Why we should be gender/sex inclusive?
WHY DOES BEING GENDER/SEX INCLUSIVE MATTER?
-National (indeed, perhaps international) trends of a “calling-out” rather than “calling-in” culture
-Reports of academic departments becoming less collegial, nationally and through Lehigh Climate Survey data
-Research and leaders purporting men and women hesitate being in meetings with persons of the opposite sex
-Tweets, trolling, and online bursts of hate and anger rather than conversation
-Increase in recruitment and retention of folks that are not part of the “Mythical Norm” (Lorde describes this space as White, straight, Christian, upper-class man)
HOW DOES BEING SEX/GENDER INCLUSIVE BENEFIT STAFF?
-Methods for creating an inclusive and collaborative workplace and department
-Creating skills for being with others whose views may be in direct opposition to one’s own
-Skills for supervisors to hear and inspire supervisees
-Skills for supervisees to make needs clear to and gain insights from supervisors
-Techniques for working with colleagues who are in academic affairs
-Techniques for working with colleagues of different ages, regions, and skills sets
-Techniques for working with constituents who are not part of higher education
HOW DOES BEING GENDER/SEX INCLUSIVE BENEFIT FACULTY?
-Methods for creating a Department that fosters collaborative research, teaching, and service
-Methods for creating a Department and College ready to take risks on understanding the creative power in implementing different evaluative criteria for tenure and promotion
-Skills to become collaborative colleagues with Staff
-Skills for being with others whose views may be in direct opposition to one’s own
-Skills for sharing knowledge to people and agencies outside of the Department and academic community
-Skills for building an inclusive classroom
HOW DOES SEX/GENDER BENEFIT STUDENTS?
-Learning to meet, live and work with, and develop long term relationships with people vastly different from or new to them (e. g. coming from different nations, areas within a nation, different race or sexual identity)
-Creating skills for being with others whose views may be in direct opposition to one’s own
-Developing skills for communicating with professors and administrators
-Practicing skills for developing non-hierarchical friendships and or romantic relationships