Conference Session

Climate Issues for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yong Zeng, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign; John R. Duncan, Clemson University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

interviews and focus group similar to the proposed project. Page 12.1614.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Women: Support Factors and Persistence in EngineeringAbstractLimited information is available regarding the factors that promote persistence by women inengineering programs. Stated simply, the problem is that the number of women engineerscontinues to fall short in comparison to the gender ratio of women to men in the population in theU.S.1 and worldwide2. More women engineers are needed in general and in proportion to maleengineers. This study addressed two questions. (1) What are the factors that support women

Conference Session

An International Perspective

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Anderson-Rowland, Arizona State University; Bianca Bernstein, Arizona State University; Nancy Felipe Russo, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

slow. In spite ofmany efforts to increase the numbers and percentages of women in engineering, not muchis happening. Some would argue that the reason that engineering enrollment for bothwomen and men has not kept up with the increased numbers of students choosing to goon to college, is that engineering now has more attractive competitors such as medicineand law for talented young women to choose.1 Engineering has not done a good job ofmarketing itself as creative, interesting, and exciting. The lower division engineeringcurriculum is composed mostly of mathematics, chemistry, physics, and now biology,without connecting the dots and helping the young engineering student to understand whyshe needs to study these topics to achieve her goals

Conference Session

Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Cottrell, University of North Carolina-Charlotte

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

imminentshortage of scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians; further, female high-schoolstudents show little interest in pursuing careers related to engineering.1 This lack of interest maybe a significant factor in understanding the “Extraordinary Woman Engineers Project” whichreported that currently fewer than 10% of the nation's engineers are women in spite of the factthat girls do not lag behind boys in grades or test scores in either math or science.2 The program presented by this paper represents perhaps part of the solution to thisparadox by investing in the female youth of today through proven hands-on learning techniques.3This paper reports on a local initiative by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to investin

Conference Session

Potpourri Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jessica Buck, Jackson State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

increasing their representation in the non-traditional fieldsof study and are becoming more knowledgeable of technology’s multi-facet components,there still remains significant under-representation of females in areas such as IndustrialTechnology. Nelson (2004) 33 indicated that lack of female representation in technologymay be due to a threefold purpose: “(1) women of the world lack knowledge oftechnology, (2) technology alienates and often exploits women, and (3) decisions abouttechnology are made without women’s voices” (p.2). This is reflected from Mayer’s(1995)27assertion that females comprise only 30 percent of the industrial workforce. Thisglobally illustrates moderate but consistent initiatives. The U. S. Department of Labor(2003)38 reported

Conference Session

Recruitment and Retention Topics

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yolanda George, AAAS; Patricia Campbell; Tom R. Kibler, Campbell-Kibler Associates, Inc; Rosa Carson, Campbell-Kibler Associates, Inc.; Shirley M. Malcom, AAAS

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

. Page 12.352.2© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Changes in PhDs Awarded and in New Enrollees in STEM Graduate Programs by Gender and Race/EthnicityOne of the goals of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Alliances for Graduate Educationand the Professoriate (AGEP) Program, which began in 1998, is to increase the number ofunderrepresented minorities (URM) receiving PhD degrees in Science, Technology, Engineeringand Mathematics (STEM) (See program description at bottom of page)1. As part of this effort,participating institutions submitted data on their students, including PhD recipients and newenrollees in graduate programs, by gender and by race/ethnicity2. The following is an overviewof the results

Conference Session

Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lari Garrison, University of Washington; Reed Stevens, University of Washington; Portia Sabin, University of Washington; Andrew Jocuns, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

admissions process, because the college was seeking tobecome “more diverse”. What is significant about this is that UWest is located in a state that, bya voter-passed state initiative, does not allow admission to be based on gender. This paper seeksto answer the question, what do students believe about the admission process at UWest and howdo these beliefs impact the navigational practices and identity formation of women who areengineering and pre-engineering students? Additionally, what cultural models are brought tobear on the students’ attempts to navigate applying to the college of engineering?1. Theoretical framing1.1 Research on gender and STEM fieldsIn this section we begin by looking at the body of literature that exists about gender and

