Make a difference in your community.

Collaborate with active women leaders.

Gain leadership skills and create change.

The Campus Action Projects (CAP) enable student leaders and campus faculty to design and implement effective programs that enhance campus offerings, promote leadership, and improve academic and career outcomes. Each year, AAUW chooses a mission-based theme that the projects will focus on, such as sexual harassment or pay equity.
Through an application process, up to ten teams composed of students and a campus professional are selected at colleges and universities around the country to implement their project proposal. Teams are chosen for the strength of their proposals and for their proactive efforts to foster student leadership. Each team will be given technical assistance from AAUW’s national office and will be required to work with an AAUW state or branch member who will serve as the community advisor/liaison. The grants each team receives from AAUW typically range from $1,000 to $5,000 based on the budget submitted in the application process. A member from each team will be funded to report on the project at the annual AAUW/NASPA National Conference for College Women Student Leaders in Washington, D.C.

2008-09 Application:

Members of the 2007-2008 CAP team from Fairbanks, AK
“The Pay Gap puts women and families in the RED. Resist the Pay Gap - NEGOTIATE”Download the application [ Word | PDF ] and instructions [ Word | PDF ]
Applications are due Nov. 7, 2008.
2008-2009 CAP Topic:

Where the Girls Are: Promoting Equity for All Women and Girls (2008-09)
Past CAP Topics:

Behind the Pay Gap (2007-08)
Planning for an Economically-Secure Future (2006-07)
Building a Harassment-Free Campus (2005-06)
Examples of Past Projects:

Read about and view materials and photographs from past Campus Action Projects

Questions? Call 202/785/7719 or send an e-mail to cap@aauw.or

“Engineers Make a Difference” is the theme for the Engineering Education Service Center’s Fall 2008 Poster contest. This year’s winning entry can be found in a display of inspiration, excitement, wonder and curiosity. Posters should be fun, motivational and inspire students to pursue a degree in engineering, technology and/or science.

Engineering is humanitarian, caring and possibly the most effective, hands-on approach to make the world a better place. The engineering field can be very exciting. If you would like a career that allows you to help others on a grand scale or if you ever wanted to make the world a better place, then engineering has something for you!

Engineers strive to make our lives better, easier, cheaper, more efficient and more fun by solving problems in everyday life. Engineers are practical inventors. It is through the work of engineers that we are able to prevent devastation from hurricanes, explore other galaxies, and prevent illness from the worst diseases. The work of engineers also includes camera phones, wireless computers, satellite TV, airplanes, hydrogen powered cars, digital music, underwater robots, air conditioning, indoor plumbing, cosmetics, titanium knee and hip replacements, and the list goes on and on. Almost everything you touch has been influenced or designed by an engineer directly or indirectly. It is impossible to think of a major technical development that hasn’t included the work of engineers.

Contest deadline: 11:59pm November 12, 2008

Winners will be notified by November 18, 2008

See previous winning entries

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Each category will receive:
Grand Prize: $200 Cash, Second Place: $100 Cash, Third Place: $50 Cash

Honorable mentions to be awarded at judges’ discretion.
All winners will also receive a certificate.

Submission Instructions:
Posters may be submitted electronically or on CD by mail.
Submission size for electronic submissions: 450×675 pixels - 72 dpi
Final size submissions are by invitation only: 24″x36″ @ 300dpi (Do not submit this file now. The judges will request the larger size and resolution of the top 10 posters in each category by Nov. 13, 2008. At that time, the EESC will provide an ftp address for electronic submissions.)

Contest tip: All contestants should design their posters at 24″x36″, 300 dpi and then save a copy that is 450×675 pixels @72 dpi for initial submission. Nothing is worse than being selected as a winner and not having your poster ready or worse yet, not being able to recreate what you made at a lower resolution. The timeline from winning notification to submission is very tight (just a few days) so be ready if you are a winner.

