www.sissa.it/ap/igbq2012/igbq2012/Home.html

TITLE:
Interacting Galaxies and Binary Quasars: A Cosmic Rendezvous.

RATIONALE:
Interacting galaxies are among the most spectacular events in the cosmos. They affect morphology and may funnel gas into the central regions, thereby triggering star formation and nuclear activity. Likewise, the discovery of binary quasars has accelerated to unprecedented levels in the last few years. The aim of this workshop is to bring together observers and theorists working on either interacting galaxies or binary quasars. By discussing these phenomena from diverse points of view, several interesting science questions will addressed.

VENUE & DATES:
Trieste, Italy
April 2-5, 2012

REGISTRATION DEADLINE:
December 10, 2011.

CONFIRMED SPEAKERS:
Monica Colpi, Francoise Combes, Deborah Dultzin, Tiziana Di Matteo,
Sara Ellison, George Djorgovski, Julie Comerford, Kelly Holley-Bockelmann,
Phil Hopkins, Lisa Kewley, Stefanie Komossa, Jennifer Lotz, Lucio Mayer,
Adam Myers, Patricia Tissera, Marta Volonteri & Qingjuan Yu.

Please forward this announcement to your colleagues and anyone else potentially interested. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions (jmoreno@sissa.it)

Best regards,
Jorge Moreno

Note: This meeting is paid entirely by a SISSA Young Research Scientist Grant.

--
SOC: I. Aretxaga, V. Avila-Reese, A. Benson, J. Bullock, J. Cohn, M. Geller, Y. Krongold & J. Moreno.
LOC: G. de Lucia, A. Lapi, J. Moreno, P. Salucci & R. Sheth.
--

Manspace

2011-11-04T14:13:00.000-04:00

One of the risks of being on the CSWA is that my friends regularly send me email that makes me angry.* Like the link to the "Womanspace" article in Nature, as reported on in AASWOMEN last week. The comments were particularly interesting to read. I was glad to see the outpouring of criticism of the article, going on at length about the harm of perpetuating stereotypes, particularly in a high impact journal such as Nature. The letter from Lucianne Walkowicz in this week's AASWOMEN is also well worth a read. All these commenters say what needs to be said better than I ever could.

But the most interesting comment is from Ed Rybicki himself. He completely misses the point of the comments. The article was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, he says. Even my wife found it funny!

Which makes me wonder, do men like this ever see what's wrong in their actions? Is this why people like Herman Cain can claim that they were wrongly accused of sex harassment, because maybe they honestly believe that? I would like to believe that men who commit misogynist behavior, whether it's telling sexist jokes or sexually harassing someone, can be led to see the error of their ways, and that they can learn to become better people. Someday, I would like to see a man say, "yes, I did something wrong. But I've learned from that experience, and it will never happen again." Recovering alcoholics learn to do this, why can't harassers?

I fear that as long as perpetrators of sexism can get away with calling themselves the victim and deflecting responsibility for their actions, this culture will remain "manspace," whether you are talking about scholarly science or political discourse.

-Hannah

*But angry in a good way. Keep those emails coming!

AASWOMEN for November 4, 2011

2011-11-04T11:10:00.002-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of November 4, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Repercussions for Sexual Harassment

3. Offensive Article in Nature - Your Responses

4. APS/IBM Research Internships for Undergraduate Women

5. SMART Scholarships for BS, MS, and PhD

6. Amelia Earhart Fellowship

7. Women in Aerospace Scholarship

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues

1. 1000+ Subscribers to AASWomen
Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Caroline [Simpson] just informed me that we now have 1073 subscribers to the AASWOMEN newsletter! This is the first time AASWOMEN has broken the 1000-subscriber barrier.

Welcome new subscribers!

2. Repercussions for Sexual Harassment
From: Mark Postman [postman_at_stsci.edu]

How do we as a professional society deal with the infrequent, but very harmful, presence of repeat sexual harassers amongst our colleagues? This is a serious issue that has been the topic of CSWA discussion, driven by more than a few heart-wrenching emails and communications that have been received over the course of the past few years.

[To read Mark Postman's suggestions, please read his article from The Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy in the latest AAS Newsletter which can be found at

http://aas.org/archives/Newsletter/Newsletter_161_2011_11_Nov_Dec.pdf ]

3. Offensive Article in Nature - Your Responses
From: Lucianne Walkowicz [l.m.walkowicz_at_gmail.com]

[The last issue of the AASWOMEN newsletter included a article in Nature from Ed Rybicki on Womanspace. One reader responded with a letter to the editor-in-chief of Nature -- eds.]

Dear Philip,

It was a pleasure meeting you at TEDGlobal. When we spoke in July, you asked me about the perception and role of Nature in the astrophysics community. I very much enjoyed our discussion, but unfortunately what has prompted my note to you today is a decidedly unpleasant update to my opinion on that topic.

Yesterday, a piece by Ed Rybicki entitled "Womanspace" was brought to my attention. In this story, Rybicki recounts an anecdote from his own life as a means to opine on his perceived differences between men and women. In just under 1000 words, he manages to cover a truly jaw-dropping number of sexist stereotypes, including but not limited to women being evolutionarily built for domestic chores, that the primary concerns of men are to debate heady theories while women shop for to-die-for shoes and husbands, and so on. Rybicki, in his response to the article comments, indicates that the intent of his article was to be harmless, funny and charming.

It is neither funny nor charming, and it is most certainly not harmless. What it is is an excellent example of the kind of unconscious bias that is not only difficult to eradicate, but has concrete, deleterious effects on the careers of women every day, not the least of them women in academia. That Rybicki knows a female academic (his wife) who enjoys his story is irrelevant-- the holders of sexist views come from both genders.

The fact that sexist stereotypes not only exist but pervade all corners of our lives is not a surprise-- a library's worth of shelves could be filled with the number of books and magazines that regularly appear to promote these ideas. Indeed, some of the biggest offenders are mainstream magazines actually targeted at women.

But you are not the Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan, you are the Editor-in-Chief of Nature, an academic journal devoted to the dissemination of scientific results. Surely you realize that the appearance of an article like this in a journal like yours gives the viewpoints set forth a legitimacy they do not warrant. As such, I cannot imagine what this piece is doing in the pages of your journal. Perhaps you can explain it to me, so that this article may become an opportunity for dialogue rather than a waste of space.

Sincerely, Lucianne Walkowicz

4. APS/IBM Research Internships for Undergraduate Women
From: WIPHYS, October 27, 2011

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/ibm/index.cfm

5. SMART Scholarships for BS, MS, and PhD
From: WIPHYS, October 27, 2011

The Science, Mathematics And Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship for Service Program is an opportunity for students pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines to receive a full scholarship and be gainfully employed upon degree completion. For more information and to apply, visit:

https://smart.asee.org

6. Amelia Earhart Fellowship
From: Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

Established in 1938 in honor of famed pilot and Zontian, Amelia Earhart, the Amelia Earhart Fellowship is awarded annually to women pursuing Ph.D./doctoral degrees in aerospace-related sciences and aerospace-related engineering. Amelia Earhart Fellows have gone on to become astronauts, aerospace engineers, astronomers, professors, geologists, business owners, heads of companies, even Secretary of the US Air Force. Applications for the 2012 Fellowships must be received or post-marked by 15 November 2011 to be considered. For more information, please see

http://www.zonta.org/WhatWeDo/InternationalPrograms/AmeliaEarhartFellowship.aspx

7. Women in Aerospace Scholarship
From: Matthew A. Greenhouse [matthew.a.greenhouse_at_nasa.gov]

At least one award of $1000 will be given to a rising senior in college, to be applied to the 2013-2014 academic year. Women undergraduate students who are interested in pursuing a career in the aerospace field should check out the requirements to see if they are eligible to apply for this scholarship:

http://www.womeninaerospace.org/news/10-18-2011_1.html

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

1. Advice for an Anonymous Individual

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWomen for October 28, 2011

2011-11-03T12:00:00.002-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of October 28, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. The Life Scientific: Jocelyn Bell-Burnell

3. Offensive Article in Nature

4. Professional Development at AAS 219 in Austin

5. Women in Science: The Gender Divide Remains

6. White House Video with Advice for Young Women Interested in Science

7. Program Inspiring Young Women to Discover Science

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Advice for an Anonymous Individual
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

[The editors of the AASWOMEN newsletter received this query from an individual who wished to remain anonymous. Please send replied to the address above - Eds.]

On the heels of a question earlier this year about dealing with sexual harassment and other unwanted behaviors, there was a lot of discussion about how to address it in the professional environment, and about the ongoing challenges of doing so. But there is another side to this: the woman or man who has to live with what has happened to her or him. What if you have been a victim of unwanted sexual behavior/abuse and need to deal with the emotional aspects of the fall out? What if you don't want to leave the field? How do you handle it? Astronomy is a small world; it can be hard to escape the aggressor. I'm not sure there is an easy answer here, besides go to therapy (which is fraught with its own issues -- a therapist may not understand the academic world and may not be affordable for an undergraduate or postdoc). A naive suggestion comes to mind -- which is that there ought to be a help line for professional and academic women and men who have survived these situations. Does anyone know of one?

2. The Life Scientific: Jocelyn Bell-Burnell
From: Claire Foullon [claire.foullon@warwick.ac.uk]

You may like to listen to this 30-min BBC radio interview of Jocelyn Bell-Burnell, which was broadcasted recently:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/science-discovery/jocelyn-bell-burnell

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016812j

3. Offensive Article in Nature
From: AASWOMEN editors

Several people have pointed out this offensive article in Nature:

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v477/n7366/full/477626a.html

One wonders what the editors were thinking! If you would like to let Nature know what you think about this article, the list of editors is here:

http://www.nature.com/nature/about/editors

4. Professional Development at AAS 219 in Austin
From: L. Trouille_at_Women_in_Astronomy_Blog, Oct 25, 2011

Guest post by Kelle Cruz, AAS Employment Committee

The 219th AAS Meeting in Austin, TX from January 8-12, 2012 is coming up, and as continued tradition, thanks to the growing community involvement and NSF funding, professional development workshops, seminars, and special sessions will once again be offered. This year, more than ever!

The interactive workshops offered on Sunday are:

-Becoming a more effective research mentor; -Structuring your scientific paper; -Science tools for data intensive astronomy.

On Monday, there are two Career Workshops. On Tuesday, there will be a workshop on Personal Finance in Turbulent Times.

5. Women in Science: The Gender Divide Remains
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Prihatha Narasimmaraj, a staff writer for the Daily Princetonian, published this article on Oct 21:

University President Shirley Tilghman still remembers her freshman physics lab.

"We were working with a vacuum tube, and, like a foolish person, I touched it and got an electric shock," Tilghman recalled. "The professor happened to be walking by and said, 'That's why there are no girls in physics.' "

She could have brushed off the comment, though it stung. But the fact remained that, for Tilghman and her female peers, "those kinds of things happened - not every day, but enough that if you didn't believe you had the capacity to be a female scientist, they would start breaking you down."

Since becoming University president in 2001 - the first woman to do so, and only the second in the Ivy League - Tilghman has devoted a significant amount of attention to the issue she faced as a college student and budding scientist: the dearth of women in science and engineering disciplines.

At the University and across the nation, the number of women in science and engineering fields has continued to climb in recent years. While the Class of 1973 graduated only one woman from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Class of 2015 female enrollment in the B.S.E. program currently stands at 38 percent, according to Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs at the School of Engineering and Applied Science Peter Bogucki. In the molecular biology and ecology and evolutionary biology departments, female students sometimes outnumber males.

6. White House Video with Advice for Young Women Interested in Science
From: WIPHYS for Oct 27, 2011

The White House has published a video with advice for young women interested in science. The Presidential Early Career Scientists and Engineer Honorees share their advice to young women interested in getting involved in Science, Engineering, Math or Technology. View the video here:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2011/10/21/advice-young-women-interested-science

7. Program Inspiring Young Women to Discover Science
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Karen Kucher wrote this article for Sign On San Diego on Oct 24:

Julia Roche has examined ultrasound images and counted sperm at an in-vitro fertilization clinic. She's worked with robots and helped study how a protein found in sea urchin embryos could lead to patients getting lower doses of chemotherapy.

Julia, 17, was able to have such rich, hands-on experiences not at her high school but through a special program in San Diego County that encourages young women to go into science, technology, engineering and math fields.

Girls apply for the BEWiSE program when they are in middle school and participate in Saturday workshops and summer camp programs through the end of high school.

Students work closely with medical doctors, renowned researchers and hi-tech professionals, many of whom are women, to not only learn science but to gain inspiration for their futures.

8. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

1. A metric for workplace environment culture: How long do mothers nurse?

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Go to Brazil in December!

2011-10-27T12:11:00.000-04:00

The CSWA was just informed of this opportunity for early career women scientists to go to Brazil. The deadline for nominations is TOMORROW, so act fast! Here is the announcement of opportunity:

>>> Sandra Laney 10/26/2011 1:07 PM >>>

The Secretary's Global Women's Issues Office needs help identifying 8-10 young American women scientists (early to mid career level) to participate in an reverse exchange program with Brazil. Unfortunately there is a rapid turn-around time, so they need nominations by Friday. The nominee (perhaps yourself or someone you know) should be someone planning to stay in the science field because the focus is on 'retention of women in science'.

The trip is scheduled for Dec 5 -13, airfare is paid by S/GWI and the remaining costs will be hosted by Brazil.

I have pasted in Varina's email request below. Please send Varina & Rakhi (WinderVJ@state.govand KasatRJ@state.gov) the bio of the nominee and her contact information. (Please make sure that she would be available for travel on those dates.)

Thanks!

Sandra

Varina's email:

I hope this email finds you well. I received your contact information from my colleague Tricia, who mentioned you would be great people to reach out to about an upcoming reverse exchange program we are planning with Embassy Brasilia under the Women's MOU.
As you probably recall, we hosted eight young Brazilian women scientists last March - I believe most of you met with them. They visited U.S. universities and attended the 55th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, the theme of which was empowering women and girls through STEM.
In December of this year, we've recently agreed to send 10 young American women scientists to Brazil as part of the second half of the exchange program. Brazil will pay for everything once the women land in Recife; we will cover the flights.
We would very much like your help in identifying 8-10 young American women scientists, of various backgrounds (government, private sector & academia) and focus areas (different aspects of STEM) we can invite to participate in such an exchange. The focus on retention is key; one of the key themes of the Brazilian women's visit was their identification of a need for continued mentoring in order to keep young women in the field. We'd therefore like to invite promising women who are in early or middle stages of their career. We are also reaching out to EPA.
Since this program is coming up quickly, could you please send us names and relevant info (contact/resume/bio if possible) for these women by mid next week (October 26)?
Thank you very much.
Varina Winder
Secretary's Office of Global Women's Issues (S/GWI)
U.S. Department of State
Phone: (202) 647-6036
Fax: (202) 647-2600
windervj@state.gov
This email is UNCLASSIFIED.

Professional Development at AAS 219 in Austin

2011-10-25T09:36:00.001-04:00

Guest post by Kelle Cruz, AAS Employment Committee

The interactive workshops offered on Sunday are:

1) Becoming a more effective research mentor

2) Structuring your scientific paper

3) Science tools for data intensive astronomy

On Monday, there are two Career Workshops. On Tuesday, there will be a workshop on Personal Finance in Turbulent Times.

In addition, special sessions will be held on the following arenas:

1) Giving better oral presentations

2) Increasing diversity in your departments

3) Professional ethics in astronomy

4) Working in space policy

5) The astrophysics post-doc job market

6) Careers in media for scientists

There will also be a career panel on Monday discussing various career paths.

Full descriptions and how to register are posted at the astrobetter wiki.

AASWOMEN for October 22, 2011

2011-10-24T10:22:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of October 21, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. APS Meetings Child Care Grants

3. IBM Research Internship for Undergraduate Women

4. Department of Energy Scholars Program

5. Naval Research Enterprise Intern Program

7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. A metric for workplace environment culture: How long do mothers
nurse?
From: AnnH at womeninastronomy blog

[Did you know that federal law now requires "employers to provide reasonable break time and a private, non-bathroom place for nursing mothers to express breast milk during the workday, for one year after the child's birth"? See http://www.usbreastfeeding.org/Workplace/WorkplaceSupport/WorkplaceSupportinHealthCareReform/tabid/175/Default.aspx for information -- eds.]

There is a lot of literature showing that women tend to persist in nursing when they have peers who are doing the same. So, a lactation room, beyond just providing the legally required space for pumping milk, provides a networking location for your employees.

To read more, please see

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Committee-on-the-Status-of-Women-in-Astronomy/43977374494

which is also posted on the CSWA Facebook page

2. APS Meetings Child Care Grants
From: WIPHYS, Oct. 19, 2011

Small grants of up to $400 are available to assist meeting attendees who are bringing small children or who incur extra expenses in leaving them at home (i.e., extra daycare or babysitting services). To apply, complete the application for your Meeting by the deadline. The deadline for the March Meeting is December 16, 2011. The deadline for the April meeting is January 16, 2012.

