UNL accommodating for women in a once male-dominated world

A woman in the workplace no longer translates to a long day in the house filled with cooking, cleaning and children.

In fact, women faculty and staff at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln hold positions in every college on campus. While UNL has made strides to improve the status of women, women faculty and staff sometimes struggle to find a balance and fit into a workplace once dominated by males.

One group, the Chancellor's Commission on the Status of Women (CCSW), works to enhance the educational and work environment for female students, faculty and staff.

One issue the commission has addressed is the balancing act performed by women on campus. The commission spearheaded the Work-Life Integration brochure, which is put together by UNL's Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.

The brochure, posted online at unl.edu, includes maternity, family leave and harassment policies for faculty and staff – policies that advocates are constantly improving.

THE HEADCOUNT

The number of women working at the university has grown recently. However, according to UNL's Institutional and Research Planning's data index, men still outnumber women, two to one. In 2008, UNL had 1,000 male faculty members and 517 female faculty members.

In higher ranked positions, such as professor and associate professor, men also dominate. For example, 444 men are professors, while only 103 women hold the title.

On the flip side, men lag in staff positions. In 2008, UNL employed 116 females in positions such as office, kitchen and housing staff, while only 40 men held staff positions, according to IRP.

When looking at specific colleges, most have a balance of men and women. However, 2008 IRP data displays noticeable differences in the College of Engineering and the College of Agriculture. The College of Engineering had 129 male teachers and 19 females. The agriculture college had 214 men and 39 women.

For groups like CCSW, these imbalances are worrisome because without women in faculty positions, female students are without role models.

"The only way the imbalances will really change is if female students see female faculty members teaching those things you might normally stereotype – there are few women in engineering or the world of agriculture," said Karen Becker, associate professor in the School of Music and chair of CCSW. "That's how it changes over the years. When those students decide that they want to teach or do research they know they can, because they've had a female role model."

WORKING FOR EQUALITY

The goal is clear: improve equality at UNL. However, many tasks must be tackled to achieve the goal.

In CCSW, male and female faculty, staff and students discuss women's issues and serve as an advisory board for Chancellor Harvey Perlman.

The commission is responsible for the idea of building the new childcare center at 22nd and Vine streets. The group also works for equity in pay, clear leave policies and flexible tenure clocks.

Several of the group's projects benefit men as well as women, and staff as well as faculty.

"The Chancellor's Commission on the Status of Women is interested in having more presentation and info about professional development opportunities for office service people as well as managerial and professional. What does staff development look like? We don't necessarily get to go about to conferences. There should be other things that can be offered to help people continue to grow," said Jan Deeds, director of the UNL Women's Center and member of the Council of Staff for CCSW.