Improving Gender Equity among STEM Faculty

Project Overview 

NSF ADVANCE Catalyst Grant

The Research, Educate and Value Equity at All Levels in the Sciences (REVEALS) initiative investigated gender equity in the STEM fields and social sciences, using an intersectional lens to identify underlying drivers. Three key measures were used to identify themes driving inequity: exit interview data, an internal survey, and individual interviews. The most relevant themes affecting equity are:

  • Family obligations 
  • Invisible service/labor 
  • Connectedness and community 
  • Emotional labor 
  • Value of contributions 
  • Pandemic-related concerns 

Institutional Context

Students majoring in traditional STEM and social science fields show an increase in the percentage of women enrolling over time. However, the faculty in traditional STEM fields are showing a decrease in the percentage of women faculty during that same time period, and faculty in the social sciences have shown a consistently low percentage of women faculty.

Graph displaying inequities in KU faculty proportion