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/childcare.cfm

3. IBM Research Internship for Undergraduate Women
From: Waves and Packets, Oct. 15, 2011

The internships are salaried positions typically 10 weeks long at one of three IBM research locations (San Jose, CA, Austin, TX, or Yorktown Heights, NY), and give the opportunity to work closely with an IBM mentor. The Watson lab has a full range of research, as does the Almaden lab, and the Austin lab focuses on software and systems. Research areas of the internship are individually chosen so as to optimize the match between the skills and interests of the student, and the ongoing research programs of the laboratory.

http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/791

4. Department of Energy Scholars Program
From: WIPHYS, Oct. 19, 2011

Deadline is November 15, 2011

he Department of Energy (DOE) Scholars Program is now accepting applications for Summer 2012. The program offers summer internships with stipends of up to $650 per week depending on academic status to undergraduates, graduate students and post graduates at accredited institutes of higher education.

http://orise.orau.gov/doescholars

5. Naval Research Enterprise Intern Program
From: WIPHYS, Oct. 19, 2011

Deadline is January 15, 2012

APS is currently accepting applications for the Congressional Science Fellowship Program. Fellows serve one year on the staff of a senator, representative or congressional committee.

http://www.aps.org/policy/fellowships/congressional.cfm

6. Job Opportunities

* James Arthur Postdoctoral Fellowship at NYU http://cosmo.nyu.edu/opportunities.html and for the AAS Job Register link http://jobregister.aas.org/node/39889

* Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy (Astrophysics) http://www.colby.edu/administration_cs/humanresources/employment/physastroastro.cfm

* Faculty Positions in Physics, University of California, Berkeley http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/790

* NOAO has a variety of job opportunities available. http://www.noao.edu

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

1. A Question About Professional Behavior: Responses

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

A metric for workplace environment culture: How long do mothers nurse?

2011-10-19T16:42:00.005-04:00

If you think you have a positive culture at work for families, how would you measure it? One might be to determine how long, on average, the mothers of young children nurse their children. The workplace environment has a significant impact on the nursing relationship (availability of lactation rooms, flexibility in scheduling, maternity leave policies, etc).

There is a lot of literature showing that women tend to persist in nursing when they have peers who are doing the same. So, a lactation room, beyond just providing the legally required space for pumping milk, provides a networking location for your employees.

Approximately 17 months ago I began pumping milk at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in the lactation room there. At that time, my daughter was about two months old and there were several other women with older babies pumping milk. Over the last 19 months, women have had babies and joined the room. I see them logging in day after day. Now something interesting is happening. People are continuing to pump milk up to the year mark and beyond. This means women are not rotating out of the room as new ones come in. Within the next week, a second lactation room will be opened in our building to prepare for two more women to come off maternity leave.

We have three women pumping milk for children over a year old right now! Knowing how rare that is in the U.S. right now I would take it as a very positive indicator of the success of our lactation program and therefore of how good our workplace environment is for mothers of young children.

It is smart for institutions to be supportive in this way. Babies who receive breastmilk get sick less often and less severely and there is thus less absenteeism. Nursing is a source of comfort that provides a very fast means of emotional reconnection between mother and child at the end of a work day. Happier employees make happier bosses, right?

So, if you’re wondering how to make your workplace environment family-friendly, invest time, energy and resources into having a great lactation room, like my institution did.

AASWOMEN for October 14, 2011

2011-10-17T10:56:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of August 12, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. New NSF Workplace Flexibility Policies: A Suggestion

3. How will academic institutions improve work-life balance?

4. Interviewing without the Angst - A Webinar

5. L'Oreal USA Fellowships for Women in Science

6. [Women] Faculty for the Future Program

7. AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowships

8. Graduate Women in Science Fellowships

9. Job Opportunities

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

http://www.whitehouse.gov/webform/contact-council-women-and-girls

1. Gender Gap in Lifetime Earning
From: Michele M. Montgomery

[Last week we asked if it was ever appropriate for a senior professor to ask an undergraduate student out for coffee. We got several excellent responses, which appear below. -- eds.]

From Jayanne English [Jayanne_English_at_umanitoba.ca]

Let's assume that inviting the student for a coffee is NOT about an amorous relationship. A common situation in my department is that the student is the only one that has turned up for office hour discussion this week. Or a student has turned up to discuss interesting facts associated with their project. Well, some of us say "Let's talk over a coffee" and head to the student centre on campus, regardless of the age or sex of the student. As one respondent put it, this is public and not a date. Indeed, from my perspective it is mentorship. The postings made me recall my own undergrad years in the late 1980s. My profs would not only go for coffee, but also beer or wine or lunch. Over the years of my undergrad degree, one wonderful, well-know physicist and I used to go to galleries, yes alone together, since we both had a strong interest in the relationship between art + science and lots to discuss. There were no female professors in that department to play either a mentorship or role-modelling role, but certain men were mentors and mentorship certainly kept me in the program. I am so thankful that my male professors didn't know about most of the advice posted on AASwomen last week! Of course I'm totally against someone in power imposing their unwanted attentions on a student, but the question posed did not state that the professor was intending to do so. And it would be so sad if people avoided social interactions for fear that they would be perceived as planning to seduce a student. So I ask anyone with amorous feelings towards a student to never (while they have an academic relationship) ask that student out for a coffee, so that going for a coffee can be understood by academic society as just a normal, friendly and even collegial interaction.

2. New NSF Workplace Flexibility Policies: A Suggestion
From: Chanda Prescod-Weinstein [chanda_at_mit.edu]

[In the 9/30/11 issue of AASWOMEN newsletter, new NSF workplace flexibility policies was introduced. We received the following comment. -- Eds.]

As one of the women who had the opportunity to join NASA's Women in Astronomy Delegation to the White House in 2009, and who spoke to Tina Tchen and the group about the centrality of diversity in science, I am so thrilled to know that we, amongst many, many others, were heard. I would like to suggest that people who are happy about the news contact the Council via their website and let them know that we are paying attention. It's important that they get positive feedback when they get things right. You can submit a comment here:

3. How will academic institutions improve work-life balance?
From: Edmund Bertschinger_at_women_in_astronomy_blog

[From the Women in Astronomy Blog at womeninastronomy.blogspot.com; also posted on the CSWA Facebook page. -- eds.]

I'm thrilled that astronomers are having so much impact in highlighting the need for policies that make it easier for young people to begin careers and families in science and technology (see Hannah's post of October 6). It was exciting to hear about the NSF Career-Life Balance Initiative announcement at the White House, and to see Michele Obama and Tina Tchen promote the arguments that our amazing colleagues gave after WIA-III. The policies announced by the NSF are a step in the right direction, and the NSF Director is to be commended for his dedication to long-term change. The important question now is: who else will listen and act?

To read more, please see

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Committee-on-the-Status-of-Women-in-Astronomy/43977374494

which is also posted on the CSWA Facebook page

4. Interviewing without the Angst - A Webinar
From: WIPHYS, October 14, 2011

Join Karyn Rosen, a member of the College of Science Co-op Faculty at Northeastern University, as she helps you learn about steps you can take improve your job interview experience. The webinar will be held Wednesday, October 19, 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm EDT. Amanda Palchak, senior physics major at the University of Southern Mississippi--and 2011 SPS National Intern--will moderate the discussion. To learn more about this webinar, and to register for your seat, visit:

http://www.aps.org/careers/guidance/webinars/interview.cfm

5. L'Oreal USA Fellowships for Women in Science
From: WIPHYS, October 10, 2011

The L'Oréal USA Fellowships For Women In Science is a national awards program that annually recognizes and rewards five U.S.-based women postdoctoral researchers at the beginning of their scientific careers who are pursuing careers in the life and physical/material sciences, as well as mathematics, engineering and computer science. Recipients receive up to $60,000 each that they must apply towards their postdoctoral research.

The program is open only to women postdoctoral researchers. Applications will be accepted starting October 18, 2011. Application process closes December 15, 2011. Candidates interested in applying may visit the website at

http://www.lorealusa.com/forwomeninscience

6. [Women] Faculty for the Future Program
From: WIPHYS, October 10, 2011

[Do you know of a woman PhD potential/current candidate or post-doc from a developing country who wishes to return to their home country to continue their academic career upon completion of their studies? Please encourage them to apply for this grant -- eds.]

The Faculty for the Future program was launched by the Schlumberger Foundation to award fellowships to women from developing economies. The fellowships fund Ph.D. or post-doctoral studies in the physical sciences and related disciplines at top universities worldwide. The call for applications for Faculty for the Future Fellowships for the 2012-2013 academic year are open up to November 30, 2011. For more information, please visit:

http://www.facultyforthefuture.net/content/grant-application-process

7. AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowships
From: WIPHYS, October 10, 2011

AAAS seeks candidates from a broad array of backgrounds and a diversity of geographic, disciplinary, gender, and ethnic perspectives as well as disability status. Fellows have ranged in age from late 20s to early 70s. They represent a spectrum of career stages, from recent PhD graduates to faculty on sabbatical to retired scientists and engineers. Fellows also come from a range of sectors, including academia, industry, non-profit organizations, and government labs. For more information and to apply, please visit:

http://fellowships.aaas.org/index.shtml

8. Graduate Women in Science Fellowships
From: WIPHYS, October 14, 2011

There are several fellowships available from Graduate Women in Science for female graduate students studying physics. Deadline is January 15, 2012.

For more info, visit: http://www.gwis.org/programs.html

9. Job Opportunities

A. Faculty Position in Physics at the University of California, Berkeley

http://www.physics.berkeley.edu and click on 'Faculty Positions.'

B. Theoretical astrophysics at Columbia University

https://academicjobs.columbia.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/frameset/Frameset.jsp?time=1318609237824

10. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

12. Access to Past Issues

1. A Question About Professional Behavior: Responses

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Thoughts on Work-Life Balance

2011-10-13T21:35:00.002-04:00

My subtitle is: How will academic institutions improve work-life balance?

I'm thrilled that astronomers are having so much impact in highlighting the need for policies that make it easier for young people to begin careers and families in science and technology (see Hannah's post of October 6). It was exciting to hear about the NSF Career-Life Balance Initiative announcement at the White House, and to see Michele Obama and Tina Tchen promote the arguments that our amazing colleagues gave after WIA-III. The policies announced by the NSF are a step in the right direction, and the NSF Director is to be commended for his dedication to long-term change.

The important question now is: who else will listen and act?

Earlier this week I held a luncheon at MIT for faculty, staff, postdocs and graduate students to discuss work-life balance and to ask how universities should respond to the NSF steps. Not surprisingly, there was a lot of interest in this topic, especially from postdocs. Unfortunately, nearly everyone who showed up was female. This is ironic because nearly all of my faculty members who have benefited from parental leave are male. I'm delighted that some men are starting to play a significant role in advocacy and policy in the AAS and elsewhere. It makes a huge difference for all of us.

At MIT, we are talking about possible ways to make childcare more affordable and to ask the thorny question of maternity leave for postdocs. In the life sciences, such steps would require drastic changes in the funding model. I don't feel that fact should deter us from improving the conditions for postdocs in the physical sciences, but universities have great inertia. Change will require greater advocacy within.

About a decade ago, after gender equity studies showed how discrimination was holding back women in science, universities responded with parental leave policies, on-site daycare, and tenure clock extensions. While these policies have helped to lessen gender inequity at the faculty level, they gave little relief to the postdocs who become tomorrow's faculty members. I wish I could start a new department with all the great talent that left the field because balancing work and family meant falling behind. We've got to stop the brain drain.

The NSF has taken first steps in a 10-year plan. It's time for universities and other grant-receiving institutions to take the next steps. What will it be? Loans or fellowships for childcare? One-year postdoc extensions for childbirth? How can we raise money for these?

AASWOMEN for October 7, 2011

2011-10-10T09:13:00.002-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of October 7, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Developing a Diverse and Successful Undergraduate Program

3. Nominations for the CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month

4. New demographic study from U.K.

5. Site Visit Program Offers Insights and Advice for Women & Minorities

6. Aspen Center for Physics Winter Meetings and Summer Program

7. 2012 Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics

8. Job Opportunities

9. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

11. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. A Question About Professional Behavior: Responses
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Last week we asked if it was ever appropriate for a senior professor to ask an undergraduate student out for coffee. We got several excellent responses, which appear below.

Here is my take on this situation. Suppose your (remember, you are a senior professor) motives are completely pure. You want to discuss the student's future in physics or astronomy or you want to recruit the student to work in your research lab. These are professional discussions which should take place in a professional environment: your office. In addition, you may think that you are acting in a purely professional manner, but the student may not (see below).

The only other possibility is that your motives are not pure and that asking a student out for coffee is simply a first step toward a more social and even sexual relationship. STOP! Just don't go there. This is completely inappropriate behavior.

So let's take it to the next level: suppose the undergraduate student is no longer in your class. If you are still in a position of power over this student, e.g., he/she works in your lab or you might be asked to write a recommendation letter for him/her, then your relationship must remain completely professional. Yale University has implemented a policy forbidding professors from having sexual/amorous relationships with ANY undergraduate student (see the AASWOMEN newsletter from Oct 2010). We hope other colleges and universities will soon follow suit.

From: Lee Anne Willson [lwillson_at_iastate.edu]

You need to avoid any situation that could be construed as a date. It's not the coffee, it's the situation that matters.

Example 1: Class just ended, and the student is still asking questions. Someone else needs the room. You can say "let's go up to my office" or you can say "let's go to the department coffee room and talk about this". In either case the situation is not date-like, is public, and is appropriate.

Example 2: Same situation, but you say "Let's hop in my car and go to Starbucks downtown". Not a good idea: This gets into ambiguous territory.

Bottom line: Dating this person is not possible now. It might be possible some day, when the student is no longer a student of yours or in a direct line of power to you. A good rule of thumb is to wait two years before contacting a former student if you are looking for a relationship. So, for now, you need to avoid any situation that could be construed as opening the door to a relationship.

A point that is sometimes missed is that you not only have to avoid forcing attention on someone that doesn't want it, you also must avoid taking advantage of what may be natural hero-worship coming from your position as an established, successful professional in the field your student is ambitious to join.

From: Nancy Morrison [NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu]

No, in fact, I don't think it would ever have crossed my mind, regardless of the student's age.

If I invited students (usually, grad students) out for drinks or a meal, it was in connection with giving them the opportunity to network with a visitor, either a colloquium speaker or a prospective grad student. Therefore, always in a group.

From: Meg Thacher [mthacher_at_smith.edu]

Regarding the post in last week's AASWomen newsletter regarding professional behavior: my immediate reaction was an unequivocal 'nope'.

In the situation described, there is always the possibility that being invited out for coffee will be interpreted (fairly or unfairly) as being asked out on a date. Even if it's not a date, going out for coffee would certainly be seen by the student and the rest of the class as implied friendship and favoritism. Unless you're willing to take the entire class out for coffee, I'd advise waiting until the end of the semester. They're usually only 15 weeks long, after all. As long as this student is enrolled in your class, you are in a position of power.

I went to grad school at a university that didn't have a written policy forbidding student/faculty liaisons. The university's ombudsman's advice: "I encourage you to explore the dynamics of sex and power on your own time." i.e., not while the student is dependent on you for a grade. It's just not professional behavior. I'm sure there are many legal, ethical, and common-sense arguments I could make, but the fact that you ask the question probably means that you already know the answer.

2. Developing a Diverse and Successful Undergraduate Program
From: Caroline Simpson [simpsonc_at_fiu.edu]

There is an article about our physics department in this month's issue of the CSWP/COM Gazette on creating a successful undergraduate program. Although we are a minority-serving institution, many of the changes we implemented are applicable anywhere, as they are geared to nuture students in general. I would urge anyone who would like more information to contact me.

http://aps.org/programs/women/reports/gazette/upload/Gazfall11.pdf

A large part of our reform effort has come about through our involvement with PhysTEC, and the incorporation of undergraduate Learning Assistants in our courses. These programs have helped us develop our inclusive culture and have proven to be a way to increase the involvment of underrepresented minorities in the sciences. WIPHYS for this week includes announcements about these two programs:

* PhysTEC Request for Proposals and Webinar

The 2011 solicitation for new PhyTEC sites is now available on www.phystec.org. The PhysTEC project, a joint effort of APS and AAPT, has a mission of improving the education of future physics teachers. We will fund approximately three comprehensive sites ($100k/year for 3 years) and three targeted sites ($25k/year for 3 years). Comprehensive sites will be expected to implement the full PhysTEC program and graduate a relatively large number of students qualified to teach physics. Targeted sites will also be expected to establish effective physics teacher education programs, but on a smaller scale. An initial proposal is due October 26 at 5 p.m. local time.

A webinar on October 5 at 3 p.m. EDT will discuss the solicitation and provide an opportunity for Qamp;A. If you cannot attend the webinar, a recording will be available for viewing at a later time (you should still register to get access). To register for the webinar, go to https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/829585806

* Learning Assistant Workshop: Register by October 24, 2011

The PhysTEC project will co-sponsor its third workshop focusing on the University of Colorado's Learning Assistant program November 2 amp; 3, 2011 in Boulder. The Learning Assistant program is a highly supported peer teaching experience that has been shown to improve students' learning and attitudes toward science in undergraduate lecture classes and recruit talented science and math students into teaching careers. Workshop registration is free for representatives of PhysTEC Member Institutions and Affiliates (If your institution is not a member, learn how to join at http://www.ptec.org/webdocs/Join.cfm ) Please consider sending two representatives to facilitate local planning during the workshop. Space is limited, so register soon at http://www.ptec.org/conferences/cula11/register.cfm

3. Nominations for the CSWP Woman Physicist of the Month
From: WIPHYS, Oct. 5, 2011

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/scholarships/womanofthemonth.cfm

4. New demographic study from U.K.
From: Rick Fienberg [rick.fienberg_at_aas.org]

Press release from the RAS, dated 6 Oct. 2011, entitled "Astronomy and Geophysics Bring Women into Science": http://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/217-news2011/2017-astronomy-and-geophysics-bring-women-into-science

First paragraph: Women are better represented in astronomy and solid-Earth geophysics research than in other areas of physics, according to a major study by the Royal Astronomical Society, with a summary published in the October edition of the journal Astronomy and Geophysics. The RAS Demographic Survey of Astronomy and Geophysics collected data on more than 2,000 research employees and students in astronomy and solid-Earth geophysics in the U.K. to establish the composition of this community and better understand its work. Less encouragingly, the survey results show how these research areas are poor at recruiting people from black and minority ethnic (BME) groups and that addressing this deficit remains a significant challenge.