Conference Session

Potpourri Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Danny Bee, University of Wisconsin-Stout; Brenda Puck, University of Wisconsin, Stout; Peter Heimdahl, University of Wisconsin-Stout

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

the spring of2005, a survey was conducted of alumni of the STEPS classes of 1997, 1998, and 1999. Thesurvey was focused on determining their college program of study and sought to determine the Page 12.1384.3influence STEPS had in their program of study. Additionally, optional written comments weresolicited, and these comments can be seen in Appendix 1. Table 1 below summarizes theprograms of study from the three graduate groups. The table results also indicate the influencerank the graduates assigned indicating the influence they felt STEPS had on their career choice.A 0 indicates STEPS had no influence on choice and a 5 indicates STEPS had

Conference Session

Climate Issues for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sheryl Duggins, Southern Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

. Page 12.1228.2Any paper addressing the shortage of women in the computing sciences must begin with anexamination of the underlying issues surrounding the recruitment and retention of women incomputing related fields. To understand the depth of the problem, one need only examine thedata. Whereas the number of women in the sciences has increased over the last two decades,especially in medicine and biological sciences, the number of women in computer science (CS)has dramatically decreased over the last two decades.1 Women in biological and agriculturalsciences currently earn half the Bachelor’s degrees, while the number of women graduating withBachelor’s degrees in computer science from United States Universities reached the highestpoint of 37.1

Conference Session

Issues of Diversity

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Moshe Hartman, Retired; Harriet Hartman, Rowan University; Jennifer Kadlowec, Rowan University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

, electrical, electrical/computer, and mechanical engineering. Female students range from 11 to 17 percent representation in these fields. These six disciplines make up 63 percent of all [engineering] bachelor’s degrees. The solution to attracting more women to engineering will certainly require a review of this equation. (Gibbons4:1)The growth of computer engineering, in which men received over 87% of the bachelor’s degreesawarded in 2005, is a major contributing factor to the decline in women’s overall representationin engineering degrees, even though their absolute numbers in engineering are growing2.Students’ choice of majors has been linked to

Conference Session

Recruitment and Retention Topics

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Godfrey, University of Auckland

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

influenced by the nature and content of a discipline andhow it was practised in the “real world”, as well as influenced and reinforced by how staffand students played their role.Recent participation data for the US in 2004, provided in Table 1, demonstrate thatElectrical and Mechanical Engineering – which together account for approximately one-halfof all degrees awarded in Engineering – have a collective percentage of female degree -earners of just 14%, while all remaining Engineering disciplines – account for the remaininghalf of degrees issued in Engineering – having double that percentage at 28%.Table 1: Earned Bachelors Degree by Gender 2004 12 Academic Discipline/Field Both Genders Female % Female Male % MaleAll Academic

Conference Session

Retention Programs for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kieran Sullivan, Santa Clara University; Ruth Davis, Santa Clara University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

success for women engineering students at Santa Clara University. We examinedpsychosocial factors, such as commitment to engineering and confidence in engineering abilities,as well as the effect of a specific intervention on the retention rate of young women engineeringstudents.Studies have shown that among students with adequate aptitude for STEM (Science,Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), girls drop out more often than boys. Severalprograms have been developed to encourage girls to persevere in their interests in STEM fields.In the summer of 1999, SCU hosted a National Science Foundation workshop[1] gatheringdirectors of such programs to share their experience and insights. Forty-four people representingover 30 STEM programs for girls

Conference Session

Issues of Diversity

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carol Burger, Virginia Tech; Soyoung Lee, Virginia Tech; Anne Laughlin, Virginia Tech; Peggy Meszaros; Elizabeth Creamer, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

2004-05 (College 1, n=80) and female ITmajors in 2005-06 (College 2, n=22) were surveyed for a retrospective view about how theycame to their decision about their college major.Our quantitative data analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA with the Welch’s methodto determine differences in variables between three groups: high school females, college studentsin non-IT related majors, and college students currently in an IT-related major. The keyvariables tested were: parental support for careers, decision orientation, attitudes toward ITworkers, computer use, and IT career interest and choice.In order to fully understand the scope of the factors that influenced their attitudes and actionswith regard to computers and computer-based study and

