Archive for 2014
Three Women Named to Endowed Chairs at the Yale School of Nursing
The three women appointed to endowed chairs at the Yale School of Nursing in New Haven, Connecticut, are Majorie Funk, Nancy S. Redeker, and Nancy R. Reynolds.
University of Pennsylvania Student From Zimbabwe Wins Rhodes Scholarship
Rutendo Chigora, a senior at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in international relations and political science, has been selected as one of the two Rhodes Scholars from the African nation of Zimbabwe.
Susan Hankinson to Lead Working Group of the American Association for Cancer Research
Susan E. Hankinson, professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, was named chair-elect of the Molecular Epidemiology Working Group of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Scripps College Anthropologist Shares the British-Kuwait Friendship Society Book Prize in Middle Eastern Studies
Lara Deeb is a professor of anthropology at Scripps College in Claremont, California. Dr. Deeb will share the award with her co-author Mona Harb, a professor at the American University of Beirut.
University of Florida Adds Three Women to Its Senior Faculty Ranks
Jane V. Aldrich was appointed professor of medicinal chemistry. Morgan Ernest was named an associate professor of wildlife ecology and conservation and Karen Garrett was appointed professor of plant pathology.
Deborah Levenson Wins Best Book Prize in Latin American Studies
Professor Levenson is a professor of history at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. She was honored by the New England Council of Latin American Studies for her book Adios Nino: The Gangs of Guatemala City and the Politics of Death.
Cynthia Teniente-Matson Appointed President of Texas A&M University-San Antonio
Dr. Teniente-Matson will serve as interim president until the board of regents can finalize her appointment in February. She has been serving as vice president for administration and chief financial officer at California State University, Fresno.
New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for Nine Women
The nine women with new administrative positions are Susan Gibbons, Mary E. Coleman, Courtney M. Marshall, Yvonne Moore Coston, Lindsay Allen, Sandra Jowers, Martha Sutter, Ruth Cain, and Tricia Penniecook.
The New Leader of the University of Maine at Machias
Joyce B. Hedlund will serve as interim president until a permanent president is selected. Dr. Hedlund has served as president of Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor and Washington County Community College in Calais, Maine.
In Memoriam: Adele Edling Shank, 1940-2014
She was a respected playwright and long-time member of the faculty and chair of what is now the department of theatre and dance at the University of California, San Diego.
Academic Disciplines With Huge Gender Gaps in Doctoral Degree Awards
In 2013, women earned 46.2 percent of all doctorates awarded by American universities. But there are many specific academic disciplines in which the gender gap in doctoral degrees is substantial.
The Sexual Assault Crisis Extends to All Young Women, Not Just College Students
The issue of sexual assault on college campuses has received a great deal of public attention in recent months. But a new report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics finds that the problem is even more widespread among women of college age who are not enrolled in higher education.
Bettie A. Truitt Appointed President of Black Hawk College in Moline, Illinois
Dr. Truitt joined the faculty at the college in 1989 as an instructor of mathematics. Over her long career there, she has served as dean of instruction and academic support, vice president of instruction, executive vice president, and interim president.
University of California Davis Study Examines the Gender Gap in the Executive Suite
Of California’s 400 largest public companies, only two had equal numbers of men and women in top-level posts. Only 14 of the 400 firms had a woman serving as CEO. More than one quarter of the firms had no women executives and no women on their board of directors.
Spelman College “Suspends” the Cosby Endowed Professorship
On the heels of accusations of rape by nearly 20 women against Bill Cosby, Spelman College, a highly rated liberal arts educational institution for African American women in Atlanta, has removed the Cosby name from an endowed professorship.
Eleven Women Named Rhodes Scholars
Women were first included in Rhodes Scholarships in 1976. This year there are 11 women and 21 men. There have been only four times, the last being in 2011, when women outnumbered men among the American Rhodes Scholars.
Online Articles That May Be of Interest to WIAReport Readers
From time to time, Women in Academia Report will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
Recent Books That May Be of Interest to Women Scholars
Still need some suggestions for your holiday shopping list? Some of these new books might fit the bill.
