Guest Column by Erika Gustafson | Penn’s biochemistry awards contribute to gender inequality
In 2015, one of Penn’s most celebrated faculty members, Adam Grant, wrote, along with Sheryl Sandberg, an article describing the harmful effects of differentially assigning tasks in the workplace based on gender. Five years later, Penn seems to have demonstrated little understanding of the implications of such data. It is well known that women in the workforce are asked to perform more administrative tasks than their male colleagues, creating a culture in which women are expected to take on additional, seemingly innocuous tasks. However, it is less well-known that this culture is perpetuated at Penn, and it is worthwhile to consider how this culture develops, the negative aspects of this culture, and the ways in which people can prevent this culture from persisting at Penn and in society.