Statement by William R. Brody, President
The Johns Hopkins University ON EQUITY FOR WOMEN FACULTY
APRIL 1, 1999 Dear Colleagues: Many of you have seen accounts of a report issued last week by MIT on inequitable treatment of women faculty there. MIT was, I believe, commendably forthright in acknowledging the inequities it discovered and in committing itself to address them. You may now be wondering what Johns Hopkins has done on this issue. I am pleased to report that, while much remains to be done, we have made significant progress over the past several years. Let me highlight three areas in particular: Salary equity. For a number of years, the schools of Public Health and Medicine have had effective programs for uncovering and correcting sex-based salary inequities on an annual basis. Similar approaches now have been, or are being, instituted in the other academic divisions.
- Recruitment, retention and professional development of women faculty. Last fall, after a year-long study, the Academic Issues Subcommittee of the Provost's Committee on the Status of Women issued a report outlining the university's strengths and weaknesses in these areas, and suggesting priorities for improvement. Provost Steven Knapp and I directed the deans to review the recommendations and, with the aid of faculty working groups, to develop strategies appropriate to each division before the end of this spring. The provost's office, with the support of the divisions, has developed university-wide search guidelines with special emphasis on recruitment and appointment of women.
- Career development. The university's Center for Training and Education, under director Linda Dillon Jones, is now offering a number of opportunities for faculty, both women and men, to enhance their professional skills. The center organizes workshops on effective teaching, use of technology in education, project management, and many other important topics related to professional development.
Despite these improvements, and the progress we have made in recruiting highly capable women to key academic and administrative roles in the university, we still have considerable work to do. We must, for instance, extend throughout the university the lessons learned from successful programs implemented in particular divisions. An especially important point emphasized by MIT was the existence of subtle forms of bias that made it more difficult for women to move up the academic ladder. We need to exercise more diligence and sensitivity, to assure all faculty and staff that opportunities for promotion and leadership roles are provided equally to all. A important factor leading the president of MIT to conclude that there were inequities was the development of comprehensive data on the recruitment and promotion of women faculty members. Some of our departments and divisions have gathered similar information and used it as an instrument for positive change. I have asked the Provost's Committee on the Status of Women and the university's Diversity Leadership Council to develop standards for data collection across all the divisions of Johns Hopkins so that we may be able to effect change similarly. We must work to eliminate any inequities we discover and address their root causes. We must strive to provide a supportive environment for all members of the faculty. I thank the members of the Provost's Committee on the Status of Women and the Diversity Leadership Council for taking the lead in this effort. But these issues are a challenge for all of us. I urge faculty, department chairs and leaders at all levels of the university to join us in renewing our institutional commitment to equal opportunity. If you have any comments or questions, please contact Provost Steven Knapp [ steven.knapp@jhu.edu] or Vice Provost Paula Burger [ppburger@jhu.edu]. Thank you for all your contributions to the work of this university, and best regards. Sincerely,
Bill Brody |