Conference Session

Retention Programs for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Helene Finger, California Polytechnic State University; Tracy Van Houten, University of Southern California; Barbara Curry, California Polytechnic State University; Jennifer Harris, United Parcel Service; Malia Francisco, United Parcel Service; Betsy Sale, United Parcel Service

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

technology that we have to wake up to.” The crisis that she isreferring to is our nation’s shrinking pool of scientists and engineers.1 One of the four mainrecommendations cited in the report to congress dealing with this issue, Rising Above theGathering Storm, Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future,2 involvesa call to “develop, recruit, and retain the best and brightest students, scientists, and engineers”.Unfortunately, one half of the best and brightest of our population are scarcely contributing toour engineering ranks, and their percentages of participation are declining. Page 12.186.2Female engineering students

Conference Session

An International Perspective

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hasmik Gharibyan, California Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

student surveys were carried out at Yerevan State University (YSU), the oldestuniversity in the country (founded in 1919). The choice of YSU as the site of research was basedon the following facts:1. YSU is one of the two largest universities in the country by the number of students (the other one is the State Engineering University of Armenia).2. YSU is by far the most “versatile” university in Armenia with the largest number and variety of fields that students can major in; it has 18 departments covering fields from Math and Sciences to History and Business, each of which has several programs (called “chairs”). Page 12.778.33. The CS

Conference Session

Issues of Diversity

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Julie Mariga, Purdue University; Alka Harriger, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

areasthreatens the economic strength, national security, and well-being of Americans.1 The near-termimpact in the IT arena is a serious shortage of IT expertise. This pervasive problem requires amulti-pronged solution to yield a positive, long-term result.Faculty in the Computer and Information Technology (CIT) Department at Purdue University areemploying a number of initiatives across all levels of the university to address this problem.Within the department, two female faculty are leading two separate, but complimentaryinitiatives. One faculty member is attending national meetings and conferences to gather ideas tobring back to Computer and Information Technology and network with other diversity leaders toensure that Computer and Information

Conference Session

Perspectives for Women Faculty

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Sheridan, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Eve Fine, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Jessica Winchell, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Christine Pribbenow, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Molly Carnes, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Jo Handelsman, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Conference Session

Perspectives for Women Faculty

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nicole Hawkes, WiSE / University of Southern California; Jean Morrison, University of Southern California; Cauligi Raghavendra, University of Southern California

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Viterbi School in thatperiod are distributed rather evenly over 6 departments: 3 in Computer Science, 2 in Industrialand Systems Engineering, and 1 each in Electrical, Biomedical, Civil and Environmental, andAerospace and Mechanical Engineering. Women faculty now represent 7% of the 170 T/TTengineering faculty, which is just below the national average of ~10%.2The Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Physics & Astronomy,Mathematics and Kinesiology comprise the WiSE-eligible areas of the USC College of Letters,Arts and Sciences. In 2000, there were 12 women T/TT faculty members in these departments.Since the inception of WiSE, 13 new faculty were hired in College, 10 of which joined thedepartment of Biological

Conference Session

Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

C. Diane Matt, WEPAN

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

first 12 years are measurable as there are now more than 85 Womenin Engineering Programs in colleges and universities in the United States working to increase therepresentation of women of all ethnicities in engineering. Through the extended WEPANnetwork of mentoring and training activities, institutional change has taken place with thousandsof women students benefiting. Page 12.1604.2 1 of 8WEPAN’s accomplishments from 1990-2002 were concentrated in four areas of focus andimpact: 1) Providing education, training and mentoring for Women in Engineering/Science Program Directors from engineering

Conference Session

Perceptions of Women's Success in STEM

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Litzler, University of Washington; Catherine Claiborne, University of Washington; Suzanne G. Brainard, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

weresubsequently assigned a code to make the responses more secure and confidential.Each question that was asked was related to one or more of the main factors in the literatureregarding institutionalization. The main interview questions asked included: Page 12.751.6QUESTION 1. What successful or top three programs, processes, and/or policies developed byADVANCE have been adopted by your university or college? (value, diffusion)QUESTION 2. How are these ADVANCE initiatives being funded? (value, leadership, stability)QUESTION 3. Were there any ADVANCE programs, processes, and/or policies that you wouldhave liked to see adopted but were not? (value

