Gender and Ageism

This week in class we looked at ageism and adultism, defined as ageism: the oppression of elders by youth and adults, and adultism: the oppression of young people by adults and elders. As I was looking for articles to relate these definitions to my overall theme of gender, it was quite easy to do. Each of the articles I found focus on women and aging and how each of

these ideas relate to one another.

      In Harris's article Women Embrace Aging, Despite Experiencing Ageism More Deeply than Men, she discusses how women throughout the world are embracing their age even though statistics show that  "68 per cent of older women said they've been treated unfairly or differently due to their years, versus 57 per cent of older men" (Harris, M., 2013). This disconnect is believed to be a result of women maintaining stronger social networks than men, which may serve as a buffer against negativity; promote physical, emotional and mental health, allowing a sense of having defied negative senior stereotypes; and give women purpose. This article really intrigued me and gave me reason to think more about the women I know and how their health has been significantly better in older age than men in their similar situations. 

       Continuing the trend of having stronger social networks, in Ready to go Gray?, Whitbourne discusses how some women are ditching hair dye for a more natural look and reflecting on why they are trying to keep their youthful image, rather than embracing who they are changing into. This could be because of ageism, oppression in the workplace or just a reaction to getting older. If we think about how men with gray hair are looked at, I think of wise, experienced and knowledgeable  but on the other hand women with gray hair simply are seen as old by the public. Why this double standard over something as  trivial as hair color? Embrace who you are ladies, and if you're graying and don't like it, then go ahead and get the hair dye. 

      Finally, a topic that I think it absolutely ridiculous, but I've heard in the news quite a bit lately, is that some women are "too pretty" for their jobs. A story I'm sure most of America heard this past year was about and Iowa mother-of-two Melissa Nelson who was fired in 2010 after working for a dentist for 10 years because he said his attraction to her was a threat to his marriage. Ms. Nelson's story is not the only of its' kind, in fact in Fynes-Clinton's article, discusses other similar cases from London and California where women have experienced discrimination because of their looks. 

Fynes-Clinton, J. (2013, July 25). Ageism and sexism are common types of discrimination in the workplace but being pretty is a problem too. In Courier Mail. http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/ageism-and-sexism-are-common-types-of-discrimination-in-the-workplace-but-being-pretty-is-a-problem-too/story-fnihsr9v-1226684162280

Harris, M. (2013, July 3). Women embrace aging, despite experiencing ageism more deeply than men. In Calgary Herald. http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/Women+embrace+aging+despite+experiencing+ageism+more+deeply+than/8612066/story.html

Whitbourne, S. K. (2013, July 24). Ready to Go Gray? Why Some 50+ Women Are Ditching The Hair Dye. In Huff Post Post 50. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-krauss-whitbourne/aging-gracefully_b_3610251.html

Transgender Students in Higher Education

I'd like to start this post off with an apology for the delay on getting this up. I recently started a new job and have been overwhelmed with training so a little late, but here's the post!

I chose to focus this week on transgender students in higher education because of the topics covered in this week's reading, and because of the prominence of these issues coming to light in all fields of education.

The first article I found was related to a high-school student, Calliope Wong, who had applied to an elite all women's college, Smith College of Massachusetts, because she was documented as male on government documents. Because of this discrepancy in one item of paperwork (her FAFSA was the only document that identified Wong as a male) her application was returned to her unread, twice. In order for Wong to be considered for acceptance to the school, she would need to have gender reassignment surgery. When Smith's vice president for public affairs was contacted for comment she stated that in order to be accepted to the college, all applicants must have documents stating female as their gender because of title IX funding. "Title IX is an important factor in our consideration but not the only one," she said. "Smith is focusing on the broader policy challenge of how to be inclusive and supportive of transgender students while being faithful to the mission of a women's college" (Howard, Z., 2013). 

To follow up on Wong's story, Huffington Post published an article, Smith College Plans Committee to Address Transgender Student Applicants, after a petition with over 4,000 signatures to support transgender women. Smith's Dean of Admissions Debra Shaver said that a committee will be formed to directly address the issues pertaining to transgender applicants in response to the petition. The committee is scheduled to meet at the beginning of next school year to determine the best way for the college to work with transgender students. The fact that Smith College is having this discussion shows an opportunity for other universities to take notes to best accommodate transgender students. 

