During the 2006-2007 academic year, it was my pleasure and honour to serve as president of the University of Alberta Academic Women’s Association (AWA). Established more than 30 years ago, the founding of AWA is recorded on its website
www.ualberta.ca/~awa/index.htm.
How did AWA come to be? The following excerpt is from an October 1975 article in Folio (the University of Alberta newspaper) and provides a brief account of the history of AWA:
“Two years ago a nonassociation began. A handful of female faculty who knew each other but knew few beyond their small circle decided that it was time for women on academic staff at this University to become acquainted. So the first of many regular dinner meetings was organized, with a small program in which specific items of interest to academic women were raised . . .
“The meetings continued, usually one each month, for two years, with no executive, no organization, no fixed plans. The group, fifty to sixty in number, comprised women of all ages, disciplines, and points of view. Although it rejected at its third meeting the idea of a formal name (probably because one or two preposterous acronyms were suggested), the name ‘Academic Women’s Association’ just grew.
“The Institute of Law Research and Reform requested that the ‘association’ make submissions on the questions of matrimonial property and matrimonial support, and submissions were also made on such matters as daycare, all of which was agreed on by a group consensus rather than a formal vote . . .
“But by the time of the conference, ‘The Economics of Sex Roles,’ (spring 1975) the little nonassociation had already decided to formalize itself. Possibly the group had been evolving towards a formal organization, or perhaps it was precipitated by the tabling of the report of the Senate Task Force on the Status of Women ten days previously. On March 31, after the task force report and its recommendations were discussed, the group decided, literally and spontaneously as a group, that it was time to organize, if organization was what was needed to see that the report and its recommendations were not to be conveniently buried in the well-known tangle of campus communities . . . ”
Although it may seem unbelievable that a task force on the status of women that reported in 1975 was struck to explore issues that continue to be urgent today, more than three decades later AWA continues to find a relevant role on campus. AWA focuses on campus advocacy, networking and nurturing, by providing a forum for advocacy to improve the status and conditions for women on campus, and opportunities for networking and nurturing among women from different disciplines and at different levels of their academic careers.
In order to achieve these objectives, AWA seeks:
• to solicit, research, assess and act on issues that relate to academic women;
• to plan and implement educational and policy interventions to address relevant issues;
• to support and mentor undergraduate and graduate female students;
• to provide networking and support opportunities for academic women;
• to celebrate and honour the efforts of women who have created a dynamic and caring scholarly
community;
• to provide student scholarships;
• to support university daycare programs; and
• to organize informative programming activities.
As a naïve young doctoral student, I once held the notion that academia was one of (perhaps the?) only meritocracies left. A decade of experience in academia has disabused me of that idea, but the extent of the challenges remaining is remarkable.
That includes people of colour, people with disabilities, and other marginalized groups. Their struggles continue to be significantly more challenging than the struggle of women in general. Yes, women have come a long way. Women are predominant by number in post-secondary education programs in general and women are an increasing proportion (though still a minority) of the professoriate. Yet female and male academics continue to be paid differentially and men predominate in the upper academic ranks. The most recent Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences Feminist and Equity Audits (www.fedcan.ca/english/issues/ whatsnew) tell us that in Canada in 2003 more women than men earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, but we received only 42 per cent of PhDs overall. Our PhD enrolment also varied by discipline, ranging from a low of 19 per cent in engineering and architecture, to 70 per cent in education. We represent 32 per cent of university teachers in Canada, but 47 per cent of all occupations. Those of us who are also visible minorities constitute only 3 per cent of university teachers, and earn 55 per cent of the average employment income earned by non-visible minority men. The salary gender gap in 2002-2003 for faculty across all subject areas was 13 per cent. In November 2005, women held only 21 per cent of all Canada Research Chairs. And, of course, women continue to be responsible for a greater share of child and elder care and housework.
A number of “explanations” for the current status of women in academia are commonly made. The “pipeline” is one explanation (one we’ve been living with for several decades), as is the “double day” that many women, including academics, continue to work. Academic women demonstrably spend more time than their male colleagues on domestic and child care responsibilities. Market supplements to base academic salaries also tend to be available to male-predominant disciplines. And, because men dominate the upper academic ranks, newly appointed female academics often find it challenging to find senior female mentors or advisors who can help negotiate success in academia. Another factor affecting the wage gap is that the largest proportion of female academics remain outside of the tenure-track stream.
Much of the work that female academics undertake in service to their universities is unrecognized and unrewarded. This work focuses on meeting student needs and revising policy to improve the lives of students and university life in general. The time devoted to this work detracts from the time available to focus on more public aspects of academic work that are recognized and rewarded by promotion and increased remuneration. Every reader will have her own story to tell: stories of those senior academic women who continue to inspire and mentor us (such as the University of Alberta’s first female and current president, Dr. Indira Samarasekera), as well as stories of the myriad ways in which academic life challenges us on so many fronts. A recent workload study at the University of Alberta found:
• Female academics delay or forego child bearing more so than their male peers.
