Events Archive 2007-2008
2007 Opening Reception
Monday September 17, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Welcoming comments were made by the Women Faculty Forum Co-Chairs:
Deborah Davis, Professor of Sociology and Council of East Asian Studies
Judith Resnik, Arthur Liman Professor of Law
Meg Urry, Israel Munson Professor of Physics & Astronomy
Comments by:
Drew Days, Alfred M. Rankin Professor of Law and Chair of the Minority Advisory Council
Lisa Curran, Professor of Tropical Ecology and Director of the Tropical Resources Institute at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship Recipient
Celebrated Kim Bottomly, President of Wellesley, former WFF Steering Member, Yale Deputy Provost for Science, Technology, and Faculty Development, and Professor of Immunobiology and Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology at Yale
Remarks by Provost Andrew Hamilton.
Gender around the World: A Conversation with the Women of the Yale World Fellows
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Betts House, 393 Prospect Street
This event featured the nine women of the 2007 Yale World Fellows in a panel discussion co-moderated by Professors Deborah Davis and Judith Resnik, Co-Chairs of the Women Faculty Forum.
For this session, the women of the World Fellows were asked to reflect on two questions:
1) Does gender affect your work in your country? If so, how?
2) Does the work that you do alter the effect of gender in your country? If so, how?
Panelists included:
- Mitsuru Claire Chino (Japan) Corporate Counsel, Itochu Corporation
Chino serves as corporate counsel for one of Japan’s leading trading companies. She has also made a mark through the corporate diversity programs she introduced within Itochu and her advocacy for women in the workforce throughout Japan. - Qian Dong (China) News Anchor, China Central Television
Hundreds of millions of television viewers in China have watched award-winning
CCTV journalist Qian Dong conduct probing interviews of public officials and cover such events as the return of Hong Kong and Macau to the People’s Republic of China. Her popularity and media platform make her one of China’s most influential commentators on Chinese politics, economics, and society today. - Muluemebet Hunegnaw (Ethiopia) Deputy Africa Area Director, Save the Children
With more than fifteen years of experience in development and humanitarian work in Africa, Hunegnaw has worked with partners at the local, national, and international levels. As a senior leader of Save the Children, she aims to improve the lives of people suffering from HIV/AIDS, economic deprivation, and a lack of education. - Maria Lisitsyna (Kyrgyzstan) President, Youth Human Rights Group
A lawyer, Lisitsyna devotes herself to the protection and promotion of human rights, both on a grassroots level and on an international scale. As a member of Kyrgyzstan’s Constitutional Council, she drafted new human rights provisions that were adopted into the country’s Constitution. - Penny Low (Singapore) Member of Parliament
As one of the youngest female MPs in Singapore, Low chairs the Government Parliamentary Committee for the Ministry of Information, Communication, and the Arts. In 2006, she founded Social Innovation Park, a nonprofit organization promoting thought leadership and social entrepreneurship in Singapore and beyond. - Marlene Malahoo Forte (Jamaica) Judge of the Resident Magistrates’ Courts, Ministry of Justice
As a judge and president of the Association of Resident Magistrates, Malahoo Forte works tirelessly for fundamental reform of Jamaica’s judicial system. She also trains
Jamaican police and teaches law at the University of the West Indies. - Sharmila Nebhrajani (United Kingdom) Chief Operating Officer, BBC Future Media and Technology
Nebhrajani manages the investment strategy and media rights framework for the new media division of the BBC. By virtue of her leadership positions with the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and the Human Tissue Authority, Nebhrajani is also engaged in some of the most complex ethical issues of our time. - Ketevan Chkhatarashvili (Georgia) President, Curatio International Foundation
A medical doctor and public health expert, Ketevan Chkhatarashvili leads an organization pioneering health care reform initiatives throughout the Caucasus, Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and Africa. . Dr. Chkhatarashvili currently oversees Curatio’s projects focusing on maternal and child health, family planning, and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. - Verena Knaus (Austria) Co-Founder, European Stability Initative
As a co-founder and team leader of the European Stability Initiative, a policy-oriented think tank active in 11 European countries, Verena Knaus has spearheaded empirical research projects in the Balkans, Turkey, and the Caucasus that promote stability and prosperity.
Defining a Women’s Rights Agenda for the 21st Century: New Strategies for Advancing Women’s Equality in Light of the Supreme Court’s Rollback of Civil Rights
Lenora Lapidus, Director, ACLU Women’s Rights Project
Tuesday, October 1
The ACLU Women's Rights Project (WRP) was founded by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 1972. Director Lenora Lapidus discussed the process of shaping a women's rights agenda in areas such as criminal justice, employment, and education, the history of the WRP, and how to become a women's rights advocate.