Conference Session

The Impact of Curriculum on the Retention of Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Keathly, University of North Texas; Robert Akl, University of North Texas; Ryan Garlick, University of North Texas

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

reviews? • What impact did the camp activities have on the performance of the participants as they return to their secondary school, form both the student and parent perspectives? • What impact did the camp activities have on the higher education and career plans of the participants? • What were the demographic characteristics of students enrolled in each type of activity and how do they compare with demographic characteristics of students in the department as a whole?Specific Evaluation ResultsGeneral TrendsOverall these programs coincided with a rise in our new student and continuing studentpopulations as compared from Fall 2004 thru Fall 2006, as indicated in Table 1, as well as aconcurrent rise in the

Conference Session

Climate Issues for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Xiang-Yun Du, Aalborg University; Anette Kolmos, Aalborg University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

around the world. Previous studies have identified various historical reasonsleading to this phenomenon. The mostly agreed factors in the history of different western countriesinclude: 1) women’s inappropriate gender role, which keeps the ideology of femininity distant fromtechnology and engineering [2, 6, 8, 18, 19, 22], 2) Gender stereotypes in labor division, which definesengineering as a male oriented profession [1, 3, 7, 11, 18], and 3) the traditional lecturer-based learningenvironment at engineering programs overweighs sophisticated natural science knowledge and hard coretechnological skills, which mainly favors male interest and expectations and ignore women’sexperiences and concerns [4, 9, 24, 26, 29].To different extents, these

Conference Session

Retention Programs for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gretchen Hein, Michigan Technological University; Amy Monte, Michigan Technological University; Kerri Sleeman, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

advisors.GUIDE meetings, seminars and requirementsAs part of the GUIDE program, all scholars attend Engineering Seminars (see Table 1) duringthe Fall Semester. Each year, the seminars have varied depending on the requests and needs ofthe students. Faculty from each engineering department and representatives from the communityand campus have talked with the students. Due to student requests, there are 2-3 seminars eachsemester where scholars become better acquainted with the other GUIDE teams. These haveranged from carving pumpkins to a personal scavenger hunt (e.g.: students find out who hasvisited all 50 states, or who has the most pets at home). Many of the seminars have evolved intopanel discussions with students and/or faculty. One of the most

Conference Session

K-12 Programs (Co-sponsored by K-12 Division)

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeanne Hubelbank, WPI Evaluation Consulting; Chrysanthe Demetry, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Shelley Errington Nicholson, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Stephanie Blaisdell, Independent Consultant; Paula Quinn, Independent Consultant; Elissa Rosenthal, Marketing Research Consultant; Suzanne Sontgerath, Independent Consultant

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

control group of girls with similar pre-existing interest and self-selection attributes as the CampReach group of girls.We started with a potential study group of 178 girls; 111 (62.4%) who attended Camp Reach and67 (37.6%) who applied, but did not attend. Successful contact was made with 129 youngwomen; 88 (68.2%) who attended Camp Reach and 41 (31.8%) who did not. Thus, the overallresponse rate was 72.5%. (See Appendix Table A-1 for a breakdown by year.) The primaryreason for lack of contact was outdated telephone numbers. Only three girls declined toparticipate, two from the 2004 interview group and one from the 2006 interview group.Data CollectionData for the study came from telephone interviews conducted by an assessment specialist in2004

Conference Session

MentorNet

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Jo Wellenstein, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Sandra Courter, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Susannah Sandrin, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh; Karen Showers, Wisconsin Technical College System; Leslie Wilkins, Maui Economic Development Board; Jennifer Chou-Green, MentorNet; Carol Muller, MentorNet; Laurie Mayberry, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Ann Bloor, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Isla Yap, Maui Economic Development Board

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

strategies for otherstates to consider.ProblemGender equity is a key strategy for maintaining our Nation’s preeminent status in science andtechnical innovation. The last 30 years have seen women make great strides in education andemployment.1 Women now receive more than 50 percent of the bachelors degrees conferred andare close to reaching parity in the once male-dominated fields, such as law and medicine.Unfortunately, these gains have not been uniform in all fields. Women continue to bepersistently underrepresented in high-demand, high-wage employment fields of science,technology, engineering and math. While women make up nearly half of the American laborforces in 2003-2004 (Bureau of Labor and Statistics), they are less than 30 percent of the