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Official Contest Rules:
1. The theme of the contest is “Engineers Make a Difference.” Winning entries are those that best reflect the theme. Winners are selected based on creativity, imagination, and the ability to inspire from among qualified entries.
2. All qualified entries received by 11:59pm on November 12, 2008 are eligible for the prizes.
3. No purchase is necessary, Must be 18 or older to enter. If under 18, a parent or guardian must submit your poster on your behalf. Contest is primarily for high school and college students although middle school students can also enter.
4. This offer void where prohibited and is subject to all federal, state and local laws.
5. Previously published posters are not acceptable.
6. Odds of winning depend on the number of entries submitted.
7. Contestants must know the names and addresses of all identifiable people in their posters. In addition, all people in the poster must know that the poster is being submitted in this contest.
8. Posters submitted that don’t meet the submission requirements will be disqualified.
9. All personal expenses incurred while producing the poster are the responsibility of the contestant.
10. Prizes must be claimed within 30 days of notification. If not claimed, the prizes will be forfeited.
11. All artwork must be original and each winner must agree that his of her name, likeness, city, and winning poster may be used by the EESC for promotional and publication purposes without additional compensation. Prior to receiving prizes, each winner will be required to sign a release provided by the EESC to this effect and obtain a release or permission from anyone with proprietary rights in the winning poster. Refusal or inability to provide such releases will result in disqualification and all prizes will be forfeited.
12. The EESC reserves the right to cancel or suspend the contest should any cause beyond the control of the EESC affect the security, administration, fairness, integrity of the contest, or for any reason it deems appropriate, at its sole discretion.
13. Each contestant may enter up to three posters.

Amelia Earhart Fellowship Program

Eligibility
Women of any nationality pursuing a PhD/doctoral degree who demonstrate a superior academic record in the field of aerospace-related scineces and aerospace-related engineering are eligible. Please note that post-doctoral research programs are not eligible for this Fellowship. Members and employees of Zonta International or the Zonta International Foundation are also not eligible to apply for the Fellowships.

To apply, you must meet the following requirements:
Applicants
Fellowship application

Zonta Club Members
Login or register.

Educational Institutions
Fellowship Poster
Fellowship Description

Be registered in an accredited PhD/doctoral program long enough to describe a well-defined research program in a qualifying area of science or engineering closely related to advanced studies in aerospace-related science or aerospace-related engineering. A letter of acceptance or verification of enrollment must be submitted with the application.
Demonstrate a superior academic record at a recognized university or college with accredited courses in aerospace-related studies as verified by transcripts and recommendations.
Provide evidence of a well-defined research program in aerospace-related science or aerospace-related engineering as described in the application essay, research and publications.
Clearly demonstrate the relationship of the research to aerospace and furnish verification of her research program through at least one of the reference letters required with the application (i.e., research supervisor or advisor must be one of the references).
Applicant must be registered in a full-time PhD/doctorate program when funds are received in September and December.

Award
The Fellowship of US $10,000 may be used at any university or college offering accredited graduate courses and degrees. Students must be registered in a PhD/doctoral program when funds are received in September and December. Current Amelia Earhart Fellows may apply to renew their Fellowship for a second year through the same application and evaluation procedures as first-time applicants.

Application
Amelia Earhart Fellowship 2009 Application
All applications for 2009 Amelia Earhart Fellowships, recommendations, transcripts, and letter of current standing must be received or post-marked by 15 November 2008 to be considered.

Applications must be completed in English. In addition, international applicants must provide English translations for all non-English documents.

All applicants will be notified by April 2009.

Elements of the application are:

Biographical information

Transcripts of grades and school verification form

List of all schools attended and degrees received

Employment history

Plans for intended study
Essay on academic and professional goals
Three recommendations from Professors, one must be from research advisor

Information other than transcripts and recommendations must be limited to the space provided. Attachments will not be considered.
The successful candidate clearly identifies the relevance of her field of study to aerospace-related science or aerospace-related engineering, demonstrates outstanding academic credentials, and specifically outlines her professional or career goals as well as detailing a well-defined research program.