Full report: "The Demographics and Research Interests of the UK Astronomy and Geophysics Communities" http://www.ras.org.uk/images/stories/ras_pdfs/Demographic_Survey_2010_-_final_report.pdf

5. Site Visit Program Offers Insights and Advice for Women & Minorities
From: WIPHYS, Sept. 30, 2011

The APS Climate for Women in Physics Site Visit Program helps physics departments and research facilities warm the "chilly climate" that women in physics often experience. Visits can also be focused on minority physicists. Conducted at the request of the department chair or lab director, site visits aim to identify problems commonly experienced by women and minority physicists, intervene to solve many of these problems, and help improve the climate in the facility.

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/sitevisits

6. Aspen Center for Physics Winter Meetings and Summer Program
From: WIPHYS, Oct. 5, 2011

The Aspen Center for Physics will hold seven winter conferences and a summer program for 2012. The deadlines for application are October 15, 2011 (for the first three winter meetings), October 30, 2011 (for the fourth and fifth winter meeting), November 30, 2011 (for the sixth winter meeting) and December 1, 2011 (for the seventh winter meeting). The summer program runs May 20-September 9, 2012, with an application deadline of January 31, 2012.

http://www.aspenphys.org/documents/program/winterworkshops12.html

7. 2012 Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics
From: WIPHYS, Sept. 30, 2011

Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWIP) are three-day regional conferences for undergraduate physics majors. The 2012 conferences will run Friday evening, January 13 through Sunday afternoon, January 15, 2012. For 2012, there will be six regional conferences; students are encouraged to apply to the nearest conference. * Case Western Reserve, Cleveland, Ohio * Stanford University, Stanford, California * Texas Aamp;M in College Station, Texas * University of Tennessee - Knoxville, Tennessee * University of Washington, Seattle, Washington * Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut

In most cases, full support will be provided for room and board. Physics departments are strongly encouraged to provide support for travel; however, students should apply for travel reimbursement if their department is unable to support them. The application deadline is November 15, 2011.

http://www.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/cuwip.cfm

8. Job Opportunities

1. Postdoctoral Research Positions, LIGO Laboratory http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/783

2. Postdoctoral Research Associate, National Solar Observatory http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/782

3. Tenure-Track Faculty Position, Astrophysics, Lehigh University http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/780

4. Assistant Professor, Astrophysics, MIT http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/770

5. Assistant Professor of Physics amp; Astronomy, Denison University http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/777

6. Tenure Track Assistant Professor, Physics, Elmhurst College http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/775

7. Assistant Professor in Astrophysics, University of Colorado, Boulder http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/774

8. AAAS Science amp; Technology Policy Fellowships http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/763

9. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

11. Access to Past Issues

1. A Question About Professional Behavior

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Speaking Truth to Power

2011-10-06T19:00:00.000-04:00

Almost exactly two years ago, I was on the organizing committee for the Women in Astronomy and Space Science 2009 Conference. We were organizing a tour of the White House for early career astronomers, and we managed to arrange a meeting with Tina Tchen, the Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls. I soon found myself in charge of facilitating the discussion, a bit of a daunting task to say the least!

I knew that we had only a limited amount of time to get a few key points across, so I decided to put together a presentation for Ms. Tchen. I met with the White House tour participants over lunch to brainstorm our key concerns, including action items that the federal government could take to help women in astronomy. I also enlisted the help of Bethany Cobb, Meredith Danowski, Laura Lopez, Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, and Angie Wolfgang to help draft a document that we could leave with Ms. Tchen.

When the time came, the six of us spoke about our key talking points: health care, family leave, conscious and unconscious bias, education and public outreach, and mentoring. I came away feeling like we had a sympathetic ear in Ms. Tchen, and that the presentation had been very effective - much more so than a free-form discussion would have been. Still, a cynical voice in my head would sometimes pipe up with doubts than any real action would ever be taken.

Fast forward to last week - Tina Tchen announced in the Washington Post that the NSF would be adopting a number of policies that would allow grantees to take time off for parental and family leave. (See also this item in last week's AASWOMEN.) Our message had been heard after all!

The lesson I've taken away from this is that change is possible, no matter how daunting the obstacles may seem. You might imagine that the vast bureaucracy of federal government might be too resistant to change, or that your voice might fall on deaf ears, but if you craft your message well and deliver it to the right person, change can happen. I am so pleased about the policy changes being implemented at the NSF. Too many times I've heard of inflexibility of grants interfering with the careers of women with families, and I'm glad to hear that some of those barriers are falling.

-by Hannah

AASWOMEN for September 30, 2011

2011-10-03T09:10:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of September 30, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. New NSF Workplace Flexibility Policies

3. New Parental Leave Policies Wiki

4. What Balance? Lessons from the AAS Special Work/Life Balance Panel

5. On Families and Conferences

6. The 2011 L'Oreal USA Fellows

7. ASP Research Awards

8. A Story of Women's Education from Iran

9. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

11. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. A Question About Professional Behavior
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

I have a question for you about professional behavior. I know what I would do, but I would love some advice from the experienced and knowledgeable readers of the AASWOMEN newsletter!

As a senior professor in a physics and/or astronomy department, would you ever ask an undergraduate student out for coffee?

Let's narrow the parameters for the purposes of this e-discussion.

Assume the student is:

- currently enrolled in your junior-level physics or astronomy class; - not a relative or a family friend; - about 20 years old, i.e., regular undergraduate age; - the same gender as someone you would date socially.

2. New NSF Workplace Flexibility Policies
From: Nancy Brickhouse [bhouse_at_cfa.harvard.edu] & Anne Kinney [anne.l.kinney_at_nasa.gov]

[We would also like to thank Angela Speck amp; Chanda Prescod-Weinstein for sending us the link to this article - Eds.]

Tina Tchen, Chief of Staff to the First Lady as of Jan 2011 and Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls, has co-authored an opinion piece in the Washington Post with Valerie Jarrett, a senior advisor to President Obama and Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls. The Post article emphasizes women in the STEM disciplines:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/helping-women-reach-their-economic-potential/2011/09/25/gIQA1dODxK_story.html

On Oct 23, 2009 a group of participants in Women in Astronomy and Space Science were invited to the White House to meet with Tina Tchen and Sarah Stewart Johnson, White House Fellow at the Office of Science and Technology Policy. The early career scientists in this group organized and presented a set of concerns for discussion, covering 6 main themes; 1) career trajectories for women in astronomy and space science, 2) health care, 3) family leave policies, 4) conscious and unconscious bias, 5) education and public outreach, and 6) mentoring. See the article online (p. 299) by Hannah Jang-Condell, Kerri Cahoy, Bethany Cobb, Meredith Danowski, Laura Lopez, Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, and Angie Wolfgang:

http://wia2009.gsfc.nasa.gov/WIA2009_proceedings.pdf

Here is a White House press release about the new NSF policy:

http://m.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/09/26/white-house-and-national-science-foundation-announce-new-workplace-flexi

At the time we thought the discussion went extremely well, and now it appears that it made an impact! Thanks also to Pam Millar and Joyce Winterton for arranging the White House meeting.

3. New Parental Leave Policies Wiki
From: Nick Murphy [namurphy_at_cfa.harvard.edu]

The website AstroBetter has kindly agreed to host a wiki on parental leave policies for different astronomical institutions at the following site:

http://www.astrobetter.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Leave+Policies

The goals of this wiki are: (1) to allow astronomers at different career stages (graduate students, postdocs, research staff, and faculty) to easily compare parental leave policies, and (2) to encourage institutions to enact better parental leave policies by showing how they compare with peer institutions. The listing should not be limited to institutions in any particular country, and should include all stages in the career paths of astronomers.

This page is a wiki so that as many people as possible can contribute. We hope that this page can be made useful to those of us applying to graduate school and looking for jobs in the coming months. To edit this page, you must first register on AstroBetter. A small number of schools are currently listed, and we encourage you to include information on and links to parental leave policies at your own institutions.

Nick Murphy (CfA) Emily Freeland (Texas Aamp;M) Laura Trouille (Northwestern University-CIERA)

4. What Balance? Lessons from the AAS Special Work/Life Balance Panel
From: Blake Bullock [Blake.Bullock_at_ngc.com]

[This is a teaser for an article that will appear in the Jan 2012 issue of STATUS, the semiannual magazine of CSWA. The article is entitled, "What Balance?" It summarized the lessons learned from the special Work/Life Balance panel, which met at the Jan 2011 AAS meeting in Seattle, WA - Eds.]

It's no secret things are changing. It used to be, we pretended the constant battle to balance work and life-outside-work didn't exist for fear of seeming distracted or unprofessional on the job. Yet today, despite a challenging job market and economy, employers are increasingly recognizing the impact work-life balance has on their productivity and ability to retain top talent. As we learned in the lively AAS Special Session on Work-Life Balance, the challenges of the astronomy workforce are no different.

Look for the January issue of Status to hear real life myths and facts about the new normal in work-life issues as shared by featured panelists representing the breadth of our community, from senior to junior, from universities to private industry, job-creators to job-seekers, as well as parents, couples, and caretakers.

5. On Families and Conferences
From: Hannan_at_Women_in_Astronomy_Blog, Sept 22, 2011

Then I realized that almost all of the families belonged to men attending the conference. Most of the women that I knew who had kids had left them at home, including myself. Perhaps it's simply a matter of statistics: there are more men than women in astronomy, and a greater percentage of male than female astronomers have children. But I think it's also the case that many women find that bringing their families to a conference is too distracting: I certainly learned that the hard way. I think many of us are also instinctively aware that working mothers are judged differently that working fathers and so we choose to keep them out of sight.

I'm also not really convinced that families showing up at conferences are necessarily a good indication of the family-friendliness of the profession. This conference was on exoplanets, a young and growing field. This means that a lot of exoplanet scientists are in the right demographic group to be starting families, and until they are old enough to start school, why not bring them along to a conference in a cool location. There's a long way to go in terms of policy before we can say that astronomy is family-friendly overall.

On the other hand, whenever I see a woman scientist bringing a baby to a conference (like my fellow blogger, Ann!), I make a little cheer. After all, we do serve as role models for younger scientists who aspire to have it all. And, maybe, just maybe, the more we demonstrate that we can be successful scientists and mothers at the same time, the more we can smash stereotypes about working mothers.

6. The 2011 L'Oreal USA Fellows
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

From Sept. 15, 2011 PRNewswire:

Today five of America's most promising post-doctoral female scientists received the L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women In Science Award. This national awards program was created in 2003 to support the advancement of women in science and rewards the most promising post-doctoral female scientists from across the country. This year's awards presentation ceremony was held at the Kennedy Caucus Room in Washington, D.C. The program featured speeches from key congressional supporters of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). These include, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX), Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ).

The 2011 Fellowship recipients are working on breakthrough scientific research, which address critical global challenges that could aid millions around the world. Their research fields include stroke rehabilitation, therapeutic prevention for Alzheimer's, robotics that will improve prosthetic fittings and function, LEDs and colored light creation, and the spread of influenza and other viruses. Each Fellow will receive up to $60,000 to continue their post-doctoral research. Additionally, the L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women in Science offers professional development workshops for awardees and helps these Fellows build networks with accomplished female leaders in corporate, academic, governmental and scientific fields. The program is facilitated by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

L'Oreal USA's passion and commitment to science was validated by a nationwide survey conducted earlier this month. The results of this survey show that Americans support the program's goal of encouraging women to pursue careers in scientific fields. The survey asked about the public's overall interest in the field of science and specifically their thoughts on the presence of women, and contributions from women, to science. Survey respondents included male and females over 18 years of age and revealed:

7. ASP Research Awards
From: Nancy Morrison [NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu]

Regarding Luisa Rebull's note last week about the Astronomical Society of the Pacific's 2012 awards honoring accomplishments in astronomy education and public outreach, it is important to state that the Society also confers awards honoring excellence in research, namely:

* Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal, awarded since 1898 for a lifetime of outstanding research in astronomy

* Robert J. Trumpler Award, for a recent Ph.D. thesis considered unusually important to astronomy

* Amateur Achievement Award, for significant observational or technical achievements by an amateur astronomer

* Maria and Eric Muhlmann Award, for important research results based upon development of groundbreaking instruments and techniques

Nominations for these awards are sought. See:

http://www.astrosociety.org/membership/awards/awards.html

Recently, a team from the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) brought to the attention of the AAS Council that women are significantly underrepresented in the list of winners of AAS research prizes and awards, although not in its list of service and education award winners. It would be surprising if the same were not also true of the ASP. (The ASP's Bruce medal has been awarded to a woman at a rate of about one per decade for the past thirty years; Margaret Burbidge was the first female winner, in 1982.)

The AAS Council is working with AWIS in seeking solutions to the AAS's part of this problem. See:

http://www.awis.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=397

The first step is for women to be nominated for research awards; no one can win who is not nominated. Although composing a persuasive nomination for a research award takes time and effort, I can affirm that a successful result is one of the most satisfying professional experiences a non-award-winner can have. Please consider nominating someone you know who may be worthy of one of these awards.

8. A Story of Women's Education from Iran
From: Seyedeh Sona Hosseini [sshosseini_at_ucdavis.edu]

[Sona has been reading the thread on "How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)" and was inspired to write this contribution about her mom growing up in Iran - Eds.]

As far as I know, in the past, families and neighbors were the main limitation to women's education in Iran. People thought that if women got higher education they would leave their families. My mom was born after 5 boys. My grandparents had to go through lots of traditional medications to have a daughter and one thing my grandfather was determined to make sure was my mom didn't get higher education so she wouldn't end up leaving them! My mom was an excellent student and my uncles were a great support for her. She was selected as the best 40 female students in their province and they had a program that the best female students can attend the best male high school in the province for a better education. With the help of the school teachers, my grandma told my mom to lie to my grandpa; whenever my grandpa asked what class she was in, she was supposed to say, "I'm in junior high!"

My grandpa was an architect and he used to travel to other cities for months at a time so it wasn't too hard to fool him when he was home. My mom says her male classmates and teachers were a great help to her in order to do the after school home work sessions, projects, and activities. She says whenever a neighbor asked her where you are coming from, she used to say sewing class or something in that nature! And if for any reason the girls couldn't attend extra activities, their male classmates covered for them and wrote an extra class note for them (there were simply no copy machines those days).

My mom was accepted in the second best national medical school in Iran when my grandpa finally realized she was no longer in junior high. To everyone's surprise he supported her but with one condition: that NO one in the neighborhood or the family should know about this! If anyone knew, they would have accused my grandpa of being a nerveless man and reminded him every day that he will see his daughter leaving them soon. So everything was like a secret group work.

Later because of revolution, the schools closed for 2 years and my mom decided to go to a local university and later become a high school teacher which she loved. She says it was almost the same deal in the first years of her college. But after the revolution things changed SO much. Suddenly females' education took over the male' education to a point that now there are many organizations that try to encourage and support males' education in Iran! But that is another story.

I have heard so many very similar stories from my female professors. In all the stories I have heard, they were mostly welcome in their scientific groups and supported by their male colleagues and teachers and they had to deal with their neighbors and mostly second degree family members which is still a big factor in people's life in whatever they decide to do up to this date.

I would like to end this story with a link to a picture that is an ad for the HSBC bank in European countries:

http://www.lobelog.com/wp-content/uploads/HSBC-ad-full.png

9. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

11. Access to Past Issues

2. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Parental Leave Policies

2011-09-26T23:32:00.007-04:00

The website AstroBetter has kindly agreed to host a wiki on parental leave policies for different astronomical institutions and for the national postdoctoral fellowships at the following site:

http://www.astrobetter.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Leave+Policies

The goals of this wiki are: (1) to allow astronomers at different career stages (graduate students, postdocs, research staff, and faculty) to easily compare parental leave policies, and (2) to encourage institutions to enact better parental leave policies by showing how they compare with peer institutions. The listing should not be limited to institutions in any particular country, and should include all stages in the career paths of astronomers.

This page is a wiki so that as many people as possible can contribute. We hope that this page can be made useful to those of us applying to graduate school and looking for jobs in the coming months. To edit this page, you must first register on AstroBetter. A small number of schools and fellowships are currently listed, and we encourage you to include information on and links to parental leave policies at your own institutions.

