Breaking down bias on International Women’s Day

2022年3月8日

国际妇女节快乐! For over 100 years, March 8 has been marked around the world as a day of solidarity among women. 集会, protests 和 conferences have been held to celebrate progress while also highlighting remaining inequality 和 injustice facing women around the world. Although the status of women has improved measurably over the past century, many barriers 和 inequities remain today – 和 in some cases have been exacerbated by the global p和emic. Higher education has played a key role in improving the lives of women 和 will continue to be essential as we confront the post-p和emic world.

的 第一所男女同校的学院于1835年开办 in the United States, largely driven by the need to educate teachers. 到19世纪末, nearly one-third of college students were women, seeding a movement challenging gender roles in the early 20th century. 的 pioneering female students on our college campuses broadened possibilities for young women 和 helped set a new course for our country.

今天, women are more likely to enroll in 和 complete college than men. 在美国，大约60%的大学生都是大学生.S. 女性——超过1100万的学生. At Metropolitan State University of 丹佛, we educate 56% female undergraduates 和 78% female graduate students. Women are also well-represented in leadership on the Auraria Campus, which is home to two universities including 密歇根州立大学丹佛, a community college 和 a shared operational unit: 这四家实体都由女性高管领导.

不幸的是, the boom of women going to college has not transformed the American workforce to the same extent. 性别收入差距依然很大, which is doubly problematic considering that women hold the majority of student loan debt in the U.S. Men with bachelor’s degrees make $26,000 more annually 而女同事 women owe an estimated two-thirds of student loan debt.

Part of the problem is that women are underrepresented in high-paying C-suites 和 in “未来的工作” such as cloud computing, engineering or artificial intelligence – fields powered by STEM education. Research shows the lack of female representation in emerging jobs is not necessarily a supply problem but a symptom of 更广泛的偏见迫使女性退出STEM工作.

Higher education isn’t immune to the wage gap, either. 在美国.S., 43%的终身教职员工是女性, compared to 54% female professors on the less lucrative non-tenure track.

在这些长期存在的问题之上, the recession caused by Covid-19 – often dubbed the ”she-cession” – has disproportionately displaced women, 是谁 3-4 times more likely than men to reduce their work hours or leave the workforce altogether.

Derailing the careers of women who already earn less 和 have more student debt will have far-reaching consequences, not just for women but for the American economy 和 society. 值得庆幸的是, there are women charting a course to improve conditions for women in the workforce, 和 not just a return to pre-p和emic conditions.

A report authored by two women at 密歇根州立大学丹佛 earlier this year – 人类服务 安妮·巴特勒博士.D., 和 graduate student Cate Hill – outlines many of these challenges facing working women in 2022, as well as suggestions for employers to support, 吸引和培训女工. “大重置,” commissioned by the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce 和 TARRA, 涵盖认证徽章等主题, 故意借贷行为, 公平的工资和福利, 照顾孩子的注意事项, 卫生保健, 招聘实践, 指导/网络等等.

密歇根州立大学丹佛 is also looking for ways that we can deliver flexible education options to get women back in the game, including scholarships 和 career coaching through our 流离失所工人补助金 和 完成你的开始 initiatives for those with some college credit but no degree who want to complete their credentials.

女性在高等教育中找到了自己的位置, but there is still a lot of work to do beyond that, including representation at higher levels of corporations, legislative bodies 和 particularly in key STEM fields. 的 social experience of a STEM education 和 the gendered signals, 有意识或无意识, that may accompany that go a long way toward shaping our future.

Women in the workforce will be key to America’s short-term recovery 和 long-term economic growth. History shows us not only how important access to higher education is in driving individual social mobility, but also in driving innovation 和 broadening societal perspectives 和 therefore possibilities. 妇女历史月 is a great time to honor those who have broken barriers 和 made our world a better place, 和 it’s also a critical time to confront the barriers facing the women who are building our tomorrow.

On this International Women’s Day, please join me in helping # Break的Bias by learning more about how to identify 和 combat bias against women.

真诚地,

珍妮·戴维森博士.D.
丹佛州立大学校长