Women in academia discuss experiences

Approximately 20 students and faculty met to talk about women Thursday night -- but instead of focusing on students, they talked about those who work in academia. The panel, entitled "Women in Academia: Challenging and Redefining Boundaries" and held at the Writers House, concluded Penn's Women's Day. English Professor Nina Auerbach said she has witnessed significant changes in the English Department since she first came to the University in 1972. She cited affirmative action policies as part of the reason behind those improvements. "There's a horrible right wing myth that everybody [before affirmative action] was very brilliant and that all these stupid women and minorities started taking jobs away from very brilliant caucasian people," Auerbach said. "But it wasn't like that. To succeed in the Penn English Department, you really had to be as mediocre as the people who were choosing you." She noted that affirmative action forced the department to be held accountable for their tenure and hiring practices. "When people talk about the days when there were standards, I was there," she said. "It isn't true. There were not standards. They were largely people who were trying to make each other look good." Anthropology graduate student Julia Paley explained that women can bridge the gap between those within the universities and those outside of academia. Paley said the proof of that point came when she presented research she had done on an unrelated subject to women outside of academic circles in Chile. "I had to engage as a peer intellectually with these women and work with them on their projects as they worked with me on mine," she said. "So, they wouldn't be objects of study, but rather, we would collaborate together in analyzing social processes in Chile." Paley discussed how power structures within the research process could be modified to include more non-academic women in intellectual spheres. During the discussion, Classical Studies Professor Jacqui Sadashige debated whether she had "sold herself out" or "worked herself in" to the so-called Old Boys Network. Sadashige also considered the role of Women's Studies departments within universities. English Professor Katie Conrad talked about the differences between boundaries and borders in education using her area of interest -- gender and nationalism in Ireland. Music and Anthropology Professor Marina Roseman discussed the role of women in academia and the different approaches women utilize in studying a particular field. And English Professor Ines Salazar discussed her philosophy of teaching, expressing her dismay at the discrepancy between tenured female professors -- who make up 13% of the faculty -- and tenured male professors -- who account for 81% of tenured faculty. College sophomore Melissa Goldstein, who helped organize the event, called it a success. "The viewpoints were diverse and engaging," she said. "The panel lent itself to a very interactive evening that I really enjoyed."

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