Payment of Fellowship
Payments are made in equal installments in September and December. Checks are mailed to each recipient’s present mailing address.

Questions about this program?

WOMEN AND MINORITIES NOT GETTING MENTORING IN ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE, MENTORNET STUDY FINDS

(San Jose, CA) -Mentoring is a key factor in keeping women and minorities on track to careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, yet they overwhelmingly reported a lack of mentoring opportunities, according to a new study released by MentorNet.

MentorNet surveyed more than 2,500 students and postdoctoral scholars in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to learn more about their need for mentors. Over 70% of the women responding said they did not have a consistent source for advice and support they could go to without fear of affecting grades or hurting their careers. Yet, they consistently expressed their need for someone who was able to serve as an objective sounding board and as a role model.

“Women, minorities, and postdocs in engineering and sciences believe a wide range of mentoring activities is important to their academic success,” Jennifer Chou-Green, Director of the study found. “Students seek mentors who are non-threatening and encouraging role models, who offer advice, who respect them as individuals, and who help them overcome challenges.”

David Porush, MentorNet’s CEO said: “In this increasingly technologized age we need to develop and retain all the talent we can in engineering and the sciences. One of the proven methods for doing so is to match students with professionals in a sustained mentoring relationship. By finding mentors in our partner corporations and matching them with women and minorities, we are filling a crucial gap in the careers of worthy students and enlarging the talent pool in these crucial disciplines.”

Research briefs summarizing the finding are available for Academic Leaders, Students, and Faculty, along with the full study on the MentorNet website (http://mentornet.net/studentperceptions/)

New York Times: Letter to the Editor
To remain competitive in an increasingly technological world, our workforce must have
the best minds in science and engineering, including the diversity that women and
minorities provide. John Tierney’s column “A New Frontier for Title IX: Science,” failed
to recognize this.
For 36 years, Title IX legislation has prohibited sex discrimination in education programs
and activities receiving federal financial assistance. Just as other equal opportunity
mandates enabled transformative change in fields such as fire fighters, police officers,
and military personnel by opening them to women, so can Title IX change scientific
careers from “maletypical
pursuits” into careers where ALL members of society can
participate. The best way to ensure this is for federal funding agencies to carry out their
statutory obligations by conducting reviews at academic institutions. There is a big
difference between Mr. Tierney’s fantasy of quotas, and encouraging universities to take a
good look at potentially discriminatory behavior.

www.workingmother.com

2008 BEST COMPANIES FOR MULTICULTURAL WOMEN

Many diversity initiatives are well-intentioned. But experts say there’s still a sense among many women of color that policies that look good on paper are imperfect in practice. To find out what works, we need look no further than our 20 Best Companies for Multicultural Women, part of a larger diversity initiative created by Working Mother Media six years ago that now includes a nationwide series of Multicultural Women’s Leadership Summits. Our winning firms know that to succeed, it takes more than having strong diversity programs in place. It also takes resources and top-level commitment—and possibly most important, accountability on the part of managers. All of our winning companies not only require manager training on diversity issues but also rate manager performance partly on diversity results, such as how many multicultural women advance. These companies recognize that it’s not just about recruitment; inclusion programs must work to develop, retain and promote their multicultural employees as well. We salute our winning companies for successfully achieving all three of these critical goals. They have something better than good intentions—they have results.

