Julia posted a proposal for half-time tenure track for women.
Sounds like another excuse for marginalization to me.
There is a real tendency to think that all women's issues revolve around
the family. Yet this is not an identical set set of concerns.. If
famiily time were the only problem, then all those single, childless
women faculty out there would be treated as well as the men, and they're
clearly not. Ever noticed the high proportion of unmarried women
faculty compared to men? (I wonder how many of those tenured MIT women
who finally protested have families? )
I am increasingly weary of seeing women-in-science issues couched
solely as motherhood issues. This is an excuse, not a solution.
I recall from my graduate days that an esteemed university proudly
pointed to its "stop the clock" policy for tenure-track women who had
children. That is, they could get an extra year or two before they had
to come up. Of course, no one who stopped the clock accually GOT tenure
when they did come up.
Julia, your skepticism is well founded.
Susan, feeling cynical.
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