Critical Mass
Summer programs like the Howard Hughes Summer Biology Experience (SBE) give students additional education and encouragement, and also help demonstrate links between a variety of sciences, says SBE coordinator Clark Gedney.
Make no mistake — some of Stephanie Ragozzino’s closest friends are men. And yet in computer science classes dominated by Y chromosomes during her undergraduate years at Purdue University, Ragozzino found comfort in the camaraderie of women. Donning an old sweatsuit after hours in Earhart Hall, she huddled with her fellow female science majors, sharing academic frustrations and discovering solutions as a participant in the Women in Science Programs (WISP).
“I get along great with guys, but there were times when I wanted some women to talk to,” says Ragozzino (BS ’00). Through WISP, which groups women of various science majors together, Ragozzino also met female faculty members, still a rarity in computer science departments.
Finding role models — even ones outside her major — was fundamental to her education. “I think it was a key part in helping me succeed,” says Ragozzino, who now informally seeks out female connections as a customer care manager in the male-dominated software industry.
The contributions of a diverse array of individuals — men, women, African-Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Asian-Americans, and others — are basic to our understanding and applications of scientific principles, everything from how chimpanzees communicate with each other to how to stop the spread of salmonella. Yet while we celebrate such scientific greats as primatologist Jane Goodall and bacteriologist Welton Taylor, the world of science, from freshman classrooms to corporate boardrooms, is still largely homogeneous.
Homogeneous workplaces mean homogenized ideas, which can have far-reaching consequences, says Zenephia Evans, director of Multicultural Programs and associate director of Science Diversity in the College of Science. It’s not that only women can research breast cancer or only African-Americans can research sickle cell anemia. But, Evans says, “We need to make sure we have scientists that represent all areas in terms of diversity, which will lead to an increased interest in particular issues that affect the many people that make up the population.”
“It’s not just different people working on different problems,” says Barbara Clark, director of the Science Diversity Office. “It’s different backgrounds and opinions contributing to solving the same problem.”