Nick Murphy (CfA)
Emily Freeland (Texas A&M)
Laura Trouille (Northwestern University-CIERA)

AASWOMEN for September 23, 2011

2011-09-26T09:09:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of September 23, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

1. History of the CSWA

3. Which countries have the highest proportion of female graduates? -- A Response

4. A Postdoc's Guide to Pregnancy & Maternity Leave

5. Seeking Stories on Quantitative Skills Important for Physics Majors

6. Nomination for Excellence in Astronomy Education Awards

7. Aspen Center for Physics, Winter Conferences - 2012

8. International Observe the Moon Night (Oct. 8)

9. Job Opportunities

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

http://www.aas.org/cswa/history.html

1. History of the CSWA
Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

Joan Schmelz has compiled historical information on the origins of the CSWA and its history, and Nancy Morrison has kindly posted it at

Enjoy!

2. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

This week's story of how things have changed for women in astronomy comes from Meg Urry, the Israel Munson Professor of Physics and Astronomy and chair of the Department of Physics at Yale University. Meg is also a contributing editor to the STATUS newsletter and a former chair of CSWA.

Meg writes: "Ah, the good old days! I remember discussions with Carnegie Mellon University about a faculty job, in 1990, in the Physics Department. Both my husband and I were on the market, looking for two jobs in the same location. CMU told us they could not hire a husband and wife because of anti-nepotism rules. The next year, in 1991, when we were again on the market, they had done away with this rule and they offered us two jobs. I always liked that department and would have liked being there but in the end, I chose to stay at STScI (because my husband had a really great job at Goddard)."

Nepotism is not generally a factor we consider in solving today's two-body problem, but anti-nepotism rules were the norm at universities in the United States in the 1920s through the 1970s. As Meg mentions above, some persisted into the 1990s! These rules deprived numerous talented women of faculty positions at the universities where their husbands were employed.

One of the many famous victims of anti-nepotism rules was Nobel laureate Maria Goeppert-Mayer. Since she was married to chemist, Joseph Mayer, she was forced to become a "volunteer research associate," a euphemism for an unemployed or underemployed scientist. Later, she accepted a half-time research position in Chicago where she formulated the shell model for atomic nuclei, her Nobel Prize winning work. She was elected to the National Academy of Science in 1956, but she was not employed full-time as a professor (and paid accordingly) until 1960 when she moved to the University of California in San Diego.

3. Which countries have the highest proportion of female graduates? -- A Response
From: Johannes Andersen [ja_at_astro.ku.dk]

[The last issue of the AASWOMEN newsletter included a story from John Leibacher on Which countries have the highest proportion of female graduates? One reader responded with a comment -- eds.]

A comment on John Leibacher's piece on demographis in today's issue:

I was asked to comment on a title for a Nordic workshop on Women in Physics and suggested "2025: The Post-Male Era".

As an observing astronomer, isn't this what I see?

4. A Postdoc's Guide to Pregnancy & Maternity Leave
From: WIPHYS, September 20, 2011

The National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) has developed a new online resource, "A Postdoc's Guide to Pregnancy and Maternity Leave," The guide provides general information on pregnancy and maternity leave for postdocs, including tips on keeping your research going and talking with your postdoctoral supervisor.

The guide covers such topics as: Research Concerns for your Pregnancy; Maternity Leave and Federal Funding Guidelines; and Making a Maternity Research Plan.

You can find it here: http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/publications/563-maternity-guide

5. Seeking Stories on Quantitative Skills Important for Physics Majors
From: WIPHYS, September 20, 2011

Which quantitative skills are important for physics majors to acquire in today's data-driven age? Computer programming, computer science (artificial intelligence, machine learning), data visualization, simulation techniques, statistics? How do these skills complement physics training, empower a student, or broaden career choices after graduation?

If you would like to write an article or provide a short testimonial on the subject for the Gazette, please email Deanna Ratnikova, ratnikova_at_aps.org.

6. Nomination for Excellence in Astronomy Education Awards
From: Luisa Rebull [rebull_at_ipac.caltech.edu]

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific is now accepting nominations for the Society's 2012 awards honoring accomplishments in astronomy education and public outreach. Recipients receive a cash award and engraved plaque, as well as travel and lodging to accept the award at the Society's 2012 Meeting next summer.

* The Richard Emmons Award celebrates a life-time of outstanding achievement in the teaching of college-level introductory astronomy for non-science majors.

* The Klumpke-Roberts Award recognizes those who have made major contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy.

* The Thomas J. Brennan Award is given for excellence in the teaching of astronomy at the high school level in North America.

* The Las Cumbres Amateur Outreach Award honors outstanding educational outreach by an amateur astronomer to K-12 students and the public.

Submission guidelines, and lists of past recipients can be found at

http://www.astrosociety.org/membership/awards/awards.html

The deadline for nominations is December 15, 2011. You do not need to be a member of the Society to make or second a nomination.

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact Albert Silva at: asilva_at_astrosociety.org or 415.337.1100 x 100.

7. Aspen Center for Physics, Winter Conferences - 2012
From: Katy Garmany [garmany-at_noao.edu]

The Aspen Institute of Physics hosts Winter and Summer Programs, a number of which are astrophysics. It may be of interest to AASWomen members.

[Some of the Winter Conferences: January 15-20, 2012: ExoClimes 2012: The Diversity of Planetary Atmospheres January 21-27, 2012: The Physics of Astronomical Transients January 30 - February 4, 2012: Inflationary Theory and Its Confrontation with Data in the Planck Era

see:

http://www.aspenphys.org/documents/program/winterworkshops12.html

The deadline to apply for many of these programs is October 15, 2011. -- eds,]

8. International Observe the Moon Night (Oct. 8)
Michele M. Montgomery [montgomery_at_physics.ucf.edu]

October 8 is International Observe the Moon Night (InOMN). The goal is to encourage as many people as possible, worldwide, to spend an evening learning about and observing the Moon. To find a registered event near you, instructions on how to host your own event, and information about InOMN and the Moon can be found at

http://observethemoonnight.org

9. Job Opportunities

A. NASA Fellowship for Pre- and In-Service Student

http://www.us-satellite.net/endeavor/about.cfm

B. Junior Faculty Position in Astrophysics, MIT

http://www.academicjobsonline.com

C. Assistant Professor, Physics Teacher Education, Illinois State University

http://www.phy.ilstu.edu

D. Tenure-Track Faculty Position in Astrophysics at Lehigh University

https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/1018

10. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

12. Access to Past Issues

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Coasting during the time of a child’s life that she may not remember

2011-09-23T11:13:00.004-04:00

I have a full-time job as an astrophysicist. Currently I am working on a draft of a paper to submit to the Astrophysical Journal, hopefully within the next couple months. Life is challenging as I am also the mother of an 18-month-old. Last night I was up nursing her three times. She will not remember me nursing her three times, but after an evening out at a meeting of a professional organization to which I belong, I was very happy for the snuggling and reconnection.

Recently I have recognized that while my career is still going along just fine, it is not shooting upwards like it seemed to be right before my daughter was born. This is described sometimes as a coasting period. It is not a break. You are still working. However, you are not able to jump at every opportunity. It isn’t possible. You might sleep, preserve your marriage, do research, serve on committees, be active in your worship community if you have one, travel occasionally to visit family or for work, and make room for quality time for your children, but at some point you hit that 24 hours per day limit and some choices have to be made.

A biggie is choosing between work and parenthood. A very senior person in the field commented recently that children do not remember anything before they are five years old or so, so that is a great time to work very hard. A colleague of mine close to my age said that isn’t really the case. She traveled internationally with her child when she was tiny, but the stories, which the child remembered through the mother in all likelihood, stuck with the child. On future trips the child “recalled” them proudly.

Another big choice concerns how much work travel you will do. I have blogged on this recently, as has my fellow blogger, Hannah. Before I had the kid, and for quite a while thereafter, my approach was to take her with me wherever I went. In our field, giving talks at conferences and collaboration meetings, even in-person coffee break discussions, are really important. So I lugged her with me and spent the money and energy to do so. It is not an easy choice and now I am occasionally traveling without her.

Recently, two colleagues of mine, one male and one female, told me that their decision not to travel, a decision made because they each had two children (two different families and cities, FYI), had a serious impact on their career. Both expressed to me that it was difficult for them professionally. They had seen moments pass them by when meeting in-person would have made a big difference. However, they both commented about how they get to know their children and the chance will come later to travel again.

My own mother, who is an elected judge, did not work full time for several years when my brother and I were young. She also "coasted", teaching in the evening and doing legal aid work, keeping her credentials current and her resume’ honed. She, like the senior person who made the comment mentioned earlier, has had a pretty amazing career and you don’t see anything negative about the coasting now. Neither one would give up that coasting period if they had to go back.

This morning I took my daughter out on the deck and we looked at birds. She was smiling and delighted. This moment slowed me down getting to work, and she won’t remember it, but I will and I will tell her about it. It was also the right thing to do, so I think I will just enjoy this coasting while I can. It won't last forever.

On Families and Conferences

2011-09-22T23:18:00.000-04:00

Last week, I attended a conference in Grand Teton National Park. At one point, a friend noted, "there are lots of families here!" And there were. Why not use a conference in a spectacular location as an excuse to bring the family along and make a vacation out of it? And perhaps it even means that astronomy is getting more family-friendly.

Then I realized that almost all of the families belonged to men attending the conference. Most of the women that I knew who had kids had left them at home, including myself. Perhaps it's simply a matter of statistics: there are more men than women in astronomy, and a greater percentage of male than female astronomers have children. But I think it's also the case that many women find that bringing their families to a conference is too distracting: I certainly learned that the hard way. I think many of us are also instinctively aware that working mothers are judged differently that working fathers and so we choose to keep them out of sight.

I'm also not really convinced that families showing up at conferences are necessarily a good indication of the family-friendliness of the profession. This conference was on exoplanets, a young and growing field. This means that a lot of exoplanet scientists are in the right demographic group to be starting families, and until they are old enough to start school, why not bring them along to a conference in a cool location. There's a long way to go in terms of policy before we can say that astronomy is family-friendly overall.

On the other hand, whenever I see a woman scientist bringing a baby to a conference (like my fellow blogger, Ann!), I make a little cheer. After all, we do serve as role models for younger scientists who aspire to have it all. And, maybe, just maybe, the more we demonstrate that we can be successful scientists and mothers a the same time, the more we can smash stereotypes about working mothers.

-by Hannah

AASWOMEN for September 16, 2011

2011-09-21T10:59:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of September 16, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Gender-directed Weirdness

3. Which countries have the highest proportion of female graduates?

4. International Conference on Gravitation, Astrophysics and Cosmology

5. Job Opportunities

6. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

This week's story of how things have changed for women in astronomy comes from Jo Eliza Pitesky of JPL:

My sophomore year, I took the usual one-quarter introduction to quantum physics. It was the early 1980s, and textbook editions weren't updated at the rapid frequency that we see nowadays. The course used the 1971 edition of the Berkeley Physics Course quantum text. Introduction--no problem. Chapter one--no problem. Chapter two--no problem, until reaching the end of the chapter, where there was a cartoon diagram helpfully illustrating "The Linear Size of Things." Most of the examples were fairly innocuous; 10^-5 cm was Tobacco mosaic virus, 10^-1 cm was a flea, 10 cm was a "Cute animal" (with rough drawing of a squirrel). 10^2 cm was "Woman," illustrated with a drawing of a full-frontal naked, curvaceous brunette with nothing left to the imagination.

I remember seeing that particular illustration for the first time in lecture. Since I was a sophomore, I reacted in a sophomoric way and sketched in a new illustration for "Cute animal" that, uhm, leveled the playing field.

No more illustrations like that in physics textbooks that I've seen in recent years. Even having the textbook open on my desk right now is probably a violation of some workplace rule about displaying pornography.

2. Gender-directed Weirdness
From: Female Science Professor's Blog
[http://science-professor.blogspot.com/]

During a recent bout of air travel, I picked up some magazines to read during the times when e-readers must be turned off and in an upright and locked position because things might shift during the flight, or something.

I found this quote by Judith Herzfeld (a professor of biophysical chemistry) in the Aug 29 issue of The New Yorker of great interest, and even somewhat entertaining:

".. I find it remarkable for the period [late 1950's] that a new and ambitious, even aggressive, science program was given to a female science teacher, Mrs. Esther Daly. I thought nothing of it at the time, but I suspect that having had a female science teacher in junior high school gave me some resilience for gender-directed weirdness in subsequent science venues."

Oh how I wish I had invented the term "gender-directed weirdness". Can I at least invent the acronym? GDW is, from time to time, kind of a theme of this blog. At the very least, I am going to add it as a label.

When discussing role models in the past, I have wondered if role models (of any sort) have to do anything active to impart resilience (or whatever), or simply just be a person doing a job. We don't have enough information in the little piece from "The Talk of the Town" section of the magazine to determine what Mrs Daly did or did not do while teaching middle school science, but I like to think that her very existence as a science teacher was a powerful statement to the girls (and boys) that she taught, even if a subconscious one (at the time).

Or perhaps that is just me being lazy, hoping to do good without actually knowing how or what to do as a role model. Unlike flying on a plane and being given lots of instructions**, being a role model is a lot less well defined, and it can be hard to know what to do, other than just to be.

3. Which countries have the highest proportion of female graduates?
From: John Leibacher [leib_at_email.noao.edu]

Degrees of Equality Sep 13th 2011, 14:45 by The Economist online

MORE girls than boys now complete their secondary education in 32 of the 34 countries that are members of the OECD, a think-tank, according to a new report published today. Only in Germany and Switzerland do girls lag behind. Moreover, female graduates greatly outnumber male graduates. Overall they account for 58% of graduates within OECD member states in 2009, the most recent year for which data are available, up from 54% in 2000. Men, however, continue to dominate the sciences: some 60% of science graduates are male. Women make up almost three-quarters of the graduate body in health and welfare, and almost two-thirds in humanities and the arts. Some of the differences in graduation rates between countries are striking. In Estonia, which has the highest proportion of female graduates, more than two-thirds are women. Many are bound for classroom careers: an astonishing 92% of those studying education are female. By contrast, in Japan, just over two-fifths of graduates belong to the fairer sex, and teaching remains relatively male by rich-world standards.

The report itself is at http://www.oecd.org/document/2/0,3746,en_2649_39263238_48634114_1_1_1_1,00.html

4. International Conference on Gravitation, Astrophysics and Cosmology
From: WIPHYS, Sept. 13, 2011

ICGAC10 is part of a series of biennial conferences on Gravitation, Astrophysics and Cosmology which take place in the Asia-Pacific area with the following goals: to encourage cooperation among the member countries within an international context; to promote advanced studies on emerging topics; to encourage young physicists to enter these fields.

The ICGAC10 program will consist of oral presentations in plenary and parallel sessions, with review talks on specific topics given by leading researchers. Debates on controversial issues will be programmed during the conference. Poster contributions are welcome, and will be posted during the entire week.

Topics include: Experimental studies of gravity; Quantum gravity; Gravitational waves; Black holes, Wormholes; Strings, Branes and Extra dimensions; Numerical Relativity; Cosmology, Dark matter, Dark energy; Relativistic Astrophysics; Astroparticle Physics, Cosmic rays; Astronomical and space-research instrumentation. For additional informations, please contact Roland Triay (triay_at_cpt.univ-mrs.fr) or Ludwik Celnikier (ludwik.celnikier_at_obspm.fr).

5. Job Opportunities

1. Postdoctoral Prize Fellowship, Yale Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/942

2. EVLA/VLBA Postdoctoral Fellows: https://careers.nrao.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=50688

3. Assistant Professor in Astrophysics, UColorado, Boulder Interested in candidates working in observational astronomy, theoretical and computational astrophysics, and extrasolar planetary systems https://www.jobsatcu.com posting #814540.

4. Senior Tenure-Track Faculty Position in Observational Extragalactic Astronomy, Case-Western Reserve University http://blog.case.edu/human-resources/employment/academic

5. Various opportunities are available at NOAO. http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues

1. Invitation to Subscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWOMEN for September 9, 2011

2011-09-12T11:34:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of September 9, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Berkeley Women in Science and Engineering: Our Struggle for Equality

3. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

4. America Needs More Women in the Sciences

5. Top 5 Myths About Girls, Math and Science

6. When Programming was Considered Women's Work

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Invitation to Subscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter
From: The Editors [aaswomen_at_aas.org]

The Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy (CSWA) strives to create a climate of equal opportunity in hiring, promotion, salary, and in access to research opportunities and infrastructure at all levels within the field of astronomy ranging from undergraduate and graduate programs and then throughout a career in teaching, research, and/or other astronomy-related fields such as public outreach.

AASWOMEN is CSWA's weekly electronic newsletter. As a new academic year begins, we invite you to help us expand our community of readers and contributors. Please forward this issue to any new students, post-docs, and scientists that may be interested.

To subscribe (or unsubscribe):

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

2. Berkeley Women in Science and Engineering: Our Struggle for Equality
From: Laura Trouille [l-trouille_at_northwestern.edu]

This article was posted by Liz Boatman in the Berkeley Science Review:

The University of California, Berkeley was founded in 1868. At that time, female faculty and students were virtually non-existent in all of higher education, not just in physical science and engineering disciplines. Here at UC Berkeley, women were not allowed to enter the Faculty Club unescorted by a male until 1915. Female faculty were still restricted from certain areas of the facility for another 40 years; at the entrance to the Great Hall, a large sign was hung that read "For Men Only". (No wonder the females established their own social parlor next door, the Women's Faculty Club!) Nowhere on campus, however, is the ongoing battle for equal opportunity as visible today as it is in the north-east corner. Our College of Engineering (COE) is ranked 3rd in the world, but the first female professor was not granted tenure in mechanical engineering until the 1990s.