Sponsored by the Liman Public Interest Program, the Women Faculty Forum, the American Constitution Society, and Yale Law Women.
Breakfast and discussion with Sheila Tobias, noted feminist, author, and science education consultant
Friday, October 19
Supported by the Ford, Rockefeller, and Sloan Foundations, Sheila Tobias’s work has made her a sought-after consultant on college and university curricula, general education, post-baccalaureate alternatives, professional master’s in science and mathematics, and women’s studies. She has made an art and a science of being an outsider to science and mathematics, authoring several books, including They’re not Dumb, They’re Different: Stalking the Second Tier; Breaking the Science Barrier; Overcoming Math Anxiety; and Rethinking Science as a Career. She is equally well known in academic and popular circles as a feminist and for her book, Faces of Feminism: An Activist’s Reflections on the Women’s Movement.
Diversifying Workplaces: Businesses and Universities in Japan and the U.S.
A lunchtime discussion with Claire Chino, Yale World Fellow
Tuesday, November 13th
Claire Chino, Yale World Fellow from Japan and Corporate Counsel for the Itochu Corporation, spoke about her work with the Itochu corporation, as well as to continue the conversation begun last year in the WFF Session about “Women’s Working Lives: Comparable Challenges in Japan and the U.S.” Claire is well-known in Japan for her initiatives on behalf of working women and for her role in creating and implementing a strong diversity program within Itochu (which has since served as a model for the government ministries' own diversity initiatives).
The Yale School of Management also published the following article about Claire Chino: Yale World Fellow Discusses the Condition of Women in Japanese Business.
Co-sponsored by Council on East Asian Studies, Women’s Leadership Coalition, Yale Law Women
Celebrating Vera Wells, Recipient of the Yale Medal
November 15, 2007
Vera Wells '71, an alumna supporter of the Women Faculty Forum, was one of the recipients of this year's prestigious Yale Medal. The medal was awarded at an Association of Yale Alumni/ae banquet on November 15th. A former student of Professor Sylvia Ardyn Boone (the first African-American woman to receive tenure at Yale), Wells is executor of Boone's literary estate and Director of the Boone Memorial Project; she endowed an undergraduate scholarship and a graduate student prize to honor Boone. Vera has helped organize events for women and Black alumnae/i and has championed efforts to raise funds to support the Afro-American Cultural Center and Women Faculty Forum. She is also an at-large member of the University Council and served on its Theater Review Committee.
Inaugurated in 1952, the Yale Medal is the highest award presented by the Association of Yale Alumni and is conferred solely to recognize and honor outstanding individual service to the University. Since its inception, the Yale Medal has been presented to 262 individuals, all of whom not only showed extraordinary devotion to the ideals of the University, but also were conspicuous in demonstrating their support of Yale through extensive, exemplary voluntary service on behalf of Yale as a whole or one of its many schools, institutes, or programs.
Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics at Yale
January 18-20, 2008
The Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics at Yale (CUWPY) was a three-day conference for undergraduate physics majors in the northeastern United States. The University of Southern California (USC) and the University of Michigan (UMich) held similar conferences concurrently, and all these conferences were based on two very successful conferences that USC held in 2006 and 2007. The goal was to help young women continue in physics by providing them with the opportunity to experience a professional conference, information about graduate school and professions in physics, and access to other women in physics of all ages with whom they can share experiences, advice, and ideas. The schedule included research talks by faculty, panel discussions about graduate school and careers in physics, presentations and discussions about women in physics, laboratory tours, student research talks, a student poster session, and several meals during which presenters and students can interact with each other.
Co-sponsored by the Women Faculty Forum.
Speaking with Authority
Wednesday, January 23
Maya Overbye, vocal projection expert, conducted workshops with faculty (12pm) and postdoctoral fellows (4pm) in the sciences.
A Satisfied Professoriate and Equality in the Workplace: A Discussion of the WFF Report on Women, Men, and Yale University in 2007 and the FAS Satisfaction Survey
Monday, January 28th
6:30-8:00pm, Rosenfeld Hall, 109-11 Temple Street
Hannah Brueckner, Professor of Sociology, and Judy Chevalier, Deputy Provost for Faculty Development and William S. Beinecke Professor of Finance and Economics, will present the results of the WFF report "Women, Men, and Yale University: A View from 2007" and findings from Yale's recent Faculty of Arts & Sciences Satisfaction Survey.