Conference Session

Issues of Diversity

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Fonda Swimmer, Northern Arizona University; Karen Jarratt-Ziemski, Ft. Lewis College

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

programs by women steadily increased from 18.1percent in 1994 to 19.2 percent in 2002, while minority (Black, Hispanic Native American) haveexperienced more ups and downs throughout the same time frame and much lower percentagesranging from 0.6-8.0 percent.1 Since 1995, the proportion of women and minority freshmen inengineering have been declining while men and non-minority freshmen have been increasing at asignificantly faster pace. These declines could constitute declines in the proportion of degreesearned by women and underrepresented minorities in the coming years.2 Historically, about one-third of all bachelor’s degrees are awarded in science and engineering. Since 1970, the number of bachelor’s degrees in science and

Conference Session

K-12 Programs (Co-sponsored by K-12 Division)

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Virnoche, Humboldt State University; Elizabeth Eschenbach, Humboldt State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Engineering. She completed a postdoc at the Center for Advanced Decision Support in Water and Environmental Systems (CADSWES) at UC Boulder. Beth’s career goals include increasing the diversity of engineering students and improving education for all engineering students. Three of Beth’s current projects are: 1) an NSF planning project for the Collaborative Large-scale Engineering Analysis Network for Environmental Research, 2) an NSF Scientific Leadership Scholars project providing 4-year scholarships to 30 students in computer science, environmental recourses engineering and mathematics and 3) a water resources curriculum project using CADSWES software

Conference Session

An International Perspective

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carmen Maldonado, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Tatiana Ramirez, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Idalis Vazques, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Alexandra Medina-Borja, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

enrollees. PurdueUniversity ranked number 1 with 6,049 students3. UPRM ranks number one in the degreesgranted to Hispanics. The second place in number of degrees granted to Hispanics was given tothe Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico (a private institution) and the third place belonged toFlorida International University with 136 bachelor’s degrees awarded4.In 2006 nearly 39% of the BS degrees in engineering at the UPRM were granted to women. Thishigh percentage varies a lot across engineering disciplines at the UPRM. Chemical Engineeringis the area of engineering specialization that granted most degrees to women (nearly 65% ofthem) and mechanical engineering the area with fewer (approximately 18% of their graduateswere female). The Industrial

Conference Session

Perceptions of Women's Success in STEM

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maria Brunette, University of Massachusetts-Lowell; paula rayman, University of Massachusetts-Lowell; meg bond, University of Massachusetts-Lowell; Lu Yuan, University of Massachusetts-Lowell

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

iterations.Selecting the Panel of ExpertsCriteria for being selected as a member of the Delphi Panel of Experts included: tobelong to one of the two generations of scholars working in the Women in STEM field;to have participated in related research initiatives as principal investigator, co-investigator, or senior personnel; to have published in major related journals; and tobelong to diverse racial/ethnic groups.Our outreach efforts provided a total of 12 experts that agreed to participate in the study.It should be noted that the majority of Delphi studies have used between 15 and 20respondents6. The gender distribution of the panel was 1 male and 11 female. Half theparticipants belonged to the first and the other half to the second generation. With

Conference Session

Perspectives for Women Faculty

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stacy Birmingham, Grove City College

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Conference Session

Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amy Bentow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers; Richard Blais, Project Lead the Way; Laura Bottomley, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; Catherine Didion, National Academy of Engineering; Norman Fortenberry, National Academy of Engineering; Christina Vogt, National Academy of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

contribute to teacher learning, changes in classroom practice, and changes instudent learning in comparison to face-to-face professional development. As such, some future researchquestions might arise from the later stages of this project:(1) What is the value of an online professional development experience in comparison to a classroom-based professional development experience?(2) What is the value of online professional development experience which is organized as a non-facilitated online professional development experience?(3) What are the benefits (improved teacher learning, classroom enactment, and student learning) as afunction of the relative cost of different professional development conditions?(4) What are the lessons learned in developing