• Male academics are significantly more likely than females to have tenure.
• Males work more hours per week than females, most notably among assistant professors (which
is the group in which women have more dependents than men).
• Females at all ranks spend a larger proportion of their time teaching, and less time on research,
than their male peers.
• Women contribute disproportionately more “unpaid emotional labour” and feel overburdened
with committee work.
• Women report greater stress than do men.
•Overall, work-life balance issues were reported about equally by males and females.
In sum, the report states: “ . . . though gender differences are not quite as strong as we might expect, it is clear that, compared to males, female academics work slightly shorter work weeks but are more likely to find their workloads unmanageable, are more likely to report feeling stress (irrespective of hours) and have lower levels of job satisfaction.” (p. 116) For more details, the full report is available at: www.uofaweb.ualberta. ca/aasua//pdfs/AASUAworkload
ReportJune30.pdf.
It is possible that someday AWA may evolve into an organization existing solely to promote networking among female academics and there will be no need to make special efforts to promote women’s achievements on campus, or to advocate for equitable working conditions for women. Or how about working on a campus where women’s studies is its own faculty and where professors in that faculty receive market supplements to compensate them for their potential earning power outside of academe? I have fewer than 20 years left to be an AWA member — any bets about whether that vision is achieved by then?
Meanwhile, the importance of an association such as AWA cannot be underestimated. Recently I was asked to speak to an undergraduate class about the association as an example of a “community.” Preparing this talk helped me to think deeply about AWA, what it represents, and the role it plays in my own academic and personal life. One fundamental definition of “community” that applies clearly to AWA includes the following characteristics: a sense of common purpose or interests among members, assuming of mutual responsibility, acknowledgement of interconnectedness, mutual respect for individual differences, mutual commitment to the well-being of each other and commitment by members to the integrity and well-being of the group. What a perfect definition of AWA!
In addition, I was able to share with the class the importance of friendships for many women, especially to help us deal with stress. Equally significant are the peer and collegial relationships that are facilitated by AWA. Not only do these types of relationships include the typical benefits of mentoring (how to negotiate organizational politics and culture, for example), but they provide supports such as confirmation, personal feedback and friendship. Because these relationships are facilitated by AWA, it has become my most important campus community. AWA provides professional networking opportunities and a chance to make new friends who are reliable sources of support and advice. AWA also provides a venue to explore issues that continue to be personally and professionally pertinent, such as work/life balance.
For all the reasons explored here, the value of a campus association for academic women remains critical. Whether that association is formal or informal, formed as a caucus of a faculty union or association, or existing independently, the issues we face as a collective will continue to challenge us for the foreseeable future. Let’s make a difference in this workplace for the next generation of young female faculty members!
Heidi Julien is an associate professor in the school of library & information studies at the University of Alberta.
This article first appeared in the spring 2007 newsletter of the Canadian Association for the Prevention of Discrimination and Harassment in Higher Education.
The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily CAUT.
Commentary: CAUT welcomes articles between 800 and 1,500 words on contemporary issues directly related to post-secondary education. Articles should not deal with personal grievance cases nor with purely local issues. They should not be libellous or defamatory, abusive of individuals or groups, and should not make unsubstantiated allegations. They should be objective and on a political rather than a personal subject. A commentary is an opinion and not a “life story.” First person is not normally used. Articles may be in English or French, but will not be translated. Publication is at the sole discretion of CAUT. Commentary authors will be contacted only if their articles are accepted for publication. Commentary submissions should be sent to Liza Duhaime.
Les opinions exprimées sont celles des auteurs et ne reflètent pas nécessairement la position officielle de l’ACPPU.
Commentaires destinés à la rubrique Tribune libre : L’ACPPU invite les lecteurs à soumettre des articles de 800 à 1 500 mots qui portent sur des questions d’actualité liées directement à l’enseignement postsecondaire. Les articles ne doivent traiter ni de dossiers de griefs particuliers ni de questions d’intérêt strictement local. Ils ne doivent pas comporter des allégations non fondées ni des propos diffamants, calomniateurs ou offensants envers des personnes ou des groupes. Les articles doivent être empreints d’une objectivité totale et aborder des sujets de nature politique plutôt que personnelle. Un commentaire est avant tout l’expression d’une opinion et non pas le « récit d’une vie ». Il convient normalement de le formuler à la première personne. Les articles peuvent être soumis en français ou en anglais, mais ils ne seront pas traduits. L'ACPPU se réserve le droit de choisir les articles qui seront publiés. La rédaction ne communiquera avec les auteurs de commentaires que si elle décide de publier leurs articles. Les commentaires doivent être envoyés à Liza Duhaime.