ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation and Dissemination (PAID): Advancing Gender Equity - Lessons from a National Program of Change in Higher Education

Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland OH

Investigators

Abstract

This proposal will support the research and writing of a monograph about the NSF ADVANCE Institutional Transformation (IT) program. The book will focus on how ADVANCE IT institutions have systematically engendered transformation of their structures, processes, policies, and practices and their effectiveness in enhancing gender equity in science and engineering (S&E). We propose to intensively examine the first and second round ADVANCE IT award recipients, analyzing equity outcomes across diverse academic institutions and in specific disciplines. Dr. Diana Bilimoria (PI for this proposal) and colleagues (Bilimoria, Joy and Liang, 2008) analyzed the 19 first and second round ADVANCE institutions and found that equity-related university transformation entails a dual (individual and organizational) focus: empowerment of faculty and administrators through enhanced mentoring, coaching, networking, training and development as well as systematic improvement of structures, processes, policies and practices related to evaluation, workload distribution, resource and opportunity allocation, and compensation at each career stage in the academic pipeline. Since this earlier research was conducted in 2006, the IT projects at most of the 19 institutions were still in process and their transformation outcomes had not yet been fully documented. Expanding this earlier research into a monograph will enable us to delve more deeply into the specific outcomes of the now completed projects, as well as enable access to a more general audience. The specific aims of the proposed book are to: (1) provide a comprehensive, stand-alone source of data on the specific organizational change initiatives undertaken at ADVANCE universities, (2) investigate the equity related outcomes (for women faculty and for underrepresented minority faculty where possible) generated by the ADVANCE universities? transformations, taking into account contingencies such as the type and size of the university, (3) where feasible, undertake discipline-specific analyses regarding the outcomes of ADVANCE initiatives, and (4) propose an empirically-derived model of organizational change to serve as a template to academic and other organizations seeking transformation related to gender equity. To accomplish this research project we will rely primarily on published or available data including the many websites, annual reports, quarterly reports, and research reports and publications of the first 19 ADVANCE IT awardees. For each ADVANCE IT award recipient, we will review the initiatives undertaken and examine various measures of transformation outcomes (e.g., changes over a 5-year period in the representation of women faculty in S&E overall and in all academic ranks, tenure and promotion outcomes, women in leadership and power positions, resource distribution, etc.) to derive ADVANCE program-wide conclusions. Given the similarity of data reported across these institutions (e.g., annual ADVANCE indicators, climate studies) we propose to conduct multiple cross-institution analyses as well as comparisons within disciplines as feasible. Intellectual Merit: The proposed book will present findings and offer a framework for institutional transformation in higher education. It will serve as a comprehensive, stand-alone description of successful approaches to increase the participation and advancement of women in academic science and engineering. It will document the effectiveness of the NSF ADVANCE IT funding. It will provide specific insights for university administrators and faculty members engaged in promoting change. Broader Impact: The proposed book will disseminate knowledge about systemic change to achieve equity for women and underrepresented minorities in S&E disciplines. It will broaden the impact of the work carried out by two cohorts of ADVANCE institutions, allowing dissemination of ideas and practices from various NSF ADVANCE IT awardees. It will have impact on both ADVANCE and non-ADVANCE universities, as well as inform organizations outside of higher education, as it will provide a general model of gender equity related institutional transformation.