By Shaheen Pasha and Christina Frank

Category: 2008 Winners Company Description Company Name City State/Province

Allstate Insurance

This insurer is on a mission to fill its ranks with talented multicultural women. One out of four new hires in 2006 was a woman of color, thanks to the company’s efforts to reach out to the multicultural community through recruiters and organizations focused on …
Read More >>

American Electric Power

AEP’s Power to Generate scholarship program aims to get more women and minorities studying technical disciplines. Additionally, a new mentoring program with local high schools was launched to spark an interest in engineering among the next generation of multicultural workers. …
Read More >>

American Express

Career counseling continues to be a huge draw for women of color at American Express, with 56% participating last year. Multicultural women can also seek career guidance through a diversity mentoring program that’s available to women and minorities. …
Read More >>

Chubb & Son

Chubb’s Minority Development Council held its first Women of Color Leadership conference last year, attracting more than 70 multicultural women. The event included workshops on career development and leadership, and participants were encouraged to pay it forward by mentoring others. …
Read More >>

Citi

Roughly 28% of new hires last year were women of color, up from 25% in 2006. Even better, 16% of newly hired managers were multicultural women, up from 12%. Recruiting efforts at historically black schools such as Howard University and partnerships with groups like the …
Read More >>

Colgate-Palmolive

Outside recruiters are required to submit a diverse slate of candidates for every job. Those who don’t are quickly abandoned. The focused approach appears to be paying off: 18% of all hires in the past year were women of color. …
Read More >>

Credit Suisse Securities

Recognizing that multicultural businesswomen around the world benefit from microloans, the company sponsors related conferences and last year helped the Mexican microlending bank Banco Compartamos SA go public. …
Read More >>

Deloitte

In the past five years, minority hiring at Deloitte has increased 13%. Equally important, turnover among minority staffers plunged 8% during the same time period. Sponsoring events with groups such as the National Association of Black Accountants has amplified Deloitte’s visibility among women of color. …
Read More >>

Ernst & Young

The Ernst & Young Foundation makes grants of $700,000 a year to organizations that support minorities in higher education. Recipients include the National Association of Black Accountants and the Hispanic College Fund. …
Read More >>

GENERAL MILLS

Last year, the company received the prestigious Brillante Award for corporate excellence, given by the National Society of Hispanic MBAs, for its commitment to advancing a diverse workforce. That commitment extends from top to bottom: 43 managers and one corporate executive who are women of …

To the runners and all the other female athletes, I salute you! 

What do you do all day?” is a question Anne Marie Davis, 34, says she gets a lot.

Stay-at-home wives represent a growing niche, according to the author of “The Secrets of Happily Married Women.”

Davis, who lives in Lewisville, Texas, isn’t a mother, nor does she telecommute. She is a stay-at-home wife, which makes her something of a pioneer in the post-feminist world.

Ten years ago, she was an “overwhelmed” high school English teacher. “I didn’t have time for my husband, ” she says, “and I didn’t have a life.”

She presented the idea of staying home to her husband, a Web engineer. “I told him it was something I wanted to do, and he supported it. It was a great relief.”

Dr. Scott Haltzman, author of “The Secrets of Happily Married Women,” says stay-at-home wives constitute a growing niche. “In the past few years, many women who are well educated and trained for career tracks have decided instead to stay at home,” he says. While his research is ongoing, he estimates that more than 10 percent of the 650 women he’s interviewed who choose to stay home are childless.

Daniel Buccino, a Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine clinical social worker and psychotherapist, says stay-at-home wives are the latest “status symbols.”

“It says, ‘We make enough money that we both don’t need to work outside the home,’” he says. “And especially with the recent economic pressures, a stay-at-home spouse is often an extreme and visible luxury.”

Don’t Miss

Davis says her life isn’t luxurious. “Tuesdays are my laundry day,” she says. “I go grocery shopping on Wednesdays and clean house on Thursdays.” Mondays and Fridays are reserved for appointments and other errands.

But her schedule also allows for charity work and leisure: reading, creative writing and exploring new hobbies, like sewing.

It’s a lifestyle, Davis says, that has made her happier and brought her closer to her husband. “We’re no longer stressed out,” she says; because she takes care of the home, there are virtually no “honey-do” lists to hand over.

Stay-at-home guilt

“If you told me years ago that I was going to be a stay-at-home wife, I would have laughed at you,” says Catherine Zoerb, 27. Yet after the Wichita, Kansas, resident finished graduate school in 2005, she found herself unemployed, childless — and strangely happy. With her husband’s support, Zoerb decided to just stay home.