Jon Butler, Dean of the Graduate School, will introduce the presentations; Mary Miller, Master of Saybrook College and Vincent J. Scully Professor of the History of Art, and Linda Bockenstedt, Harold W. Jockers Associate Professor of Medicine will offer comment.
The presentation and commentary will serve as a jumping-off point for a discussion of faculty members' experience of workplace culture at Yale. Topics will include tenure and appointment processes, mentoring, departmental climates, and what has been learned as faculties have been surveyed about their experiences at Yale University. Light refreshments will be served.
Beyond the Body Count: A Panel Discussion with Senior Administrators from Yale, Harvard, Columbia, and NYU
Monday, February 18th, 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Rosenfeld Hall, 109-111 Temple Street (corner of Temple and Grove)
Senior administrators from Yale and other peer institutions joined in a panel discussion about the implications of the WFF report, Women, Men, and Yale University: A View from 2007.
Speaking at this event:
- Judy Chevalier, Deputy Provost for Faculty Development and William S. Beinecke Professor of Finance and Economics, Yale University
- Evelynn Hammonds, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development & Diversity, Harvard University
- Geraldine Downey, Vice Provost for Diversity Initiatives, Columbia University
Susan Sturm, George M. Jaffin Professor of Law and Social Responsibility, Columbia Law School - Jean Howard, Former Vice Provost for Diversity Initiatives, Columbia University
E. Frances White, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, New York University - Hannah Brueckner, Professor of Sociology, Yale University
The discussion was be moderated by WFF Co-Chairs Judith Resnik, Arthur Liman Professor of Law, and Meg Urry, Israel Munson Professor of Physics and Astronomy.
Courts, Democracy, and Equality
Wednesday, February 27th
12:00-1:00pm, Yale Law School, Room 128
WFF Co-Chair Judith Resnik, Arthur Liman Professor of Law, and WFF Steering Committee member Reva Siegel, Nicholas deB. Katzenbach Professor of Law and Deputy Dean of Yale Law School, joined Nan Aron, President of Alliance for Justice (AFJ), in a panel discussion about the role the courts play in promoting (or discouraging) equality in democracies. Their discussion followed a screening of AFJ’s latest short film, Supreme Injustices, which explores the impact of the 2006 Supreme Court term through the lens of the school desegregation cases and the Lily Ledbetter gender pay discrimination case.
Why So Slow? The Advancement of Women, a presentation by Virginia Valian
Thursday, February 28th
6:30-8:00pm, Rosenfeld Hall, 109-111 Temple Street (corner of Temple and Grove)
Dr. Virginia Valian is a Professor of Psychology and Linguistics at Hunter College-CUNY; author of Why So Slow? The Advancement of Women, (MIT Press, 1998); and the Hunter College ADVANCE Program Principal Investigator.
Her talk addressed why so few women occupy positions of power and prestige, using concepts and data from psychology, sociology, economics, and biology to explain the disparity in the professional advancement of men and women. She then discussed strategies for eradicating gender bias and promoting equality and excellence in the academy.
For more information about Dr. Valian and her work, please see her website.
IARU Conference at Yale University
Monday and Tuesday, April 21-22
Yale hosted members of International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU) and others at a conference focused on “Women and Men in the Globalizing University.” This one day meeting considered whether and how universities attend to the numbers of and positions held by women and men are in their ranks, whether aspirations for equality play a role in understanding excellence in the academy, and how globalization affects these issues.
We began the day with a session devoted to mapping gender in university data. We used data from different venues, such as the Women Faculty Forum’s 2007 report, “Women and Yale University: A View from 2007,” the European Commission’s 2004 report, “Gender and Excellence in the Making,” and data collected at the University of California at Berkeley. In addition to learning about materials such as these, we wanted to understand more about the nature and kind of data that are useful to collect and whether it would vary by institutional setting. A second segment of the day examined the effectiveness of interventions undertaken to advance women faculty. Our examples included programs in the U.S. and the U.K. that aim to promote women in science.
Thereafter, we turned to the overarching question of what a robust commitment to substantive equality looks like in a global research university. Specifically, we wanted to learn what roles women and men play but also move “beyond the body count” to see if and how the curriculum, research, and intellectual agendas of universities have been affected as the ranks of the professoriate and student bodies change in diverse ways. Here our questions can also be framed in terms of the relationship between universities and the globalizing societies in which they sit. What role do, should, or could universities play in ameliorating inequalities or contributing to them, given the gatekeeper roles played by higher education at elite institutions?