I recently spoke with that professor, Lisa Pruitt, and she mentioned that the success in retention of women faculty in engineering disciplines goes up dramatically when women are hired in bunches. At the time, this was a radical concept to me, but later I thought about why I chose UC Berkeley for graduate school after doing my B.S. in physics: more women. I am still here now, many trials and tribulations later, and it is my female peers upon whom I rely regularly for support. Apparently, I have been unknowingly participating in this same sociological experiment, and the results are not surprising: like the female faculty, the female graduate students do better in bunches.

These days, there are female faculty serving as department chairs and in dean positions; clearly, science and engineering career paths for women in academia have improved. We can be thankful that there are now laws preventing gender discrimination in the form of unequal pay or lab space allocation. So, yes, the situation is better than it was in the 1800s (and it only took 140 years, give or take). The unfortunate consequence of "better," however, is that female faculty in science and engineering now face an entirely new type of gender bias.

3. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

For this week's story of how things have changed for women in astronomy, I have borrowed the words of a living legend, Dr. Margaret Burbidge. Margaret wrote an article for the Jan 2000 issue of STATUS entitled, "Glass Ceilings and Ivory Towers:"

http://www.aas.org/cswa/status/status_jan00.pdf

The editors described Margaret as, "a professor emeritus in the Physics Department and an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences at the University of California, San Diego. She entered astronomy at a time when there were few women and their access to astronomical facilities was severely restricted. She not only transcended these obstacles, she made countless critical contributions to the field, as attested by numerous honors and awards, including (naming only a few) the Presidential Medal of Science, the Henry Norris Russell Lectureship of the American Astronomical Society, and membership in the National Academy of Science."

Margaret wrote: "Yet when I describe the ban on women using the Mt. Wilson telescopes that prevented me from being considered as a possible candidate for a Carnegie Fellowship in 1947, I am met quite often with surprise: "You mean women were not allowed to observe with the 60- and 100-inch telescopes?" I then have to explain that the ban was peculiar to the Carnegie Observatories directorship and tradition, and was indeed circumvented eight years later by pressure from the California Institute of Technology (Professors William A. Fowler and Robert Bacher)."

Next week's story is about how textbooks have changed. If you have a story to share about the "old days" on textbooks or any other subject, please send it to me at the address above.

4. America Needs More Women in the Sciences
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Steve and Cokie Roberts wrote this article for the Bemidji Pioneer:

It's already back-to-school time for many kids. As they again stuff their hefty backpacks, here's what won't be in enough of them: science, technology, engineering and math books. Girls, especially, will not be weighted down by those texts, and that's a problem for those girls and for the country.

To compete in the world economy and preserve the lifestyle Americans expect, the nation needs innovative and scientifically savvy workers. And if girls want their paychecks to come close to those of the boys in their classrooms, they need to study those so-called STEM subjects.

Early this month, the Commerce Department issued a report showing that women who work in fields such as computer science and engineering have more employment security and higher incomes - 33 percent higher - than women in other jobs. In STEM jobs, the gender pay gap shrinks markedly; women make almost as much as men do. But, even though a majority of college graduates are women and they're almost half of the workforce, women hold only about a quarter of the positions in these lucrative fields. That number has stayed steady over the last 10 years, even as educated women have marched into the workplace in greater numbers.

5. Top 5 Myths About Girls, Math, and Science
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

LiveScience debunks the top 5 myths about girls, math, and science:

The days of sexist science teachers and Barbies chirping that "math class is tough!" are over, according to pop culture, but a government program aimed at bringing more women and girls into science, technology, engineering and math fields suggests otherwise.

Below are five myths about girls and science that still endure, according to the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program:

Myth 1: From the time they start school, most girls are less interested in science than boys are.

Reality: In elementary school about as many girls as boys have positive attitudes toward science. A recent study of fourth graders showed that 66 percent of girls and 68 percent of boys reported liking science. But something else starts happening in elementary school. By second grade, when students (both boys and girls) are asked to draw a scientist, most portray a white male in a lab coat. Any woman scientist they draw looks severe and not very happy. The persistence of the stereotypes start to turn girls off, and by eighth grade, boys are twice as interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) careers as girls are. The female attrition continues throughout high school, college and even the work force. Women with STEM higher education degrees are twice as likely to leave a scientific or engineering job as men with comparable STEM degrees.

6. When Programming was Considered Women's Work
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Anna Lewis wrote this article for the Cap Times:

"It's just like planning a dinner," Adm. Grace Hopper, a computer science pioneer, told readers in a 1967 Cosmopolitan magazine story. "You have to plan ahead and schedule everything so it's ready when you need it." Pot roast or computer programming - both, Cosmo told its readers, could be women's work.

I first came across that article this summer when I was working in recruiting at a software company. I'd spent the past year trying to get more undergraduate women to apply for our summer internship program. I kept seeing reports that the number of women majoring in computer science was growing. It was about 25 percent at certain elite institutions, such as Harvard, MIT and Carnegie Mellon. (Little to no increase has been observed at other universities.) That seemed like good news for people in my field - the business of getting a diverse and talented group of people to design software. But it wasn't exactly a triumphant rise. It's just a slow climb back to where things used to be.

When Cosmo's "The Computer Girls" ran, 11 percent of computer science majors were women. In the late 1970s, the percentage of women in the field approached and exceeded the same figure we are applauding today: 25 percent. The portion of women earning computer science degrees rose rise steadily, peaking at 37 percent in 1984.

7. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!) part 2

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Top 5 Myths About Girls, Math, and Science

2011-09-08T12:41:00.001-04:00

LiveScience debunks the top 5 myths about girls, math, and science:

The days of sexist science teachers and Barbies chirping that "math class is tough!" are over, according to pop culture, but a government program aimed at bringing more women and girls into science, technology, engineering and math fields suggests otherwise.

Below are five myths about girls and science that still endure, according to the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Research on Gender in Science and Engineering (GSE) program:

Myth 1: From the time they start school, most girls are less interested in science than boys are.

Reality: In elementary school about as many girls as boys have positive attitudes toward science. A recent study of fourth graders showed that 66 percent of girls and 68 percent of boys reported liking science. But something else starts happening in elementary school. By second grade, when students (both boys and girls) are asked to draw a scientist, most portray a white male in a lab coat. Any woman scientist they draw looks severe and not very happy. The persistence of the stereotypes start to turn girls off, and by eighth grade, boys are twice as interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) careers as girls are. The female attrition continues throughout high school, college and even the work force. Women with STEM higher education degrees are twice as likely to leave a scientific or engineering job as men with comparable STEM degrees.

To read more:

http://www.livescience.com/7349-top-5-myths-girls-math-science.html

From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

AASWOMEN for September 3, 2011

2011-09-05T11:58:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of September 2, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!) part 3

3. To travel with the kid or without, this is always a big question.

4. Culture Drives Gender Gap in Spatial Abilities, Study Finds

5. NASA Names Astrophysics Fellowship For Iconic Woman Astronomer

6. Professional Skills Development Workshops in 2012 for female physicists.

7. Job Opportunities

8. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Kathy wrote: "When I first observed at NRAO on Kitt Peak in 1980, there were "Playboy" magazines *everywhere.* They were in the control room as well as in the trailers. Not just a current and couple of back issues, but piles of them. At first, I just tried to figure out how to act like I didn't really notice or care. Guys there read them right in front of me. Later, as I became more bold, I asked about them and was told that an observer had given a subscription to the observatory. To me, this sounded like a clueless justification. They could have declined the subscription. Even if there were zero women at the telescope, how is pornography appropriate in the workplace? Working with state of the art equipment should be enough to keep even a man's mind occupied for the work day. But hey, I wanted a career in Astrophysics, and that was the culture so I made up my mind to live with it. After a few years, the magazines disappeared. However, many years after that, after they built new lodging, I found a stash of them in a non-prominent place in one of the buildings."

Kathy's story reminded me that pornography was common in the astronomical workplace in the 1980s, not just at Kitt Peak. The problem was so widespread that the Oct 1986 issue of STATUS had advice on how to get your male colleagues to take down their nude pin-up posters! I remember computer printouts (on the old green and white striped paper) of naked women in many places, mainly in the offices of the NRAO computer operators. I never saw a pile of "Playboys," but after years of observing at Arecibo, one of my friends (a telescope operator) showed me the local collection - it was in a file drawer in the control room. All the guys know about it.

I remember precisely when things changed: it was after the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas hearings on Capitol Hill, and the federal government began taking the issue of sexual harassment more seriously. I had visions of word coming down from the observatory directors to get those posters off the wall. The pornography disappeared practically overnight.

If you have a story to share about the "old days," please send it to me at the address above.

2. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)
From: Caroline Simpson [simpsonc_at_fiu.edu]

When I was working at STScI in the mid-80s (before I went to grad school) as part of the Guide Star Catalog team, one of the computer screen savers (waaay back in the early days of such things) was a publicity shot from the movie The Deep, which was of a scuba-diving Jacqueline Bisset underwater in a white (and therefore completely see through) T-shirt. I think the computer guys also used the image to test the printers as well. I was quite non-plussed by the whole thing; but never said or did anything about it that I recall.

Interesting thread. I find it both appalling that things used to be so bad, and reassuring that progress has been made.

3. To travel with the kid or without, this is always a big question.
From: AnnH on the Women in Astronomy Blog

So, I have just decided recently that I am not bringing my daughter with me at all to the AAS High Energy Astrophysics Division (HEAD) meeting. [...]

See the full post at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

and read the comments on our facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/notes/committee-on-the-status-of-women-in-astronomy/to-travel-with-the-kid-or-without-this-is-always-a-big-question/10150370961000505

4. Culture Drives Gender Gap in Spatial Abilities, Study Finds
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Culture Drives Gender Gap in Spatial Abilities, Study Finds LiveScience.com

"Some, like former Harvard president Lawrence Summers, have suggested that such innate abilities might be the reason that women are underrepresented in science and math careers. Summers drew fire in 2005 for suggesting as much during a conference on ... "

Full story at http://www.livescience.com/15823-culture-gender-gap-spatial-abilities.html

See all stories on this topic at http://news.google.com/news/story?ncl=http://www.livescience.com/15823-culture-gender-gap-spatial-abilities.html&hl=en&geo=us

5. NASA Names Astrophysics Fellowship For Iconic Woman Astronomer
From: Meg Urry [meg.urry_at_yale.edu]

Wonderful news about the recognition of the tremendous leadership of Nancy Roman for NASA's space science program:

RELEASE : 11-277

NASA Names Astrophysics Fellowship For Iconic Woman Astronomer

WASHINGTON -- NASA has established an astrophysics technology fellowship named for the woman many credit as one of the key contributors in the creation of the Hubble Space Telescope.

The Nancy Grace Roman Technology Fellowship in Astrophysics is designed to foster technologies that advance scientific investigations in the origin and physics of the universe and future exoplanet exploration. The fellowship will help early career researchers develop innovative technologies to enable scientific breakthroughs, while creating the skills necessary to lead astrophysics projects and future investigations.

See the full article at: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2011/aug/HQ_11-277_Astro_Fellows.html

For information about applying to the fellowship, visit:

http://bit.ly/qWEPYC

6. Professional Skills Development Workshops in 2012 for female physicists
From: WIPHYS, Aug. 31, 2011

Applicants currently residing in the US (or those outside the country affiliated with a US institution/facility) are eligible for travel and/or lodging funding consideration. Those needing funding assistance are encouraged to apply early. The deadlines for the workshops and a link to the online application can be found at http://www.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/skills

7. Job Opportunities

Related to Item 3 above:

1. The Nancy Grace Roman Technology Fellowship in Astrophysics Beginning Nov. 18, early-career researchers may submit proposals for one-year concept studies for the development of new astrophysics technologies. See http://bit.ly/qWEPYC for full information.

2. NRAO has the following scientist positions available.Full information for all three positions is available at: https://careers.nrao.edu ; click on 'scientist positions.'

A. EVLA/VLBA Postdoctoral Fellow: NRAO invites applications for three postdoctoral positions to participate in the scientific commissioning and technical development of the EVLA and VLBA.

B. Jansky Fellow: Fellows formulate and carry out investigations either independently or in collaboration with others within the wide framework of interests of the Observatory. Prior radio astronomy experience not required.

C. Green Bank Postdoctoral Fellow: The successful application will have 50% of his/her time available for independent research, while 50% of his/her time will be devoted to support of the GBT and GBT observers.

3. Omidyar Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Santa Fe Institute Apply by November 1. The Institute has no formal programs or departments. Research is collaborative and spans the physical, natural, and social sciences. Most research is theoretical and/or computational in nature, although it may include an empirical component. http://www.santafe.edu/omidyar-fellowship

4. Project Officer: IAU Global Office of Astronomy for Development The International Astronomical Union (IAU), in partnership with the South African National Research Foundation (NRF), has established the global Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) in Cape Town, South Africa. This office will be the centre of development activities worldwide in the areas of (i) astronomy for children and schools; (ii) astronomy for universities and research; and (iii) astronomy for the public. http://www.nsbp.org/en/jobs/v/731

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)

2011-09-01T13:34:00.000-04:00

The last issue of the AASWOMEN newsletter included a story from Katy Garmany illustrating how much things have changed for women in astronomy. I asked AASWOMEN readers for other examples and received to following contribution from Kathy Mead, editor of STATUS from 1995-98.

Kathy wrote: "When I first observed at NRAO on Kitt Peak in 1980, there were “Playboy” magazines *everywhere.* They were in the control room as well as in the trailers. Not just a current and couple of back issues, but piles of them. At first, I just tried to figure out how to act like I didn't really notice or care. Guys there read them right in front of me. Later, as I became more bold, I asked about them and was told that an observer had given a subscription to the observatory. To me, this sounded like a clueless justification. They could have declined the subscription. Even if there were zero women at the telescope, how is pornography appropriate in the workplace? Working with state of the art equipment should be enough to keep even a man's mind occupied for the work day. But hey, I wanted a career in Astrophysics, and that was the culture so I made up my mind to live with it. After a few years, the magazines disappeared. However, many years after that, after they built new lodging, I found a stash of them in a non-prominent place in one of the buildings."

Kathy’s story reminded me that pornography was common in the astronomical workplace in the 1980s, not just at Kitt Peak. The problem was so widespread that the Oct 1986 issue of STATUS had advice on how to get your male colleagues to take down their nude pin-up posters! I remember computer printouts (on the old green and white striped paper) of naked women in many places, mainly in the offices of the NRAO computer operators. I never saw a pile of “Playboys,” but after years of observing at Arecibo, one of my friends (a telescope operator) showed me the local collection – it was in a file drawer in the control room. All the guys know about it.

I remember precisely when things changed: it was after the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas hearings on Capitol Hill, and the federal government began taking the issue of sexual harassment more seriously. I had visions of word coming down from the observatory directors to get those posters off the wall. The pornography disappeared practically overnight.

From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

To travel with the kid or without, this is always a big question.

2011-08-30T08:24:00.002-04:00

Every mother has her own unique path through navigating career and parenting. I am sure that many women maintaining a career while caring for children struggle with the issue of professional travel. Up until now, my nursing relationship with my child dictated (for me) that I take her with me, but now I am finding I can get away with a few days away and frankly, she is now running and napping slightly less. At 17 months, she isn’t the portable person she used to be.

So, I have just decided recently that I am not bringing my daughter with me at all to the AAS High Energy Astrophysics Division (HEAD) meeting. I had thought that I would spend the first three and a half days of the meeting running around like mad (I am an elected officer), attending sessions and meeting with people on all my breaks. On day four I was going to meet my husband at the airport to bring the family to the meeting. I’ve been traveling a lot recently, and bringing my daughter with me (as I type, the kid is in my office taking paper out of my recycling bin, we’re headed out to the Metro station soon to head to Chicago). I am that person on the DC Metro with the toddler in the backpack, two bags over her shoulders and one larger roller bag headed for National airport.

Ironically, I am part of the executive committee that brought childcare grants to HEAD to help people travel with their children. I realize that a $400 grant is just a step in the right direction as the full cost is much greater and is not measured purely in financial terms. One of my colleagues told me “no one should expect raising kids to be free.” I certainly didn’t expect that, but I think before I had kids I didn’t realize the impact of traveling with (or without!) a kid. You still have to pay the daycare back home in either case. If you leave the kid behind, chances are you return to an exhausted spouse after having exhausted yourself at a conference/review/etc. If you take the kid with you, just try going out to dinner.

Okay, it is possible to go out to dinner. One option is of course that you bring a family member with you (my mother-in-law and my parents have both been wonderful about traveling with me) but generally if you are spending all day in the meeting/review/etc. you may not want to ditch your family member and your child in the evenings every evening as well. You might have one negotiated evening out, and to be clear, the negotiation is as much with your conscience as with any family member.

Those dinners out are of course very important. We all know this, but I think when you suddenly can’t go out as freely at night you really realize the impact. Let’s include happy hours too. Oh heck, let’s throw in coffee breaks. When I travel with the kid, I generally am spending all those breaks checking back in with the kid and the caretaker. Many of the most important discussions at a conference occur during those casual interaction times. There is a cost associated with missing this informal interaction time that is difficult to quantify.

