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Causes for Concern
- No effort to develop a sense of community or to improve the climate in a department for all faculty and students. Denial that such issues do matter to people.
- A sub-critical mass of female faculty postdocs and students in a department. Ideally, there would be a good representation of women in all areas.
- No visible leadership roles for female faculty in the department (e.g. female faculty rotating into positions such as Associate Chairs, Chairs of search committees, Department Chair, etc.)
- Premature departure of female students, postdocs or faculty.
- Lack of interest on the part of excellent female graduate students and postdocs to pursue academic positions elsewhere.
- Lack of interest on the part of excellent female undergraduate students to pursue graduate school.
- Lack of promotion of female faculty at all levels.
- Isolation or marginalization of female faculty.
- Derogatory comments about female faculty to reduce their ability to bring about change. Branding faculty as “difficult” or “troublemaker”.
- A highly politicized climate where decision-making processes are not transparent. Female faculty and indeed all faculty do better in departments that are well run and where faculty “buy-in” to the continued success of the department.
- Inability on the part of senior female faculty to get sufficient laboratory space, research funding, or other resources needed for them to become leaders in their fields.
- Strong support for junior faculty who are not in a position to drive change, but weak support for senior female faculty who attempt to change the climate. Problems do not end when female faculty are tenured - for example, the 1999 MIT Report documented increased difficulties for female faculty as they became more senior in terms of their ability to get lab space and equal pay.
