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Update on Women Faculty in the
School of Architecture and Planning
Terry Knight
In 2001, the Committee on Women Faculty in the School of Architecture and Planning completed its report on the status of women faculty. That same year, the provost issued new, rigorous standards for faculty searches. Since that time, the numbers and proportions of women faculty in the School have increased significantly. In 2001, there were 14 tenure-track/tenured women comprising 19% of the total faculty. Now, in 2004, there are 24 tenure-track/tenured women comprising 30% of the total faculty. In one department - the Department of Urban Studies and Planning - the percentage of women faculty has almost doubled from 20% to close to 40%.
This upswing is due in large part to the commitment and intensive efforts of department/program heads and faculty to find and recruit outstanding women applicants in faculty searches. Additionally, a school-wide Diversity Committee was established in 2002 to oversee faculty searches and to help with women and minority recruitment. The committee interacts with every faculty search committee throughout the search process. It meets with each search committee at the beginning of a search to review affirmative action policies and to help develop a search plan. It reviews the short-list of candidates and outreach efforts before candidates are invited for interviews. It reviews and approves the final search report. The committee keeps a database of advertising venues that target women and minorities, and it evaluates and updates this list when searches are concluded. However, it appears that the most effective recruitment tool is word-of-mouth and personal contacts.
Some next steps: Mentoring and guiding our new junior hires through the promotion process. Continuing attention to minority faculty and student recruitment.
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