“I was able to clip coupons, do all the chores and make nice dinners,” she says. “I was much less stressed and tense.”

But she was concerned, too — about not using her master’s degree in English and how future employers would view her work history. “I worried about gaps in my resume,” she says. And there was something else: “I thought about the feminist movement — all those women who worked so hard so that I could go out and have a good career, and I was kind of saying ‘no thanks.’”

Recently, Zoerb took a temporary job at an engineering firm. It will boost her resume, and although the Zoerbs don’t need the money, it will help pay down their mortgage. Still, she hopes to return to stay-at-home wifedom soon.

“I’d never say that a woman shouldn’t work,” she says. “But I don’t see what good it would do to work in a job that I couldn’t stand, and if I have the choice not to, why wouldn’t I take that opportunity?”

Retro marriage, 21st century-style

“Everyone seems to be OK with women staying home when they have kids,” says Davis, who currently doesn’t plan to have children. “I’ve actually heard people say that women who don’t work are a drain on society.”

Don’t be too quick to judge, says Haltzman. Women might give up a job to focus on an advanced degree, pursue artistic or creative goals, or deal with health issues.

Surprisingly, though, Haltzman says the biggest draw is homemaking itself. “Many women I talk to take care of the household seriously, and they want to focus on caring for the home, whether or not it involves children.”

Sometimes a wife’s desires don’t align with her husband’s. “I hear frustration from men whose wives choose not to work,” Haltzman says, “but only if there are financial stresses. One of the realities is that few men appreciate the scope and difficulties of managing a household.”

Kirk Zoerb is an exception: The 27-year-old engineer says he’s happiest when his wife is jobless.

“When Catherine stays at home, I feel the house is more together because she has the time to do things like in-depth cleaning and can be more attentive to the garden,” he says. “She also has more time to find good deals at secondhand stores, garage sales and at grocery stores.” As a couple, he says, “we have more energy and are generally emotionally healthier.”

Still, “I don’t believe that the woman has to be the exclusive cook, cleaner or shopper, and I don’t believe the man must be the breadwinner. I wouldn’t mind staying at home while Catherine works!”

“We still have far too few officers with strong science backgrounds, but thanks to the National Academies and others in the scientific community such as the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Institute of Physics and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a small group of scientific fellows have joined our ranks, and their number will grow…Scientists, volunteers have graciously put their own research on hold, stopped their own work, their own life, to perform tours of duty in many of the State Department’s bureaus, and they are making a real difference. And we look forward to welcoming more scientists on to our State Department team, either as fellows or as career Foreign Service Officers or Civil Service Officers.”

Secretary of State Colin Powell, speech to the National Academy of Sciences

Purpose
In a report dated May 15, 2000, the State Department “recognizes the growing significance of science and technology based issues in foreign policy and is aware that this trend will continue and accelerate. The Department is determined to do what is necessary to respond to this challenge and to meet its responsibilities in this area…”

In response to this challenge, the American Institute of Physics collaborated with the Department of State, and with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, to establish an AIP State Department Science Fellowship program. Under this program, AIP will sponsor at least one Fellow annually to spend a year working in a bureau or office of the State Department. This is an opportunity for a scientist to provide scientific and technical expertise to the Department, and help raise awareness of the value of scientific input, while learning about and contributing to the foreign policy process.

The American Astronomical Society generously provides an annual contribution to the AIP State department Fellowship. AIP invites other professional societies with an interest in collaborating or sponsoring a similar program to contact us for information or discussion.

Read about the Fellowship’s successful first four years…

Background
An October 1999 National Research Council report found that “Issues involving science, technology, and health (STH) have moved to the forefront of the international diplomatic agenda…. STH aspects play a large role in discussions of such critical topics as nuclear nonproliferation, use of outer space, population growth, adequate and safe food supply, climate change, infectious diseases, energy resources, and competitiveness of industrial technologies…. In addressing these issues, expert STH knowledge is essential to the anticipation and resolution of problems and to the achievement of foreign policy goals.” The report continues, “The Department [of State] needs the capability to understand how technological factors influence political and economic developments.”