Granted, there is a cost in missing your kid too. I do like my daughter. She giggles when I do silly things like chase her around the house or hold up a scarf in front of my face. She is now attempting to put her own shoes on and says the word “shoe”. At 17 months she still nurses a few times a day, which is a peaceful connection between us (that also transfers protein, antibodies and hydrating liquid!) that both of us enjoy. When I travel, I often end up dumping a bit of that liquid gold down the sink after pumping, a true waste (but it isn’t practical to carry back more than 48 hours worth of milk currently).

However, for the first time in those 17 months (17.5 by the time I make the trip), I find I “need” to have 4 days to just be an astronomer and do my job. I will check in via Skype. I will miss her. I’ll return before the last session ends.

AASWOMEN for August 26, 2011

2011-08-29T07:41:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of August 26, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Re-Entering a Science Career After a Break

3. How to Help More Women Succeed in Physics/Astronomy

4. Why are there so Few Female Engineers?

5. 4th Essential Cosmology for the Next Generation

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues

1. How Things Have Changed (for the Better!)
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

In the 19 Aug 2011 issue of the AASWOMEN newsletter, I wrote an item entitled, "Why the AAS Needs the CSWA." It was based on an article of the same title which was written by Lee Anne Willson and published in the Oct 1987 issue of the STATUS magazine. I wrote about how things have improved for women in astronomy since the original article came out.

Katy Garmany, current editor of STATUS, posted the following comment on CSWA's Facebook page, and I just received her permission to share it with AASWOMEN readers.

Katy wrote: "As someone with an even longer history, I can certainly see changes. When I was a grad student in the '60's, the women (all 3 of us) were expected to set up tea and cookies for colloquia every week, while the men (all 20 or so) took turns showing the slides. This was just one of the silly things that had to change, but it represented the times."

If you have a story like Katy's that illustrates just how much things have changed (for the better!) for women in astronomy, please send it to me at the [email] address above.

2. Re-Entering a Science Career After a Break
From: Nancy Morrison [NMorris_at_UTNet.UToledo.Edu]

Seen in Nature, August 18, 2011: "Women in science: In pursuit of female chemists," by Carol V. Robinson. Robinson took eight years off, in order to start a three-child family, just after earning her Ph.D. To me, the most interesting part of this article is her description of restarting her career, charting her own course, and eventually becoming a research professor at Oxford after this break.

The article has perceptive things to say about mentoring, role modeling, and climate as well. "Chemistry needs new female role models and a less macho culture to appeal more to the next generation of young women." Do you think scientific culture is too "macho"?

See:

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v476/n7360/full/476273a.html

3. How to Help More Women Succeed in Physics/Astronomy
From: Douglas Duncan [dduncan_at_colorado.edu]

[Here is a response to last week's item "How to Encourage More Girls to Enter Science? -- eds.]

Elaine Seymour and Nancy Hewitt conducted over 600 hours of in-depth interviews with students who "switched" out of science majors and others who stayed. The results are published in the book, "Talking About Leaving." They discovered and discussed many factors, but two of the most important are mentoring and "climate." A majority of students have moments of doubt ("Am I good enough to do this?") Mentoring makes a big difference at that point. Climate refers to how you feel about yourself. If the Department climate is "We're tough; we always flunk out one third." that is very different from "Our goal is for everyone to succeed in physics." We now know that people learn in a variety of ways, and the person who can answer fastest in class is not always the one who understands the most physics. Sheila Tobias ("They're not dumb, They're Different") argues that we eject too many students from our discipline.

One of the most persistent misconceptions Seymour and Hewett demolish is the idea that, "the best students succeed and the others get washed out." False. The students switching typically had good SATs and GPAs. What was less was their satisfaction. So what was found to affect satisfaction? - Poor teaching. - Chance to work on something interesting. - Being able to see that there career would be "worthwhile." - Mentoring, or lack thereof.

Ed Bertschinger's suggestion to value outreach is useful, because students who do outreach usually end up feeling more worthwhile about the science they are studying.

4. Why are there so Few Female Engineers?
From: Meg Urry [meg.urry_at_yale.edu]

My daughter (the future engineer) sent me this [great cartoon]:

http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=1883#comic.

AASWOMEN readers will enjoy it!

5. 4th Essential Cosmology for the Next Generation
From: Eric Linder [evlinder_at_lbl.gov]

Berkeley Center for Cosmological Physics and the Instituto Avanzado de Cosmologia are organizing their 4th annual Essential Cosmology for the Next Generation (aka Cosmology on the Beach) winter school / research conference on January 16-20, 2012 in Cancun, Mexico.

The conference website is

http://bccp.lbl.gov/beach_program/index2012.html

and the application deadline is October 15.

We strongly encourage a diverse group of advanced graduate students and postdocs to participate. Established researchers enthusiastic about interacting are also welcome. Please let other interested people know about this meeting, although attendance is limited.

6. Job Opportunities

a. NRAO has various Job Opportunities such as postdoctoral fellows to work with North American ALMA Science Center and the 2012 Jansky Fellowship Program Please see:

https://careers.nrao.edu

b. Astronomy Lecturer and Outreach Director, University of Oregon

http://physics.uoregon.edu/openings/Astronomy_lecturer.pdf

c. Tenure Track, Harvey Mudd College

http://www.physics.hmc.edu/search

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

2. How to Encourage More Girls to Enter Science?

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

The Genesis of CSWA

2011-08-25T16:27:00.001-04:00

The Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy (CSWA) was created in June 1979 by the AAS council. The events that led to its formation are described in detail in an article by former CSWA chair, Sue Simkin, in "The American Astronomical Society's First Century" (Simkin 1999). According to Simkin, the status quo was challenged in 1971 when Margaret Burbidge refused to accept the Cannon Prize because "the prize, available only to women, was in itself discriminatory." The council's response was to set up a committee, the "Special Committee on the Cannon Prize," which not only dealt with this issue but also recommended that the AAS review the status of women in astronomy.

In May 1972, the council set up the "Working Group on the Status of Women in Astronomy," which consisted of a large number of volunteers. The steering committee included Anne Cowley (Chair), Roberta Humphreys, Beverly Lynds, and Vera Rubin. Their report was presented to the council in Dec 1973 and published in BAAS in 1974 (Cowley et al. 1974). The statistics contained in the report indicated that the percentage of women in the AAS was the lowest that it has been in the history of the Society. In addition, women were underrepresented as AAS officers, committee members, prize recipients, invited speakers, session chairs, and journal editors.

Despite the findings of the 1974 report, the council waited till Jun 1978 to appoint an ad hoc "Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy." This committee included Martha Liller (Chair), Anne Cowley, Paul Hodge, Frank Kerr, and Nancy Morrison. Their update of the 1974 report concluded that "the status of women (in the AAS) has changed very little since 1973" and recommended that "the Council authorize the appointment of a standing Committee on the Status of Women." Their report was published in BAAS in 1980 (Liller et al. 1980).

CSWA was established in June 1979 with Anne Cowley (Chair), Frank Kerr, Martha Liller, Bruce Margon, and Catherine Pilachowski. Their charge, to "Recommend to the Council practical measures that the AAS can take to improve the status of women in astronomy and encourage their entry into this field," was adopted by the council in Jun 1980.

In advance of the unveiling of our new ‘History’ web page, we have compiled what we think is a complete list of CSWA alums:

https://umdrive.memphis.edu/jschmelz/public/CSWA_Alum_List.pdf

Thanks to all the alums for their excellent work in building CSWA into the organization it is today. We do indeed stand on the shoulders of giants!

Cowley, A. et al. 1974, BAAS, 6, 413
Liller, M. et al. 1980, BAAS, 12, 624
Simkin, S. 1999 in "The American Astronomical Society's First Century" (American Institute of Physics/Springer Verlag) - David DeVorkin editor.

From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Census: Women in Astronomy/Science Groups

2011-08-23T12:59:00.014-04:00

This post is the sixth in a series on starting up and supporting a Women in Astronomy/Science group at your university or national lab. Click here, here, and here for previous posts by guest-blogger Meredith Danowski and here for my post on the AAS Spring panel discussion on this topic.

Recently a friend asked for advice on creating a website for the WOWSAP (Women of Wisconsin Strengthening Astronomy and Physics) mentoring and networking group at UW-Madison*. She wondered if there were websites for other Women in Astronomy/Science groups she could model hers on.

In responding to her, I thought I’d send the response out into the ether as well. Seeing the events and types of support these groups provide and the topics of discussion they focus on has given us many an idea for our own endeavors.

With that in mind, if you notice any groups, including those without websites, that I’ve missed (of which there are surely many), PLEASE let me know. The info is very useful to us at the CSWA, and I’ll post the final list at our resources link for all to access.

Women in Astronomy Groups:

UC-Boulder
University of Arizona (website?)
CfA
NASA (Women@NASA is a great site for EPO, but is there an internal group?)

Women in Physics & Astronomy Groups

UW-Madison (website in progress)
University of Minnesota

Women in Physics Groups

(Many universities have Women in Physics/Science groups, but these websites provide more than just name and bylaws).

Women in Science Groups

Working Groups

*A few years ago a group of intrepid, goat-loving grad students founded WOWSAP, basing it on the UofAz group. It’s a pleasure to see that it continues to serve the department today, because of a few energetic and dedicated women grad students.

From: L. Trouille

AASWOMEN for August 19, 2011

2011-08-22T08:14:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of August 19, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

1. New CSWA Member

3. L'Oreal USA Announces Recipients of 2011 for Women in Science Fellowships

4. Resource Guide on Women in Astronomy

5. Advice for Starting a New Postdoc

6. Why the AAS Needs the CSWA

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. New CSWA Member
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

Please join me in welcoming our new CSWA member, Dave Charbonneau (CfA), who will be serving from 2011 to 2014. We would also like to thank our outgoing committee member, George Jacoby (GMTO). His efforts on behalf of CSWA are much appreciated.

Michele Montgomery (Univ. Central Florida) completed her first term and has been reappointed. Additional continuing members are: Joan Schmelz (Chair, Univ. of Memphis), Ed Bertschinger (MIT), Ann Hornschemeier (NASA GSFC), Hannah Jang-Condell (Univ. of Maryland), Don Kniffen (USRA), Nancy Morrison (Univ. of Toledo), Marc Postman (STScI), Caroline Simpson (Florida International Univ.), and Laura Trouille (Northwestern Univ.)

We encourage you to contact any CSWA member if you have comments, questions, and/or suggestions. We also encourage you to check out the CSWA web site at:

http://www.aas.org/~cswa

2. How to Encourage More Girls to Enter Science?
From: Ed Bertschinger_at_women_in_astronomy_blog

Women earn the majority of college degrees in the U.S. and, since 2009, the majority of doctorates. This is not the case in astronomy or physics. Why are we different?

The American Institute of Physics has studied the enrollments of girls and boys in high school physics classes and AP exams in a recent report. Physics is important preparation for STEM degrees. The good news is that the percentage of girls taking high school physics has grown more rapidly than for boys. The bad news is that fewer girls are electing to take AP Physics and even fewer are electing to take the AP exams. As AIP authors Susan White and Casey Langer Tesfaye note, "To examine why, we would need to look at factors which impacted these students before their final years of high school. Did something in the earlier science curriculum discourage girls from more advanced physics? Or was it the general belief, widely embraced in our culture, that girls just don't 'do' hard sciences?"

Although we may not know the answers, I think we know some of the solutions. Girls in middle school -- high school may be too late -- must be shown the value of math and science and encouraged to believe that it offers them exciting career choices. They need to see science as something cool that girls do. They need role models and mentoring. The difficulty is less in identifying solutions than in implementing them.

Here's one more need: universities need to value more the outreach efforts made by some students, postdocs, staff, and faculty to attract more young people to science and engineering. This will require the scientific profession itself to value outreach more highly. Too often it seems to be an add-on to research grants and not valued for its own sake. At my own institution, I'm impressed with the efforts being made by engineers such as the Women's Technology Program in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Physics has almost the same gender balance challenges as computer science, yet I'm puzzled that the field makes less of an effort.

Have you engaged in outreach? Was there a pivotal moment in your own early years that brought you to astronomy? What lessons can you share?

3. L'Oreal USA Announces Recipients of 2011 for Women in Science Fellowships
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

From Marketwire:

L'Oréal USA Fellowships For Women In Science, a national awards program, was created to support the advancement of women in science and to encourage women to continue careers in scientific fields. Since the program's inception in 2003, L'Oréal USA has recognized and awarded research grants to 40 post-doctoral women scientists in the life and physical/material sciences, as well as mathematics, engineering and computer science. The program aims to raise awareness of the contribution of women to the sciences and identify exceptional female researchers in the U.S. to serve as role models for younger generations.

The 2011 Fellows were selected from a competitive pool of candidates by an interdisciplinary review panel and a distinguished jury of nine eminent scientists and engineers. The Fellows were selected based on several criteria, including exceptional academic records and intellectual merit, clearly-articulated research proposals with the potential for scientific advancement and outstanding letters of recommendation from advisers and overall excellence. The peer-review process was managed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

The L'Oreal USA Fellowships For Women In Science Award ceremony will take place in the Kennedy Caucus room in Washington DC on September 15.

4. Resource Guide on Women in Astronomy
From: Andrew Fraknoi [fraknoiandrew_at_fhda.edu]

An expanded resource guide to the role women have played and are playing in the development of astronomy is now available on the web-site of the non-profit Astronomical Society of the Pacific:

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/womenast_bib.html

The guide includes both printed and web-based materials, and has general references on the topic plus specific references to the work and lives of 32 women astronomers of the past and present. All the materials are at the non-technical level and thus appropriate for student papers, curriculum development, or personal enrichment.

The guide makes reference to 178 different web resources, as well as books and articles that are either in print or found in many larger libraries.

This resource guide is part of a series that can be found on the Society's web-site, on such topics as the astronomy of many cultures, debunking astronomical pseudo-science, and resources for astronomy education.

5. Advice for Starting a New Postdoc
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

A few weeks ago, Hannah Jang-Condell, CSWA's blogger-in-chief, posted an item on the Women in Astronomy Blog called Starting Up:

http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2011/07/starting-up.html

Hannah asked what advice readers might have for new postdocs. CSWA has an item on their web site on "Advice for Postdocs Applying for Tenure-Track Positions" but nothing for beginning postdocs. AASWOMEN, would you help us write this up for our advice page? What do you wish you had been told when you started your first postdoc?

Megan posted a reply to Hannah, which should get us started:

-Write papers. Now is the time to show your productivity as an independent researcher.

-Go to the talks. Leave your laptop in your office. Ask questions.

-Meet with your advisor regularly, if you have one. Don't disappear.

-Talk to astronomers other than your advisor. Don't become the person no one knows. Don't be a troll.

-Work with students if you have the opportunity.

-Learn how to give great talks to a wide variety of audiences. Areas of weakness for most postdocs: public lectures and colloquium talks to physics (or physics amp; astronomy) departments. After years of learning to talk to experts (or your PhD committee), it takes some effort to learn how to give a talk to other audiences.

-Your publication record might get you on a faculty short-list, but how you interact with people and your job talk will affect your ranking on that list.

6. Why the AAS Needs the CSWA
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

I've spent some time this summer compiling information on the History of CSWA (more on that in the weeks to come). During this historical journey, I reread some of the old issues of the STATUS magazine and come across an article in the Oct 1987 issue written by then CSWA chair (and current AAS VP) Lee Anne Willson entitled, "Why the AAS Needs the CSWA."

This is a topic that comes up every once in a while, and Lee Anne's thoughtful and articulate summary is well worth reading. She summarizes five points:

-provides increased visibility to the community of women astronomers;

-monitors the AAS policies and publications to prevent bias;

-collects and distributes information on careers in astronomy;

-provides a channel for complaints concerning discriminatory policies or practices; and

-promotes discussion and sharing of ideas concerning the extra complications associated with the combination of an astronomical career with the other obligations.

I was a newly minted PhD when this article came out in 1987, and in some ways, CSWA is still working on the same issues. Should we be discouraged because we have not made more progress? No! I feel that my career in astronomy has now been long enough to have personally witnessed real progress. Although sexual harassment and discrimination still exist, the number of incidents has waned significantly. It is true that this progress has uncovered a new set of problems, e.g., unconscious bias and astronomical bullying, but we are developing methods to deal with these as well. As I happily cram as much science as possible into what is left of the summer, I realize that I am grateful to Lea Anne and all the other CSWA members who went before me and made it possible for me to do the astronomy I love so much. A full list of all those members going back to the founding of CSWA (and before) is coming soon. Stay tuned!

7. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

1. Gender Gap in Lifetime Earning

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Why the AAS Needs the CSWA

2011-08-18T11:47:00.001-04:00

I’ve spent some time this summer compiling information on the History of CSWA (more on that in the weeks to come). During this historical journey, I reread some of the old issues of the STATUS magazine and come across an article in the Oct 1987 issue written by then CSWA chair (and current AAS VP) Lee Anne Willson entitled, “Why the AAS Needs the CSWA.”

This is a topic that comes up every once in a while, and Lee Anne’s thoughtful and articulate summary is well worth reading. She summarizes five points:

- provides increased visibility to the community of women astronomers;
-monitors the AAS policies and publications to prevent bias;
-collects and distributes information on careers in astronomy;
-provides a channel for complaints concerning discriminatory policies or practices; and
-promotes discussion and sharing of ideas concerning the extra complications associated with the combination of an astronomical career with the other obligations.