University of Nebraska Scholar Finds What She Believes Is an Undiscovered Poem by Walt Whitman
The poem, found in an 1842 newspaper, was signed simply “W.W.” But Dr. Katz believes the poem was written by Walt Whitman. She recently published an article that explains her theory that the poem was written by Whitman.
City College of New York Is Establishing an Incubator for Women Entrepreneurs
The City College of New York has partnered with Standard Chartered Bank to establish a program to support women entrepreneurs. The bank is funding the two-year, $575,000 program that will be called the Standard Chartered Technology Incubator for Women Entrepreneurs.
Two Women Among the Finalists for Dean of the Business School at Old Dominion University
Kathleen A. Getz is dean of the Michael R. Quinlan School of Business at Loyola University of Chicago and Kay M. Palan is professor of marketing and dean of the Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University.
In Memoriam: Claudia Emerson, 1957-2014
Claudia Emerson was a professor of creative writing at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. Professor Emerson won the Pultizer Prize in 2006 for her poetry collection Late Wife.
Three Women Academics Announce Their Retirements
Joan Hinde Stewart, president of Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, Linda Koch Lorimer, vice president for global and strategic initiatives at Yale, and Judith Picard Cronk, professor of theatre at Oklahoma State University, have announced their retirements.
Mississippi University for Women to Offer New Graduate Program in Creative Writing
The new master of fine arts degree in creative writing is classified as a “low-residency” program. Students will attend a two-week on-campus program in late May or early June. Also students will be required to be on campus for short one-week residency programs held at different times of the year.
Artist Uses Her Head to Win Top Prize in Art Competition
Sonya Clark, chair of the department of craft and material studies at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, enlisted 12 hairstylists to craft her head into a work of art for the judges’ consideration.
Donna Nelson to Lead the American Chemical Society
Donna Nelson is a professor of organic chemistry at the University of Oklahoma. In addition to teaching, Dr. Nelson was science adviser for the television series Breaking Bad. She has also done extensive research on faculty diversity in STEM fields.
Professor Diane Disney Honored by the National Academy of Public Administration
Dr. Disney is a professor emerita at the Brandywine campus of Pennsylvania State University. She has been a NAPA fellow since 1997 and served for seven years as a deputy assistant secretary of defense in the Clinton Administration.
Five Women in New Faculty Roles at U.S. Universities
The five women in new faculty roles are Denise W. Streeter at Penn State, Eunice Santos at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Tsveti Markova at Wayne State University in Detroit, Anna Taylor at North Dakota State, and Beth Merryman at Towson University in Maryland.
Four Women Honored With Awards From National Organizations
The four women honored with awards are Karen Yehle of Purdue University, Stacey Fisher of the University of Rochester, Arlene Schmid of Colorado State University, and Patricia J. Vittum of the University of Massachusetts.
New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for Nine Women
The women taking on new administrative roles are Elizabeth D. Liddy, Sherrill Berry Scott, Sally E. McRorie, Cinda Scott, Tracee de Hahn, Meredith Gurley Johnson, Deborah M. Wiltrout, Jona Burton, and Nanci Tessier.
Study Finds a Hidden Bias by Students Against Women Faculty Members
The lead author of the study reports that the instructor of the online course whom students thought was male received higher ratings on all 12 measures of competency, regardless of whether the instructor was actually male or female.
The New President of the College of Idaho
When she takes office in July 2015, Charlotte Borst will be the first woman to serve as president in the 124-year history of the College of Idaho. Currently, she is vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at Whittier College in California.
Why Do Women Avoid Engineering Degree Programs?
Although women may be academically well-prepared for an engineering curriculum various factors may contribute to the feeling of “not fitting in” or a “lack of belonging” in academic engineering programs. A new study seeks to identify factors that produce such concerns and to recommend ways to eliminate them.
Carol Moore to Lead Burlington College in Vermont
From 1998 to 2011, Carol Moore served as president of Lyndon State College in Lyndonville, Vermont. Earlier, she was provost and vice president of academic affairs at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, New York.
In Memoriam: Charlotte Edwards Maguire, 1918-2014
Charlotte Maguire was a pioneering pediatrician who was a major force in the establishment of the medical school at Florida State University. She was the only woman in her class at the University of Arkansas College of Medicine.
