Creating Pathways for Success and Engagement for Women in Engineering

Abstract According to current research in engineering education, studies show how narrow conceptualizations of the engineering "pipeline" overgeneralize the experiences of women into a single shared experience, ignoring the intersectionality of today's female students (Metcalf, 2010). Once in college, women are faced with lack of mentoring and social support, leading to attrition (Rodrigues and Clancy, 2019). We have found these problems also at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), which has led to restructuring our initiatives to prioritize the pathway of women undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty in engineering. This presentation will focus on the efforts of Tickle College of Engineering (TCE) administration. faculty, staff, and students to increase support for women in engineering by fulfilling our land grant mission of ensuring accessible engineering education integrated with research for student success. We will share how we use existing best practices to create and sustain innovative retention programs for undergraduate women, assist our graduate students in becoming well-rounded engineers through networking programs, and support our women faculty through continued professional development. This process engages university constituents as well as K-12 administrators, teachers, counselors and students, TCE alumni and Board of Advisors (BoA) by utilizing tools, resources, and best practices for student success. For undergraduate students, TCE provides critical networking and professional development opportunities to female engineering students through two periodic events. The inaugural WomEngineers Leadership Council (WLC), composed of students, faculty, alumni, and TCE BoA members, began with WomEngineers Day, a biennial conference held during spring semester. The conference focuses on skills for the long-term success of female students such as workplace leadership, career opportunities, work-life balance, and negotiation techniques. The WLC also hosts an annual welcome dinner for first-year women in engineering in the fall. The dinner is designed to facilitate interactions between first-year students and current upper-level students and student organizations, faculty from all engineering departments, administrators, and TCE BoA. Both the inaugural welcome dinner and conference events were initiated by undergraduate female students who identified the need to provide ongoing support for women throughout their time at UT. Our student leaders are at the forefront of TCE's outreach, recruitment, and retention efforts. Annually, our SWE chapter and one of our departmental groups, SYSTERS: Women in EECS at UTK, hosts daylong outreach programs that spark K-12 girls' interest in STEM. In addition, Alpha Omega Epsilon (A. O. E. ) STEM Sorority, Women in Industrial " organizing the film screenings, e. g. , "Picture a Scientist, " followed by panel discussions; discussing scholarly articles related to Women in STEM; and hosting administrators to open more direct channels of communications between the administration and women faculty. Other synergetic activities are pursued to facilitate change of the institutional culture at UTK. This includes various activities as part of the National Science Foundation (NSF) -funded ADVANCE award. The "Adaptions for a Sustainable Climate of Excellence and Diversity (ASCEND) " project aims to transform the institutional campus climate at UTK and reduce disparities in the recruitment, hiring, retention, and advancement of female STEM faculty. Funded in the fall of 2018, the program has launched activities that target three specific institutional problems identified by female STEM faculty: (1) a culture of implicit bias, (2) experience of social and professional isolation, and (3) lack of support for work-life integration. A survey administered by the ASCEND evaluation team shows that faculty report numerous benefits from participating in ASCEND activities, such as being more reflective and intentional in how they spend their time, higher productivity, and greater organizational skills. Attracting, retaining, and engaging more women in the field of engineering is exciting but can only happen if we address their barriers to entry, including lack of support, mentorship, and professional development. TCE is providing multiple pathways for inclusivity through both existing and new women-centric initiatives. Works Cited Metcalf, H. (2010) Stuck in the pipeline: A critical review of stem workforce literature. interActions, 6 (2), 1-21. Rodrigues, M. A. , and Clancy, K. B. H. A comparative examination of research on why women are more underrepresented in some STEMM disciplines compared to others, with a particular focus on computer science engineering, physics, mathematics, medicine, chemistry, and biology. Retrieved from https: //www. nap. edu/resource/25585/CommissionedPaperRodrigues. pdf