Men rule the school.
University of Nebraska President J.B. Milliken is a man. An all-male board of regents governs the university. At the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Chancellor Harvey Perlman leads the way with a team of vice chancellors dominated by males.
Of the five vice chancellors, two are female. One of them, Barbara Couture, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs, recently landed the presidency at New Mexico State University and will be leaving UNL in January.
Her departure will create a vacancy in the administrative office that could be filled by a male, increasing the imbalance of UNL women leaders.
However, Perlman’s only candidate for Couture’s position is a woman. Susan Poser, associate to the chancellor and candidate for the senior vice chancellor position, works in the administrative office as part of the chancellor’s staff. Women hold five of the seven administrative staff positions.
Another vice chancellor position will open next year when John Owens, vice chancellor of the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, leaves.
The lack of female leadership on campus raises concerns with women’s advocates across campus.
“There’s been talk, since we do only have a couple of upper-administration people who are women, about what would happen if they were to leave,” said Karen Becker, an associate professor at the School of Music and chair of the Chancellor’s Commission on the Status of Women. “We’d hope they could be replaced by a woman, who’s of course qualified, because there’s definitely an imbalance.”
ALL ABOARD
One area where men drastically outnumber women is on the NU Board of Regents. The board governs the university’s four campuses and includes eight voting members elected by their respective districts.
Every board member is a man.
“I don’t mean to sound sarcastic, but to get elected, you have to run,” said Regent Kent Schroeder, chairman of the board. “That’s the number one problem.
“I think there are actually a number of women who have contemplated running but are scared away at the thought of potential voters. Just looking at the last couple of regent elections, the funds needed to get elected might have scared them away, too. That might have scared 99 percent of the populace.”
Over the years, only a handful of women have served as regents. In the past 10 years, only two female regents have sat on the board. Nancy O’Brien and Rosemary Skrupa were both defeated by current regents when running for re-election. In 2002, O’Brien was unseated by Regent Howard Hawks, and in 2000, Regent Randy Ferlic defeated Skrupa.
The absence of women on the board doesn’t go unnoticed, said Regent Chuck Hassebrook.
“Having (board members) who are too much alike tends to not be quite as strong,” Hassebrook said. “That’s not saying that now everyone on the board is the same, because we have strong differences of opinion on the board. In general, I think the board would be strengthened by having women on the board and other minorities as well.”
Hassebrook has been a regent since 1994. In his years on the board, he’s heard fewer concerns from women at UNL.
“One of the biggest concerns I had in regards to the status of women when I joined the board was that we heard from a number departments,” he said. “I heard from women in some departments that they felt like the climate wasn’t really friendly toward women. I’m not hearing that much now. I can’t say it’s all improved, but it has been some time since I’ve heard those concerns.”
To balance the number of men and women on the board, women must step up and run for office – something both Hassebrook and Schroeder encourage women to do.
“I think that’s going to be up to (students’) end of the population,” Shroeder said. “Women should be encouraged.”
ROLE MODELS
Women leading the way breaks down stereotypes about what women can and cannot do, Becker said.
“There are definite advantages to having women in administrative roles,” she said. “Plus, they can serve as role models for other female faculty or staff or students, who can say, ‘Oh wow, maybe I could do that.’ Imagine them being at a university with a female chancellor, which is very rare.”
While the numbers display an apparent imbalance of men and women administrators, Poser, whose position was previously held by a man, said the attitude in the administration office fosters diversity.
“I actually think that our administration is incredibly diverse and isn’t and doesn’t appear to be holding back women,” Poser said. “I just don’t think it’s true.”
However, Poser did acknowledge the benefits to adding female perspectives.
“I don’t want to generalize, but I think if you looked broadly that family-friendly issues tend to be issues women think about more often,” Poser said. “A lot of men are very involved, and it means a lot to them, and they want to raise their kids, but having women in these positions might elevate those issues a bit.”
The Chancellor’s Commission on the Status of Women has made efforts to bring leadership to training to campus where women can learn the skills needed to climb their career ladders.
“There are a lot of women at mid-level positions within faculty and staff,” said Jan Deeds, director of the Women’s Center and member of CCSW. “More men are in the leadership roles. We have some progress to make there.”
KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON
During the past century, women have plowed over mountains to level the playing field, leaving just a few lumps and bumps.
At UNL, the balance of male and female students sits at 53 percent to 47 percent. However, the disparity between male faculty and women faculty and the male domination of administration still needs work, advocates say.
“I think we just have to keep working on what we’re working on,” Poser said. “I think we have to understand these issues not just as women’s issues but as issues that make the university a better place to work; that have to do with our success in hire and retaining faculty, staff and bringing students here so that they’re comfortable.
“It raises the whole boat. Women’s issues are not just helping women anymore. They’re critical to the success of the university and its academic mission.”
courtneypitts@dailynebraskan.com
2 comments