NSF ADVANCE

Resources related to advocacy for faculty success

Department climate, bias, microagressions, mentoring,  agency/advocacy for faculty success:

Below, we share some resources that may help Chairs/Directors increase gender equity through improved department climate and advocacy for faculty. Please feel free to contact us if you have questions about these resources.

If you find a helpful resource that is not yet included on this list, please let us know.

If you use one of these resources, we would appreciate it if you would let us know about your experience. Was it helpful? How did you adapt it for CSU and for your unit? Would you recommend it for others?

Programs & Policies

  • Creating and Enhancing Mentoring Programs
    • Source: University of Delaware
    • Summary: Although targeted specifically at UD (e.g., UD-specific policies), this website has a lot of information and advice about mentoring faculty, including some STEM-specific guidance
    • Recommended Use: Chairs or other leaders as they create mentoring programs
    • For more information: https://sites.udel.edu/advance/faculty-mentoring/
  • Equity Advocates Program
    • Source: Montana State University
    • Summary: Equity Advocates are trained faculty/staff members who champion diversity issues on campus. Similar to “safe zone” allies in the LGBTQ community, they can provide a sounding board for individuals who need to talk about equity. They may also provide information (e.g., to PRC’s) and may serve on PRC’s and hiring committees
    • Recommended Use: College or University-level program, but Chairs could lead the charge
    • For more information (one possible source; there are others): https://www.montana.edu/nsfadvance/documents/MSU%20Branded%20EA%20Guide%20.pdf
  • Advocates and Allies Program
    • Source: North Dakota State University
    • Summary: Recruits tenured men to function as Advocates, learning about and promoting gender equity. They then train additional Allies to grow the program
    • Recommended Use: College or University-level program, but Chairs could lead the charge
    • For more information (start around p. 158): https://journals.library.brocku.ca/index.php/SSJ/article/view/1613

Activities

  • Gender Bias Calculator
    • Source: Tom Forth
    • Summary: This website uses previous research to identify male and female-associated words in letters of recommendation. Just paste your letter into the box
    • Recommended Use: Chairs can use this when writing letters on behalf of faculty. They can also introduce the idea with their faculty as they write their own letters for themselves (e.g., tenure and promotion materials), colleagues, or students
    • For more information: https://www.tomforth.co.uk/genderbias/
  • Implicit Association Test
    • Source: Project Implicit
    • Summary: Although not without critics, IAT’s are argued to be one way in which individuals can assess some of their implicit biases (e.g., the extent to which they automatically associate particular genders with science vs. liberal arts). The Project Implicit website contains a number of relevant IAT’s
    • Recommended Use: Chairs can use this to explore their own biases. They may also want to use this with their faculty as a developmental opportunity
    • For more information: https://www.projectimplicit.net/
  • “Navigate Your Career” mentoring exercise
    • Source: Georgia Tech
    • Summary: Interactive scenarios in which participants choose which professional activities to engage in, balancing needs such as research, teaching, service, and health. Provides opportunities to discuss potential sources of bias.
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://adept.gatech.edu/activities (choose “Navigate Your Career”)
  • Microaggressions related to recruitment and retention
    • Source: University of Washington
    • Summary: Scenarios that depict a range of microaggressions for discussion. Includes a facilitator’s guide
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity for faculty
    • For more information: https://advance.washington.edu/liy/resource/39
  • PowerPlay
    • Source: University of New Hampshire
    • Summary: Uses interactive theatre with professional actors to illustrate equity issues and stimulate discussion
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could collaborate to host a college or university-wide event
    • For more information: https://www.unh.edu/powerplay/
  • Simulated Tenure and Promotion Committee Meetings
    • Source: Georgia Tech
    • Summary: Interactive scenarios in which the participant is the 4th member of a tenure and promotion committee. The participant’s choices determine how the scenarios unfold. Provides opportunities to discuss potential sources of bias.
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://adept.gatech.edu/activities (choose “The Simulated Meeting”)

Videos

  • Beyond Bias: Fair and Inclusive Hiring
    • Source: Stanford University
    • Summary: Discussion of how implicit and other biases may affect faculty hiring processes and how to minimize them
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlBxyIZrQIQ
  • Managing Unconscious Bias
    • Source: Facebook
    • Summary: This is a series of videos showing a presentation to groups of Facebook employees, but they have general relevance. Video segment titles include Introductions and First Impressions, Stereotypes and Performance Bias, Performance Attribution Bias, Competence/Likability Tradeoff Bias, and Maternal Bias
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://managingbias.fb.com/
  • Modern Discrimination: Subtle but Significant
    • Source: Rice University
    • Summary: Discussion of some of Mikki Hebl’s research on workplace discrimination, including gender discrimination
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkbzQpmNrlk
  • Nominating Individuals for Awards
    • Source: CUNY
    • Summary: Discussion of nominating people for awards, including some best practices
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, hiring committees, or PRC’s.
    • For more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4sXU5ZO40Q
  • Picture a Scientist
    • Summary: Documentary on the challenges experienced by women in STEM
    • Recommended Use: Chairs could use this as part of a developmental opportunity with faculty, or could collaborate to host a college or university-wide event
    • For more information: https://www.pictureascientist.com/

Specific Guidance for Chairs

General Readings

  • Disarming racial microaggressions: microintervention strategies for targets, White allies, and bystanders.
    • Specifically related to race but relevant from intersectional perspective and generalizable to other groups
    • Source: 2019 American Psychologist, 74(1), 128-142
    • For more information: See the CSU Library’s collection
  • The 5 Biases Pushing Women Out of STEM
  • Understanding Unconscious Bias
  • Microaggressions, Everyday Discrimination, Workplace Incivilities, and Other Subtle Slights at Work: A Meta-Synthesis
    • Source: Human Resource Development Review, 21(3), 275-299
    • Summary: Reviewed 338 papers on microaggressions, everyday discrimination, and workplace incivilities. Proposed a framework that involves four dimensions that can be used to classify these slights
    • For more information: See the CSU Library’s collection (as of August 2022, use Sage instead of OhioLink)