To read more:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/status/status_oct1987.pdf

I was a newly minted PhD when this article came out in 1987, and in some ways, CSWA is still working on the same issues. Should we be discouraged because we have not made more progress? No! I feel that my career in astronomy has now been long enough to have personally witnessed real progress. Although sexual harassment and discrimination still exist, the number of incidents has waned significantly. It is true that this progress has uncovered a new set of problems, e.g., unconscious bias and astronomical bullying, but we are developing methods to deal with these as well. As I happily cram as much science as possible into what is left of the summer, I realize that I am grateful to Lea Anne and all the other CSWA members who went before me and made it possible for me to do the astronomy I love so much. A full list of all those members going back to the founding of CSWA (and before) is coming soon. Stay tuned!

From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

AASWOMEN for August 12, 2011

2011-08-15T08:32:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of August 12, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Educator workshops for astronomy educators

3. Discover Earth Opportunities for Libraries

4. Webinar on Physics Career Options for Physics Bachelor Degrees

5. Job Opportunities

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues

1. Gender Gap in Lifetime Earning
From: Michele M. Montgomery

An August 5, 2011 press release finds that men and women having more education and higher attainment make more money than people with less education. Degree level matters most. However occupational choice can trump degree level: Men and women with less education can earn more money than those with more education, depending on the occupational choice. The study by Carnevale, Rose, amp; Cheah at The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce also finds that women make less than men at every level of educational attainment (see Figure 4 of the study). Over a lifetime, women with a Ph.D make as much money as men having only a Bachelor's degree. Another interesting find is the money made by men and women over a lifetime by race (Figure 5). To read the press release, the executive summary, and the overall study, please see:

http://cew.georgetown.edu/collegepayoff

2. Educator workshops for astronomy educators
From: Michele M. Montgomery

A press release from the Center for Astronomy Education announces a new series of educator workshops to new and previous participants. Workshops include active engagement and using technology in the classroom. To see the full list, please see:

http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=37963

3. Discover Earth Opportunities for Libraries
From: Michele M. Montgomery

The National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP) has obtained an NSF grant to choose ten public libraries to host an interactive exhibition called Discover Earth: A Century of Change. The libraries are to partner with local NGCP collaboratives to encourage girls to attend the exhibit and associated activities. Discover Earth is part of the STAR Library Education Network and is led by the National Center for Interactive Learning at the Space Science Institute. Partners include the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the American Library Association. NGCP asks you to encourage your local library to apply by September 2, 2011. Please see:

http://www.ala.org/discoverearth ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=vdohsxbab&et=1106639656245&s=14339&e=001Re_3b98MbY1eNwmCubmP6fGvW31x--JGQ_XNc9HOOZUV6UU6peg8dbKnKI50nOmutSE8BoW9dFnloXQ5LJVTGlt8TV29tSMwU7koN0DS0r1iob3n3uhSPRS1jHlF8aM1 ).

4. Webinar on Physics Career Options for Physics Bachelor Degrees
From: WIPHYS, August 10, 2011

Crystal Bailey is the Education and Careers Program Manager at the American Physical Society. Crystal Bailey plans to discuss the many physics career opportunities available to Physics Bachelors. Also to be discussed is as how career options change as one moves from a Bachelors to an Advanced Degree. As space is limited, please reserve or have your students reserve a spot at:

https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/586003190

5. Job Opportunities

A. Various Job Opportunities are currently available at the American Physical Society from BA/BS to Ph.D levels. Please see http://www.aps.org/about/jobs/index.cfm

B. Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Please see

http://academic.csupomona.edu/faculty/position.aspx?p_id=91

C. NRAO has various Job Opportunities for Undergraduate students, BS/MS recipients in Astronomy Education, PostDoctoral Researchers, and Scientists. For example, a Software Engineer II (Scientific Programmer) is needed to research and develop software that will visualize and analyze ALMA data. Please see:

https://careers.nrao.edu

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues

2. How to Solve the 'Women in Science' Gap? Teach Girls to Love Science

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

AASWOMEN for August 5, 2011

2011-08-08T09:15:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of August 5, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

1. CSWA Resources Web Page

3. Female students in high school physics

4. Overcoming the imposter syndrome

5. Women in Science Work for Less Money

6. Call for Nominations: 2012-2015 MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics

7. Call for Nominations - 2012 Alan T. Waterman Award

8. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. CSWA Resources Web Page
From: Nancy Morrison [nancy.morrison_at_utoledo.edu]

In March 2011, a new section on "Resources" was added to the CSWA web site. This section debuted with a page of general resources for women in science as well as separate pages on the two-body problem and work-life balance.

Today, we announce the addition of a new page in the Resources section on sexual harassment:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/harassment

CSWA continues to receive reports of sexual harassment from members of the astronomy community. We hope this new page will assist both victims and their mentors in dealing with this sensitive issue.

Pages on additional topics are planned, including mentoring, unconscious bias, and re-entering the work force after a career break. Readers of the AASWOMEN newsletter are invited to send interesting articles, web pages, and resources on these or any relevant topic to the CSWA webmaster at the address above.

2. How to Solve the 'Women in Science' Gap? Teach Girls to Love Science
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

[For Ed Bertschinger's solution, see his Aug 4, 2011 blog post at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com -- eds.]

By General Electric Company, Friday, July 29, 2011

"Women in sciences -- or the lack thereof -- is a topic that draws constant controversy. No matter what's causing such a low number of women to enter science-related fields, the numbers speak for themselves: women make up 46.5 percent of the U.S. workforce, but hold only 25 percent of math and computer science jobs, and 11 percent of engineering jobs.

One solution for changing this ratio sounds simple, but is often overlooked: Make more of an effort to interest girls in hard sciences from an early age. Which was precisely the goal of the inaugural GE Girls at MIT Summer Education workshop, held this July."

See the entire story at http://www.rdmag.com/News/Feeds/2011/07/manufacturing-how-to-solve-the-women-in-science-gap-teach-gir

3. Female students in high school physics
From: Waves and Packets, Aug. 3, 2001
[http://multibriefs.com/briefs/nsbp/index.php]

Writing on results of a nationwide survey of high school physics teachers, AIP's Susan White and Casey Tesfaye, report that the number of girls taking physics in U.S. high schools increased 161 percent between 1987 and 2009; the number of boys was up 88 percent over this same period. In this report, we examine female students taking high school physics. They also report on the female representation by type of physics course.

The full report is available at http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/hstrends.html

4. Overcoming the imposter syndrome
From: Waves and Packets, Aug. 3, 2001
[http://multibriefs.com/briefs/nsbp/index.php]

At one time or another nearly every graduate student and new faculty member wonders about his or her competence. This is a common fear often referred to as the impostor syndrome. The impostor syndrome runs rampant in academia -- and women are especially prone to it. How do you get over the impostor syndrome? Easier said than done.

More here: http://gradschool.about.com/od/survivinggraduateschool/a/impostor.htm

5. Women in Science Work for Less Money
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

ScienceInsider - breaking news and analysis from the world of science policy Women in Science Work for Less Money by Jeffrey Mervis on 4 August 2011

"Study hard, receive a science or engineering degree, and your reward will be a well-paying job in your chosen field. That's part of the sales pitch for those trying to attract more women into science. But according to a new US government study, the 'reward' includes earning 12% less than your male counterparts.

The 11-page report, 'Women in STEM: A Gender Gap to Innovation,' is the first analysis of women working in technical fields (STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) by the Commerce Department's Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA). The study is based on data from the 2009 American Community Survey, an ongoing questionnaire by the U.S. Census Bureau that supplements the decennial census."

The full story is here:

http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2011/08/women-in-science-work-for-less.html?ref=hp

6. Call for Nominations: 2012-2015 MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics
From: WIPHYS, Aug. 4, 2011

Faculty and senior researchers within the international community of physics, astronomy or related fields are invited to nominate candidates for the 2012-2015 MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics competition. The nomination deadline is Friday, September 9, 2011.

Nominees must be young men or women of exceptional ability who have, or will have received, a doctoral degree in physics, astronomy or related fields by September 1, 2012. Nominations must be submitted using the program's secure, on-line nomination form on the MIT Department of Physics web site: http://web.mit.edu/physics/research/pappalardo/competition.html

7. Call for Nominations - 2012 Alan T. Waterman Award
From: WIPHYS, Aug. 4, 2011

Deadline is October 31, 2011

The Alan T. Waterman Award is the highest honor awarded by the National Science Foundation. Since 1975, when Congress established the award to honor the agency's first director, the annual award has been bestowed upon individuals who have demonstrated exceptional individual achievement in scientific or engineering research of sufficient quality to place them at the forefront of their peers.

The annual award recognizes an outstanding young researcher in any field of science or engineering supported by the National Science Foundation. In addition to a medal, the awardee receives a grant of $500,000 over a three year period for scientific research or advanced study in the mathematical, physical, biological, engineering, social or other sciences at the institution of the recipient's choice.

http://www.nsf.gov/od/waterman/waterman

8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

10. Access to Past Issues

2. Portman's 'Thor' Highlights Women in Astronomy

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

How to encourage more girls to enter science?

2011-08-04T20:33:00.003-04:00

Women earn the majority of college degrees in the U.S. and, since 2009, the majority of doctorates. This is not the case in astronomy or physics. Why are we different?

The American Institute of Physics has studied the enrollments of girls and boys in high school physics classes and AP exams in a recent report. Physics is important preparation for STEM degrees. The good news is that the percentage of girls taking high school physics has grown more rapidly than for boys. The bad news is that fewer girls are electing to take AP Physics and even fewer are electing to take the AP exams. As AIP authors Susan White and Casey Langer Tesfaye note, "To examine why, we would need to look at factors which impacted these students before their final years of high school. Did something in the earlier science curriculum discourage girls from more advanced physics? Or was it the general belief, widely embraced in our culture, that girls just don’t 'do' hard sciences?"

Although we may not know the answers, I think we know some of the solutions. Girls in middle school -- high school may be too late -- must be shown the value of math and science and encouraged to believe that it offers them exciting career choices. They need to see science as something cool that girls do. They need role models and mentoring. The difficulty is less in identifying solutions than in implementing them.

Here's one more need: universities need to value more the outreach efforts made by some students, postdocs, staff, and faculty to attract more young people to science and engineering. This will require the scientific profession itself to value outreach more highly. Too often it seems to be an add-on to research grants and not valued for its own sake. At my own institution, I'm impressed with the efforts being made by engineers such as the Women's Technology Program in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Physics has almost the same gender balance challenges as computer science, yet I'm puzzled that the field makes less of an effort.

Have you engaged in outreach? Was there a pivotal moment in your own early years that brought you to astronomy? What lessons can you share?

AASWOMEN for July 29, 2011

2011-08-01T11:12:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of July 29, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

1. Starting Up

4. NASA Research Opportunities for Educators (NITARP)

5. The Last Word on the Planetary Science Survey

7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. Starting Up
From: Hannah Jang-Condell [womeninastronomy.blogspot.com]

[From the Women in Astronomy Blog at womeninastronomy.blogspot.com; also posted on the CSWA Facebook page, where several resources have been listed in comments. -- eds.]

While I'm at it, what advice would you give to newly minted PhDs becoming brand new postdocs?

My own advice to new postdocs would be to network like mad and build up your professional connections. Doing research and publishing papers should go without saying, but networking is vital for career development. So knock on doors, strike up conversations, go to conferences, and ask questions during talks.

Now it's your turn: what advice would you give new postdocs? faculty members? What do you wish you had been told when you started your new job?

-- by Hannah

2. Portman's 'Thor' Highlights Women in Astronomy
From: Judy Johnson via the CSWA Facebook page

Article by Stephen P. Maran, Inside Science News Service:

"Natalie Portman plays an astrophysicist in the recently released movie 'Thor,' but she is hardly the first Hollywood actress in a leading role as an astronomer.

There were other woman scientist actresses prior to Portman's role in 'Thor.' Comet-observing Darryl Hannah in the film "Roxanne," and alien-searching Jodie Foster in 'Contact,' -- but their star turns as astronomers mirror recent progress in the scientific profession itself. Once, women were scarce in astronomy, and confined to low-status, poorly-compensated positions. But their numbers have grown in recent decades, and they've begun to attain important positions and achieve well-deserved scientific recognition."

See the entire article at http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/05/19/portmans-thor-highlights-women-in-astronomy?PageNr=1&s_cid=rss%3Aportmans-thor-highlights-women-in-astronomy

3. Recommended Article: "A Woman's Place"
From: Heidi Hammel [hbh_at_alum.mit.edu]

I recommend this article (and enjoy the embedded irony): Annals of Communications: A Woman's Place, by Ken Auletta. Can Sheryl Sandberg upend Silicon Valley's male-dominated culture? http://nyr.kr/jt9BrX

4. NASA Research Opportunities for Educators (NITARP)
From: Luisa Rebull [rebull_at_ipac.caltech.edu]

Are you, or do you know of, any educators who might be interested in doing authentic astronomical research with NASA data, and who are willing to take three all-reasonable-expenses-paid trips?

NITARP is now accepting applications for 2012. The application site is ready, and you can upload your application any time before Sep 23!

NITARP, the NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program, gets teachers involved in authentic astronomical research. We partner small groups of educators with a mentor professional astronomer for an *original* research project. The educators incorporate the experience into their classrooms and share their experience with other teachers. The program runs January through January. Applications are available *now* and due on September 23.

This program, to the best of our knowledge, is completely unique in the following two important ways: (1) each team does original research using real astronomical data, not canned labs or reproductions of previously done research; (2) each team writes up the results of their research and presents it at an American Astronomical Society meeting (the AAS is the professional organization for astronomers in the US). Each team also presents the educational results of their experience in the program.

Most, but not all, of our educators are grade 8-13; informal educators have participated as well. The kinds of educators we are looking for are those who already know the basics of astronomy, are interested in learning exactly how astronomy research is conducted, and are willing to share their experiences with colleagues and students in their environment. Three all-reasonable-expenses-paid trips are integral to the program!

More information and the application for NITARP for 2012 is now available here: http://nitarp.ipac.caltech.edu

and our application site is now accepting uploads. Applications are due Sep 23!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at this email or at our central email, nitarp_at_ipac.caltech.edu.

Please pass this along to any educators you feel might be interested.

5. The Last Word on the Planetary Science Survey
From: AASWomen Newsletter Editors

The planetary science survey referred to in the 1 Jul 2011 issue of the Newsletter was mistakenly attributed to AIP. Although AIP did consult during the development of the departmental questionnaire, it was in fact a NASA-sponsored study led by Fran Bagenal from the University of Colorado.

6. Job Opportunities

1. Various Job Opportunities are currently available at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory/National Solar Observatory. See http://www.noao.edu/cas/hr/jobs/jobs_list.html

7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

9. Access to Past Issues

1. Latest Issue of STATUS Now Available

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Starting up

2011-07-25T15:51:00.000-04:00

It's almost the end of July, and summer is slipping by fast. As a new academic year approaches, some of us are looking forward to beginning new jobs. A perennial question around this time of year is, what advice do you have for brand new faculty members? How do you make the transition from postdoc to professor? I pose these questions to readers of this blog with no small amount of self-interest, I must admit.

While I'm at it, what advice would you give to newly minted PhDs becoming brand new postdocs?

My own advice to new postdocs would be to network like mad and build up your professional connections. Doing research and publishing papers should go without saying, but networking is vital for career development. So knock on doors, strike up conversations, go to conferences, and ask questions during talks.

Now it's your turn: what advice would you give new postdocs? faculty members? What do you wish you had been told when you started your new job?

-by Hannah

AASWOMEN Newsletter for July 22, 2011

2011-07-25T15:37:00.002-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of July 22, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson amp; Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Walmart Women

3. Undergraduate Women Engineers: Race Matters

4. Increasing Diversity in Your Department

5. Summer Conferences

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Latest Issue of STATUS Now Available
From: Katy Garmany [Garmany_at_noao.edu]

The June issue of STATUS is now posted on-line at:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/STATUS

Alternately, you can use the AAS Newsletter viewing software here:

http://files.aas.org/Status/2011_Status_I

Articles in the current issue include:

"Building Respect and Inclusion in Astronomy: Strategies for Addressing and Overcoming Harassment," by Sheryl Bruff and Bernice Durand;

"'Women in Science' Groups as Instruments of Change," by Meredith Danowski;

"Leaders in Science and Engineering: The Women of MIT," by Edmund Bertschinger;

"Introduction to Unconscious Bias," by Joan Schmelz and Patricia Knezek; and

"Maria Mitchell and the Sexing of Science: An Astronomer among the American Romantics," a book review by Kate Brutlag Follette.

With this issue, STATUS becomes entirely electronic. We have notified by email all the members who received paper copies in the past. If you would like to be included in this email notification when STATUS is posted, please contact me at the address above.

2. Walmart Women
From: Hannah_at_women_in_astronomy_blog

http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2011/07/walmart-women.html

3. Undergraduate Women Engineers: Race Matters
From: Rick Fienberg [rick.fienberg_at_aas.org]

Hannah Hickey wrote this article for the University of Washington entitled, "Race Matters When Recruiting, Retaining Undergraduate Women Engineers."

Attempts to recruit and retain more women in undergraduate engineering programs often lump all female students into a single group. At best, minority women as a group may receive special attention.

But a new study of female engineering students' perceived challenges finds significant differences between black, Hispanic, Native American, Asian-American and white women. The findings by researchers at University of Washington could help institutions better retain particular underrepresented groups of students.