A May 2000 State Department response identified a number of steps to improve its science capacity, including seeking “to identify individuals in academia and the private sector who could be brought in on a non-career basis to meet particular requirements for S&T qualified personnel,” possibly via fellowship programs sponsored by scientific societies.

In a spirit of public service, AIP has joined with the State Department to implement such a Fellowship program. Specifics of the AIP State Department Science Fellowship program are provided below:

Qualifications
Requirements include a PhD in physics or a closely related field. In exceptional cases, the PhD requirement may be waived for applicants with equivalent research experience. Fellows are required to be U.S. citizens, and members of one or more of the 10 AIP Member Societies at time of application. Applicants should possess familiarity with, interest or experience in the scientific or technical aspects of foreign policy. We are seeking candidates with excellent scientific credentials, outstanding interpersonal and communications skills, sound judgment, and maturity in decision-making.

In general, current Executive Branch employees are not eligible to serve as AIP State Department Science Fellows while continuing to hold their original federal appointment.

Fellowship term
The Fellowship term is for one year. During their term, Fellows are expected to work full-time at their Fellowship position. Requests to extend the term to a second year will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Once the Fellow is selected, arrangements will be made with the State Department to obtain a security clearance. The Fellow will also be required to attend a two-week September orientation sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He or she will interview with interested bureaus in the State Department to choose an assignment.

As the Fellowship is intended primarily as a learning experience for scientists, Fellows do not have to select assignments in their field of expertise but, depending on available openings at the Department, can choose to pursue other areas of interest to them. AIP has no role in selecting the Fellow’s assignment, and the Fellow does not act as a representative of AIP during his or her term. Payment of the Fellowship stipend is contingent upon the Fellow’s receipt of an appropriate security clearance, participation in the AAAS orientation, and reaching agreement with the State Department on a suitable assignment.

Benefits
AIP will provide a stipend of $55,000 per year, plus allowances toward relocation, in-service travel to scientific meetings, and health insurance premiums. Other costs associated with the Fellow’s assignment will be paid by the Fellow’s host bureau in the State Department, including security clearance proceedings.

Scientists at all career stages, including mid- and late-career professionals, are encouraged to apply. Although the Fellowship is a full-time position, arrangements to supplement the Fellowship stipend by continuing to receive salary from an employer while taking a sabbatical or leave of absence to serve as Fellow may be worked out on a case-by-case basis.

How to apply
To apply, candidates should submit the materials requested below. All application materials must be submitted by November 1 of the year prior to the Fellowship term that is being applied for. Fellowship terms generally begin in the early Fall, and are for twelve months. Finalists will be interviewed in person several months after the November 1 deadline, usually early in the next year. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

The following materials are needed:

1. Cover sheet, indicating:

name, address, phone, email
names of references
U.S. citizenship
PhD status
AIP Society membership(s)
Please indicate where you learned about the Fellowship program.
2. Letter of intent, limited to 2 pages, providing information regarding:

reason for applying
scientific training and professional background
foreign policy interest and experience
attributes and experience that would make the applicant effective in this position.
3. Resume, limited to 2 pages. Please include no more than 3-5 major publications.

4. Three letters of reference from those having direct knowledge of the applicant’s character, professional competence, and particular attributes or experience that would enhance the candidate’s suitability for this position. Please use standard 8.5″ x 11″ stationery, single-sided, unstapled, with reasonable font and margins. Applicants should arrange to have the letters of reference sent directly to the address below.

Send all application materials (posted by the November 1 deadline) to:

AIP State Department Science Fellowship
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse
College Park, MD 20740-3843
ATTN: Fellowship Coordinator, Department of Media and Government Relations

Fellows