Gender imbalance in higher education and subsequent career and employment outcomes is still very much an issue in Pennsylvania, but thankfully, there is a growing number of organizations and efforts throughout the state’s colleges and universities, as well as advocacy groups, that are actively tackling gender imbalance, aiming to create a more equal educational and career environment for young women.
From the Outside-In: The Higher Education Women’s Consortium and the Pennsylvania Conference for Women
Working from the outside-in is the PA System of Higher Education Women’s Consortium, and the organization has a wide reach. As an arm of the PASSHE, the Women’s Consortium’s efforts span 14 universities throughout the state. The organization serves as a general advisor group to the PASSHE’s chancellor on a regular basis and works to stay informed of and address concerns raised by women throughout the system. Additionally, its programming helps empower and connect women students, as well as faculty and staff.
The Women’s Consortium also has three Leadership Institutes — the Faculty, Undergraduate and Professional & Staff Institutes — and the breadth of their work and reach is truly remarkable. They address topics and issues specific to each subset through activities like interactive sessions in small- group format, lectures, panels, workshops and more.
Another initiative that starts from the outside-in comes from the Pennsylvania Conference for Women’s annual meeting and its several scholarship offerings. The Conference itself, which began in 2004, works on bringing together thousands of female working-professionals for a massive, one-day event with featured speakers and opportunities for networking and professional development. Additionally, the Pennsylvania Conference for Women launched its Scholarship Program in 2005, which today has over 40 Pennsylvania college and university participants. Since its inception, the Conference has provided over $2 million in scholarships.
Working Within the System: Penn State’s Salary and Benefits Negotiation Workshop
Many educational institutions are taking an active hand in solving gender inequality and there are numerous initiatives that work from within the system. Many of these aim to develop a greater sense of confidence and agency within the student body while also providing guidance and aid in preparing for the working world post- graduation.
Pennsylvania State University’s Salary and Benefits Negotiation workshop is an example of one such program in action. One of many programs through Penn State University’s student affairs division for gender equity on campus, this event focuses on empowering female students when negotiating terms of employment and staying informed of standard salary and benefits for their field. The program addresses the hard truth of the gender wage gap and demonstrates how women can act as their own advocate for the salary and benefits they rightly deserve.
As Jennifer Pencek, programming coordinator with the Gender Equity Center explains, “The salary and benefits negotiation workshops are really important because research shows that women in particular are less likely to negotiate in the hiring process and throughout their careers. When male counterparts negotiate, the research shows they are more likely to receive the most optimal salary and benefits package as opposed to those who do not negotiate, thus starting the incredibly problematic and damaging pay gap between women and men.”
It is the goal of the workshop to empower these women “to advocate for themselves and have a positive start in the workforce or even create a positive change if they are already in the workforce.”
Both types of program, outside- in and institution-specific, serve a greater purpose across not only the state, but the nation. These initiatives are examples of how gender-equality is empowering students and can act as inspiration for other colleges and universities that may not have such programs in place to begin the implementation of their own programs, bringing us one step closer to educational and career gender equality. .
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