"What we're finding is these women's experiences are different, which is why grouping all women together doesn't make sense," said co-author Elizabeth Litzler, research director at the UW's Center for Workforce Development. She recently presented the findings in Vancouver, B.C., at the annual meeting of the American Society for Engineering Education.

The study used data collected in 2008 by the Project to Assess Climate in Engineering survey, conducted by UW researchers and funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Investigators distributed questionnaires and interviews to undergraduate engineering students at 21 U.S. colleges and universities that were interested in supporting diversity programs. The study received more than 10,500 responses, with higher than average numbers of women and minority students.

4. Increasing Diversity in Your Department
From: Hannah Jang-Condell [hannah_at_astro.umd.edu]

The Special Session on "Increasing Diversity in Your Department" at the January AAS Meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 9, 2012, 2pm-3:30pm.

Mark your calendars!

Diversity is becoming increasingly important as a component of a successful department. As examples, the rankings of graduate programs by the National Academies highlight diversity as a criterion and diversity is an important component of the broader impact statements required by NSF proposals. This special session, hosted by the Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy, Committee on the Status of Minorities in Astronomy, and the Working Group on LGBT Issues, will present hiring policies and practices that have been proven to be effective in increasing both the diversity and the excellence of science departments around the country. We will recommend steps that departments can take to recruit and retain women, LGBT people, and minorities; discuss what factors contribute to a friendly departmental climate; and demonstrate how to create a diverse department while enhancing academic quality. We invite members of the AAS community to attend this session to both share their own ideas and learn new ones.

Confirmed Speakers: Caroline Simpson (Florida Inter. Univ.), Andrew West (Boston Univ.), Van Dixon (Johns Hopkins Univ.), and Caty Pilachowski (Indiana Univ.).

5. Summer Conferences
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

If you have attended a conference this summer, please help CSWA update its list of % women invited speakers:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/percent.html

6. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues

1. NY Times Article Advises, "Don't Fret. Just Ask for What You Need"

A journey through the Milky Way: sometimes you just wing it

2011-07-19T19:41:00.003-04:00

So, I had a day where managing my work and managing the milk seemed to almost collide. There has been a lot going on, I’ve been concerned about funding my research group (we’re okay right now, but anyone who isn’t at least mildly concerned about funding their research group right now probably has their head in the sand!). It is easy to get distracted and say, forget completely that you are still producing milk for a child!

I started out Monday morning getting dressed and being fortunate enough to have a few more choices of tops thanks to a fun shopping trip with my mother who had been visiting for a week while my daycare was closed. One top in particular was a bit more frilly/girly than I normally wear. I had thought to reserve it for weekends rather than my work at NASA, but at the last moment decided, “what the heck”. I remember having thought that the shirt might also work as one with a built-in nursing cover.

I arrived at daycare that day to nurse Anya and couldn’t find the nursing cover anywhere in the car. That frilly blouse came in handy after all! But, that’s not all I forgot!

I forgot my cooler pack at home. I managed to go beg a bag of ice from the café in my building. I have actually managed to now do this twice this week (its only Tuesday!) and the second time the café had already closed. This time I just slipped the milk into a baggie, and then into my purse, and hoped it would be okay during the 10 minute trip from my office to the daycare (it was fine). I actually have a new bigger purse and found it a bit liberating to not carry around that cooler pack. It was actually nice to walk to the room without the obvious pack (just my purse!). Mental note: in the future when the weather is slightly cooler maybe this can just be the default!

And, when I reached the pumping room I realized I didn’t bring any of my pumping supplies to work. I forgot my pumping supplies (bottles and breast shields). I had back-up supplies and back-up to my back-up (2 sets of shields! Thank goodness!). I’ve made a habit of bringing extras in and it saved me.

It was kinda nice to know that I basically forgot to bring any of the nursing/pumping stuff to work today and I still managed to nurse my daughter today and pump milk.

Sometimes this is chaotic, but it can still work.

AASWomen Newsletter for July 15, 2011

2011-07-19T00:41:00.000-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of July 15, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson amp; Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Call for Nominations: 2012-2015 MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics

3. Three Young Women Crowned Winners of Google Science Fair

4. Inappropriate Article

5. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter

6. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter

7. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

1. NY Times Article Advises, "Don't Fret. Just Ask for What You Need"
From: Gerrit Verschuur [verschuur_at_aol.com]

Sunday's NY Times had a fascinating article entitled "Don't Fret. Just Ask for What You Need" by Peggy Klaus. Written from the perspective of the corporate world, it no doubt has lessons for women in academia as well:

"You can't be afraid to ask," my Uncle Art used to say when recounting tales of his successful 40-odd-year career selling mattresses up and down the Eastern Seaboard.

My uncle was talking about making the sale, but corporate types need to ask for what they need, too. This is especially true for women, who, in spite of an increase in diversity training, mentoring and sponsorship programs, still lag far behind men in reaching senior management and C-suite positions. In fact, in 2010, only 14.4 percent of the executive officer positions at Fortune 500 companies were held by women.

Whether from fear of being perceived as too aggressive or too selfish, women tend not to be comfortable asking for what they want. And when they do ask, it can be in ineffective ways.

2. Call for Nominations: 2012-2015 MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics
From: Carol Breen [breen_at_mit.edu]

Nominees must be young men or women of exceptional ability who have, or will have received, a doctoral degree in physics, astronomy or related fields by September 1, 2012. Nominations must be submitted using the program's secure, on-line nomination form on the MIT Department of Physics web site at http://web.mit.edu/physics/research/pappalardo/competition.html .

The NOMINATION DEADLINE is FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2011.

Three new Fellows will be selected for a three-year appointment each, running from September 1, 2012, through August 31, 2015. Features of the fellowship include:

---independent, unrestricted choice of research direction within the MIT Department of Physics;

---competitive annual stipend of $63,700 for first-year Fellows in the 2012-13 academic year, with an annual cost-of-living increase, plus $5,000 per year in untaxed discretionary research funds;

---MIT Medical Affiliate health insurance coverage for Fellows and their dependents;

---active faculty mentoring provided by weekly luncheons and monthly dinners with Department faculty and distinguished guests.

Important Note: Participation in the annual MIT Pappalardo Fellowships competition is restricted to those candidates who have been nominated by a faculty member or senior researcher from the international community of physics, astronomy or related fields. The fellowships program office cannot accept any materials from applicants without this faculty/senior researcher sponsorship.

3. Three Young Women Crowned Winners of Google Science Fair
From: Joan Schmelz and WIPHYS of July 14, 2011

On July 11, 2011, three women took the top honors at the inaugural Google Science Fair. The judges said the unifying elements of all three young women were their intellectual curiosity, their tenaciousness and their ambition to use science to find solutions to big problems. They examined complex problems and found both simple solutions that can be implemented by the general public, as well as more complex solutions that can be addressed in labs by doctors and researchers. Read more at the Physics Today Blog: http://blogs.physicstoday.org/newspicks/2011/07/three-women-take-top-honors-at.html

and http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/07/13/google-announces-three-young-women-winners-first-science-fair

4. Inappropriate article
From: Anonymous

I believe that the inclusion of this article ( http://journalofcosmology.com/Consciousness164.html ) and its graphics in the "Journal of Cosmology" is not appropriate or relevant to cosmology and is objectionable/insulting to women and to scientists. I have already contacted the journal editors about this and I urge readers who agree with me to do the same.

5. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

6. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

7. Access to Past Issues

1. Women Speaker Numbers at Solar Physics Division Meeting 2011

Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.

Walmart women

2011-07-15T13:51:00.001-04:00

You can interpret the recent Supreme Court ruling on Wal-Mart v. Dukes, where the 5-4 majority denied the right of female workers at Wal-Mart to certify as a class in a class-action law-suit as a pro-business, but I see it rather as an attack on the rights of women workers in general. In the CSWA, we recognize that overt discrimination is not longer where battles are being fought, but rather the pernicious biases of individuals that affect everything from workplace climates to hiring decisions. From the article cited above:

Writing for the court majority, Justice Antonin Scalia said that in order to sue as a single class, the women would have to point to a discriminatory policy that affected all of them, and they could not do that. Indeed, Scalia noted that the company has a specific corporate policy against discrimination.

To which I can only respond that a written policy is useless if it is not implemented.

The case for the Walmart women relied on statistics, such as the fact "that women held two-thirds of the lowest-level hourly jobs at Wal-Mart and only one-third of the management jobs, and that women overall were paid on average $1.16 an hour less than men in the same jobs, although the women had more seniority and higher performance ratings." As a scientists, particularly astronomers, we know that statistics often tell the real story rather than any one object. In the case of discriminatory hiring and promotion cases, it's easy to point to a myriad of reasons why any one particular person was overlooked for a promotion or fired or what have you. It's much harder to fight individual cases, which can in the end be blamed on special circumstatnces, than to make a case for an entire group as a whole.

It's notable that all the female justices dissented with the majority opinion. They, at least recognize that unconscious bias is real:

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed to previous Supreme Court decisions holding that a companywide policy against discrimination can be undermined where, as alleged here, local supervisors have so much discretion that decisions are made without standards, often on the basis of biases unrecognized even by the supervisors themselves, for example, assuming that a female employee with a family would not be willing to relocate for a promotion.

Suffice it to say that I will be avoiding shopping at Walmart from now on.

-by Hannah Jang-Condell

AASWOMEN for July 8, 2011

2011-07-11T08:08:00.001-04:00

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of July 8, 2011
eds. Joan Schmelz, Caroline Simpson, and Michele Montgomery

This week's issues:

2. Improving Faculty Searches

3. Payne-Gaposchkin Medal and Prize

4. Richard Dawkins and Male Privilege

5. Statistics of Women in Planetary Science - a Correction

6. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN Newsletter

8. Access to Past Issues of the AASWOMEN Newsletter

1. Women Speaker Numbers at Solar Physics Division Meeting 2011
From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu]

In the last two issues of the AASWOMEN newsletter, we have had seemingly conflicting reports of gender statistics. As a former SPD committee member and current CSWA chair, I feel a personal responsibility to get this right.

As readers of this newsletter will know, CSWA has begun compiling statistics on % women invited speakers for astronomical meetings. CSWA focuses on this number because it is so important to the careers of all astronomers. We have certain criteria (we count prize lectures; we do not count public lectures; etc.) that apply to all meetings so we can compare across the board. By these standards, the percentage for the 2011 SPD meeting was 16.7%.

I've known the organizers of the 2011 SPD meeting personally for many years. I cannot imagine that any *conscious* gender bias affected the stats of the meeting (see below), but we know that *unconscious* bias affects almost everything we do. See, for example, the plenary talk by Dr. Abby Stewart at the January 2011 AAS meeting in Seattle, WA:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/MEETINGS.html

This unconscious bias by the SOC of any meeting can have the effect of keeping the % of women invited speakers low. It can also result in having the same invited speakers in meeting after meeting. In solar physics, a common opening line by an invited speaker is to apologize to audience members who also attended meeting XXX or YYY, because the talk to follow will be the same. The responsibility of coming up with a diverse set of speakers who are not the same as meeting XXX or YYY rests with the SOC.

At the January 2011 AAS meeting in Seattle, WA, CSWA hosted a Town Hall on, "What Can Men Do to Help Women Succeed in Astronomy?" See:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/Jan11/townhall.html

One important issue is related to SOC membership. Don't leave it to the women (woman?) in the group to bring up the issue of gender diversity or to ensure gender diversity of the invited speakers. Most SOC members want to do the right thing. You can bring up the subject by pointing the SOC members to the table and statistics on % women invited speakers, maintained by CSWA member Nancy Morrison:

http://www.aas.org/cswa/percent.html

Finally, there was a mistake in the numbers provided last week by Rick Fienberg and Craig DeForest. The statistical analysis was based on an early version of the meeting spreadsheet, which indicated *requested* talks/posters. Here is the revised gender breakdown for first authors of contributed presentations:

Total Requested Poster Requested Talk Gave Talk M 229 (74%) 120 (52% of M) 109 (48% of M) 54 (50% of req. M; 24% of all M) F 81 (26%) 48 (59% of F) 33 (41% of F) 16 (48% of req. F; 20% of all F) All 310 (100%) 168 (54% of all) 142 (46% of all) 70 (49% of req.; 23% of all)

The good news is that there appears to be no gender bias, conscious or otherwise, for the 2011 SPD contributed presentations. The numbers reveal a different problem for the SPD, however, one that has been building for several years now: the pressure for contributed talks. I personally have heard a lot of grumbles from SPD members who requested a talk and got a poster. The SPD has resisted moving to a 5-minute talk (like the AAS), to parallel sessions, or to a longer meeting format. The SPD committee may have to face the fact that one or more of these unpopular options may need to be implemented in the near future.

2. Improving Faculty Searches
From: Edmund Bertschinger_at_women_in_astronomy_blog

For several years, search committee chairs have met with an Assistant Dean to review university affirmative action procedures and to be alerted to implicit bias and best practices for faculty recruitment based on the Michigan STRIDE materials. Last year I required all search committee members to attend a similar session which I led. Some faculty bristled but I let them know it was required. I will repeat this for new committee members as I am optimistic about its educational value over the long term.

For several years, I have required search committees to assemble lists of promising women and underrepresented minority postdocs to be invited for visits (which the department pays for), and who should be encouraged to apply to faculty searches. This process has led to some success, although the numbers to date are few. I strongly believe this proactive search process is important to building a strong faculty. In the words of Shirley Malcom of the AAAS, it converts a "sort committee" into a "search committee".

3. Payne-Gaposchkin Medal and Prize
From: John Leibacher [leib_at_email.noao.edu]

Professor Yvonne Elsworth of the University of Birmingham won the 2011 Payne-Gaposchkin Medal and Prize for the development of Helioseismology into a unique quantitative tool probing the deep interior of the Sun, illuminating stellar structure and evolution and the solar neutrino problem.

Yvonne Elsworth created a quantitative spectroscopy to study the deep interior of the Sun from the pioneering work of the 70's and 80's on global solar oscillations. The global autonomous network of observatories she initiated has provided the definitive data on several substantial issues. Initially in the early nineties it revealed that the solar core was consistent with a standard solar model - providing the first indication that in the Solar Neutrino problem solar models were not in error, which led to the deduction of neutrino masses. Secondly her work showed the core of the Sun rotated more slowly than the surface, necessitating a dramatic theoretical re-evaluation and having consequences for the angular momentum evolution of stars.

An enduring theme continuing to the current day is studying the solar cycle in the deep interior and relating this to the magnetic activity on the surface. The network itself is the most successful autonomous such entity and has set the standard for others to emulate.

More recently there have been important developments in Professor Elsworth's work. Firstly, that new solar abundances are inconsistent with the helioseismology data both in the core and convection zone. This remains an important challenge to theory, as abundances underlie all stellar models. The studies of the solar activity cycle have taken on great topical interest as there is evidence that the Sun may be heading for another long-term minimum in activity. Secondly, there has been a major extension of the work into the study of solar-like oscillations on other stars including red giants - the fate of our Sun. See:

http://www.iop.org/about/awards/subject/payne_gaposchkin-/medallists/page_51323.html

4. Richard Dawkins and Male Privilege
From: Geoff Clayton [gclayton_at_fenway.phys.lsu.edu]

Over the weekend, a full-blown scandal erupted in the skeptical movement atheist and skeptical communities* over sexism and attitudes about sexual harassment. It started with a fairly straightforward story about a clueless man putting a woman in an uncomfortable situation. The conversation about it was interesting, to say the least. An important point that came up multiple times is that many men do not truly understand what women go through in such situations.

This point was driven home when Richard Dawkins spoke up about it. Through his own words, he proved quite clearly that a lot of men just don't get it.

Here's what happened, boiled down from a video post Skepchick Rebecca Watson made about this (she tells this story starting at 4m30s into the video at that link). Rebecca was a speaker at a conference recently. After her talk and a late evening of socializing with attendees at the bar, she got on an elevator to go to her room. She found herself alone on the elevator with a man presumably also an attendee. He said he "found her very interesting", and would she like to get some coffee in his hotel room? Rebecca turned him down, and in her video talks about how uncomfortable that made her feel.

If the story ended here there would be obvious things to say about it (obvious to me, at least, but not everyone, as will become quite clear). This man may have had nothing but noble intentions, but that doesn't matter. Being alone in an elevator with a man late at night is uncomfortable for any woman, even if the man is silent. But when he hits on her? There's no way to avoid a predatory vibe here, and that's unacceptable. A situation like this can lead to sexual assault; I just read in the news here in Boulder that a few days ago a relatively innocent situation turned into assault. This isn't some rare event; it happens a lot and most women are all-too painfully aware of it.

5. Statistics of Women in Planetary Science - a Correction
From: Editors of AASWOMEN

The item on "Statistics of Women in Planetary Science" in the June 24 issue was incorrect regarding faculty hiring at the University of Maryland during the 2010-2011 academic year. The Astrophysics Job Rumor Mill indicated that the University had hired a man in planetary science, but this information was not only incomplete but incorrect. As of July 1, 2011, the University of Maryland planetary science tenured/tenure-track faculty includes two men and one woman.

The editors regret this error and wish to announce a new policy: the AASWOMEN newsletter will never again reference the Astrophysics Job Rumor Mill.

6. How to Submit

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to

aaswomen_at_aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

7. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe

To subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter, please fill in the required information at:

http://lists.aas.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaswlist .

If you experience any problems, please email itdept_at_aas.org

8. Access to Past Issues