Sam Feldstein
In the Poole College of Management, sophomores Connor Bullard (majoring in business administration) and Phoebe Campbell (majoring in biology and minoring in business) hang out at lunch in the cafe at Nelson Hall.
Nearly 30 years ago, a recently graduated woman sat in a chair opposite a much older man. He asked about her credentials, her degree and her experience.
“Oh,” he said, “Such a cute young woman like you, you’re just going to get pregnant, and you would be no good to me.”
The woman’s jaw dropped—her father was a high-up businessman at a company, and she knew such a comment was unacceptable in the business world. She left the interview knowing she wouldn’t take the job even if the company offered.
That woman was Erin Dixon, the director of undergraduate programs for the Poole College of Management, which has a faculty comprised of 25 percent women.
This sort of discrimination is not uncommon in the workplace and encountering it is a matter of when rather than if, according to Shannon Davis, an associate dean for undergraduate programs for the Poole College of Management.
“But we do not see differences in male–female performances favoring males in college or academia,” Davis said. “If there’s any trend, it’s the opposite.”
Davis said women tend to take an academic lead for any number of unknown reasons. It’s only once they graduate that the system seems to favor men.
Preliminary numbers show women occupy about 41 percent of student seats in the Poole College of Management. On the other hand, women lead only 4.2 percent of all Fortune 500 companies.
Disparities such as this arise as people enter graduate programs and are not significantly present in undergraduate programs, according to Davis.
Dixon said the University typically measures success through numeric means, as in grades and graduation rates. Neither Dixon nor Davis sees gender bias happening within the college.
But what might cause these post-graduation disparities? Much of it is caused, , by societal demands on women that are not typically forced onto men, according to Dixon and Davis
“There will be women who have had to take time out for family reasons that men don’t necessarily have to do,” Dixon said.
Davis said women having to carry a family load might be why such a small percentage of women lead Fortune 500 companies.
Davis, too, said she experienced gender-based discrimination while in graduate school. She became pregnant and requested a semester’s leave of absence, but the head of her department would not allow it. Davis’ boss told her she was a waste of his resources and might as well leave, according to Davis.
“I looked at him and said, ‘I’ll let you know this is my second daughter,’” Davis said. “‘I never told you about my first.’”
Davis said she intentionally didn’t let anyone know she was a mother because she knew it could lead to discrimination. She said she saw this experience as evidence for her beliefs.
“Societal demands on women are still heavier than they are on men, but that’s not going to impact our undergraduate program,” Davis said.
Davis said the program stresses a bottom line foundation of academic success. This success is measured numerically through the University. Grades, graduation and job acquisition rates are the most important in measuring success, according to Dixon.
Students must learn leadership and communication skills to be successful within the college. The program, according to Davis and Dixon, works toward having students work with others of different backgrounds.
For this reason, the college instituted an introductory course, M100, “Professionalism, Diversity, and Academic Success and Management.”
All students enrolled with the College of Management must take the course, which help them learn about and work with issues related to diversity—gender included. In the course, students actively discuss topics such as religion, race, sexuality, gender and so on.
With the class, the College of Management has also introduced Student Network Groups, which they model after corporate affinity groups.
“Corporations have recognized the need for their employees to be able to work together successfully across lines of diversity,” Davis said. “They implemented—before schools did—[affinity groups] to improve … identity and pride within one’s group.”
The network groups are meant to help students make connections, mentors and role models within the business world. Students identify as male, female, Hispanic, GLBT, military, out-of-state or with another type of group and work with professional and student mentors.
“It’s not just women, but students of color and transgendered students are going to be minorities [in the business world],” Davis said. “They’re going to be learning skills to help them identify role models to help affiliate with someone who can support their success”
These programs are not meant to solve any perceived problems, but to foster skills that prepare students for a somewhat biased workplace, according to Davis.
“We’re defining intra-groups as well as encouraging students to work across those groups with those who are different from themselves,” Davis said.
The college helps students learn about real world disparities through coursework and through experience. Davis said she wants to help make women aware of companies that are receptive to gender differences.
“As they’re looking for new job opportunities, they may want to be looking for places that are more sensitive to the needs of family and that sort of thing,” Davis said. “Maybe you choose the job offer from the company that has a history or a record of advancing women.”
Davis said there are few companies who blatantly discriminate by the grounds of one’s gender or sex, but it is likely that they do consider and make decisions because of prejudices. This is not beneficial for companies, according to Davis.
“Business may be ahead of some other areas in recognizing that if they don’t capitalize on the skills that are available in all of the workforce, then they’re gonna be less competitive,” Davis said.
Businesses and social clubs that close their doors to women become less competitive and only lose in the end, Davis said.
“There are close-minded people out there who place barriers in our way because we are women, and part of what my commitment is, is to empower the women I work with to deal with it,” Davis said. “I can’t end discrimination and bias and bigotry, but I can help people prepare to deal with it.”