2019 Annual Conference

Women’s Issues, Status, and Education

Concurrent Session (45 minutes)

To address the issue of problems in the academic pipeline, this research investigated what it means to work in an “ideal” work environment according to mothers in academia-- motherscholars--across nine different countries. Using grounded theory, an analysis revealed two major themes and a mid-level theory of Academic Workplace Empowerment (AWE).

The ideal audience would include a range of faculty, leaders, and administrative staff who are interested in issues of equity and inclusion in higher education. In particular, audiences with the ability to affect policy changes and workplace culture will

First, broadly, as a result of this session, audience members will have the chance to learn about how to create a culture empowering faculty within the academic environment. Second, more specifically, learners will be able to describe the steps involved to develop such an environment and lastly, to apply the theoretical concepts to their workplace.

Women are consistently not moving throughout the academic pipeline from junior to senior positions. This issue of retention has been examined from many perspectives, with a continued need to locate solutions to address issues of equity and inclusivity in higher education. This research addresses an important aspect in the literature in the academic pipeline and the place of a vulnerable population, mothers in academia. This session will describe an innovative study investigating the “ideal” workplace for motherscholars as self-described by participants living and working in nine different countries. Using grounded theory analysis of text, video, and face-to-face interviews with 18 motherscholars, analysis revealed two major themes regarding working in an ideal environment as a mother in academia: (1) Accessible organizational structures: Standard policies, procedures, and resources and (2) Consistent communication across the organization: What, how, and with whom. The combination of these themes led to a resultant mid-level theory of Academic Workplace Empowerment (AWE). This work provides insight into how academic systems can take actionable steps to acknowledge and value faculty in academia.

The session will be organized in an interactive manner to create a space for discussion, feedback, and practice in applying the theoretical concepts of developing an ideal workplace that empowers women in academia, to the participants’ own workplace.