I believe it is essential for all professionals in education to have the knowledge and ability to work with students of all genders in any type of setting. Knowing how students identify and how open they are to talk about these identities helps both the staff, student and peers be comfortable and successful in school. New resources are now available for advisors with suggestions for how to work with students in the LGBTQ and transgender communities. 

Howard, Z. (2013, March 28). Elite women's college rejects transgender student, prompts outcry. In Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/28/us-usa-college-transgender-idUSBRE92R0YT20130328

Morgan, G. (2013, May 5). Smith College Plans Committee to Address Transgender Student Applicants. In Huffpost Gay Voices. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/03/smith-college-transgender-committee-_n_3209606.html

Moorhead, C. (2013, March 5). Advising Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Students in Higher Education. InClearinghouse Academic Advising Resource. http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/Advising-Lesbian--Gay--Bisexual--and-Transgender-Students-in-Higher-Education.aspx

Gender Gap in Higher Education

In my previous posts, I have discussed the gender gap, but mostly in regards to equal pay. Today I have decided to focus on the gender gap in higher education in relation to females in professional roles in higher education and the workplace. In James Grove’s article Gender gap in number of female professors brings to our attention the staggering statistics of “Universities’ efforts to address gender inequality have been criticized in light of figures showing that just one in 10 professors is a woman at some institutions.” This gap in gender equality among professors is not just an issue in the United States but also throughout the world, and in the United Kingdom where this study was focused. Although the statistics are drastic, I am beginning to see more women in professional roles in higher education, but it can also vary depending on the subjects being taught.

While Grove discusses the slowly closing gender gap in the United Kingdom, Women close education gender gap, compiled by StatsCan looks at the education gender gap in Canada. The report, based on data from the 2011 National Household Survey said “that 64.8 percent of women aged 25 to 64 have pursued post-secondary education, compared to 63.4 percent of men. When looking at men and women aged 25 to 34, the gender gap widens, with women ahead by a margin of about 10 percent.” (StatsCan, 2013). This gap is not surprising to me, but even with advanced degrees women are still in gender-stereotyped roles, as are men; there are more female teachers, nurses and administrative assistants, while more men are in fields of mechanics, and business. How can we encourage female, and male, students to go outside their thought processes of “girls are teachers, boys are doctors” as they grow?

This gender gap may prevent some women from achieving their highest goals, and if that goal is to become a CIO (chief information officer), then that ability to reach that goal does not seem very promising based on research by Wayne Brown documented in In higher education, fewer women graduate to CIO. Brown states that “the percentage of women chief information officers (CIOs) in higher education has been on a slow but steady decline; from 2008 to 2013, the percentage of female CIOs declined five percent, from 26% to 21%” (Brown, 2013). The research also shows that the decline may be due to the mentoring of women going into, or already in the CIO roles. Men and women learn and work differently, so to best equip each gender with the tools they need to success, employers need to provide options that work best for any individual, no matter the gender.

Although these articles mention the closing of the gender gap, I can still see it alive and flourishing in higher education. Take the educational leadership program for example; how many men do you see in the program compared to women, and why? What would a MBA or MS in Biology or Chemistry look like compared to our program or a nursing program? In my position in the admissions office, I can imagine working with students each day and compiling data about gender ratios at the university and looking at the data and figuring out how to recruit both men and women to the school. How can you think about the gender gap in your roles and school, work or even at home?

Brown, W. (2013, June 19). In higher education, fewer women graduate to CIO. In Information Week Education. http://www.informationweek.com/education/leadership/in-higher-education-fewer-women-graduate/240156884

Grove, J. (2013, June 13). Gender gap in number of female professors. In Times Higher Education. http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/news/gender-gap-in-number-of-female-professors/2004766.article

StatsCan. (2013, June 26). Women close education gender gap. In CTV News. http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/women-close-education-gender-gap-statscan-survey-1.1342237