Women in STEM: Picture a Scientist
Winter Town Hall
Co-Hosted by IEM and the Bioengineering Diversity Council
The UCSD Bioengineering Diversity Council, which promotes the interests and advancement of women and minorities in the bioengineering department at UCSD, hosted a Winter Quarter Town Hall on January 15, 2021. The theme of this quarter’s town hall was “Women in STEM: ‘Picture a Scientist’”, and centered on the experiences of female scientists as depicted in the film, Picture a Scientist. Dr. Stephanie Fraley, Professor of Bioengineering and Chair of the Bioengineering Diversity Council, mediated a discussion amongst six female panelists addressing topics from the film such as gendered harassment and discrimination.
Panelists
Stephanie Fraley, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Bioengineering at UCSD and Chair of the Bioengineering Diversity Council. Dr. Fraley researches contechtual bioengineering, which focuses on developing technology to measure and recreate biological contexts. Dr. Fraley has won numerous awards for her scientific work and for her advocacy work promoting diversity, including the NSF Career Award, 2019 Biomaterials Science Emerging Investigator, and the Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion Award for New Faculty.
Sandra Brown, PhD, is UC San Diego’s Vice Chancellor for Research, and is a distinguished Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry. Dr. Brown is an internationally recognized figure who has over 300 peer-reviewed publications and has won numerous research awards and recognitions, including the Distinguished Scientific Contributions to the Application of Psychology Award from the American Psychological Association (APA).
Sangeeta Bhatia, MD, PhD, is a distinguished biomedical researcher, MIT professor, and biotechnology entrepreneur. She is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, the Director of the Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, Director of the Laboratory for Multiscale Regenerative Technologies at MIT, and an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences as well as the National Academy of Engineering.
Daniela Valdez-Jasso, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at UC San Diego. She joined the UCSD Bioengineering Department in 2017 from the University of Chicago, where she had been an assistant professor for four years. Dr. Valdez-Jasso researches the cardiovascular adaptations to pulmonary arterial hypertension.
Maya Rowell is a 2nd year PhD student at UC San Diego studying bioengineering. She is currently researching cancer cell migration through use of microfluidics and hydrogels in Dr. Stephanie Fraley’s lab. Maya is also a member of the UCSD Bioengineering Diversity Council, and a Jacobs School Racial Equity Fellow.
Rafaela Simoes-Torigoe is a 4th year undergraduate student at UC San Diego majoring in Bioengineering: Biosystems and minoring in General Biology. She is currently an undergraduate student researcher in Dr. Frank Talke’s medical devices laboratory, and is the Vice President of the UCSD student organization Engineering World Health.
Discussion
Each of the six panelists brought their unique experiences and opinions to the table as Dr. Fraley moderated discussion. The panelists discussed themes from the Picture a Scientist film, as well as issues that women in science face today.
[This is an edited summary, and not a verbatim transcript.]
Minority Time Tax
Dr. Fraley points out that this Town Hall is an example of the minority time tax, which is when minorities feel pressured to participate in activities in order to promote diversity.
Rafaela Simoes-Torigoe feels that it is important for minorities to bring light to issues surrounding diversity.
Maya Rowell likes the sense of community that attending these events brings, which she feels is for the greater good and allows her to give back to the community.
Dr. Brown believes that this time and extra effort should be valued and rewarded on an institutional level.
Work-Life Balance as a Minority
Dr. Brown believes that institutions should set up infrastructure to support female and minority academics.
Dr. Bhatia believes that researchers and institutions need to begin sharing norms that redefine the cultural expectations in academia.
Dr. Fraley focuses on active hiring of female and racial minority faculty, to increase diversity of the faculty body and reduce expectations placed upon minority faculty.
Dr. Daniela Valdez-Jasso has come to realize that she spends a lot of time on campus doing activities, more so than her other colleagues.
Dr. Fraley believes that institutions need to document and better appreciate such activities in the faculty review.
At a certain point in your academic career, Dr. Brown notes, once you’ve demonstrated value and people are asking you to be engaged, don’t be afraid to set boundaries and not participate in absolutely everything.
Seeing Women as Scientists
Dr. Valdez-Jasso wants to be seen for herself, and not as an ethnic group. She says it’s taxing to have her scientific work not properly recognized.
Dr. Stephanie Fraley remarked that women tend to be thought of for committees and outreach, but when it comes to science, women aren’t considered. She noted that there is reputation tax for diversity activities - the first thing associated with your name is diversity activities rather than actual science.
Dr. Sandra Brown states that it’s incredibly important to let other people know about your science, to speak about your science, and advocate for other female scientists when they’re not there.
Dr. Stephanie Fraley tells attendees to start earlier, build connections, and network.
Dr. Bhatia said that important questions to ask were, “‘How do you make women top of mind, let people know what you’re working on, how do you as a woman let people know what you’re interested in?’” Dr. Bhatia notes that this exposure is a two-way street, and part of it is talking about her work.
Dr. Valdez-Jasso states that scientists need to find more ways to speak up and be heard, including in creative ways such as sending emails.
Dr. Sandra Brown emphasizes that mentorship is incredibly important, and many faculty members are willing to provide it.
Gendered Harassment
Dr. Stephanie Fraley asked, “‘Do you have any strategies or suggestions to deal with harassment?’” She notes that this kind of harassment may occur in a one-on-one setting, which makes it incredibly difficult to deal with.
Dr. Daniela Valdez-Jasso recommends reading the book Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most.
Dr. Stephanie Fraley adds that it’s important to say something the minute that harassment happens.
Dr. Sandra Brown states that there may be bad habits and a toxic culture that people don’t recognize, so they must be brought into awareness. The only way to create opportunities for change is to say something, including if you are a bystander.
Reporting Misconduct
UCSD Bioengineering PhD student Ed Kantz asks if there are any systems in place at UCSD or other universities that serve to remove people like the toxic advisor in the movie. He notes that institutions can’t count on students to come forward with complaints because of the power dynamic and potential implications on the students’ future careers.
Dr. Stephanie Fraley shares that every university has an Title IX officer to bring these issues into light, which circumvents power dynamics within departments.Within departments themselves, no existing processes or structures exist. She says that the Bioengineering Diversity council has heard from students that they’d like means of mediation or discussion about certain situations, and the diversity council is currently working on these issues for the bioengineering department.
Besides going to the Title IX office, Dr. Sandra Brown suggests that students attend student counseling services. She emphasizes that departments are responsible for taking care of these things, as well as faculty.
Dr. Stephanie Fraley says that times have changed, and there are a lot more protections in place. While women will still need to stand up for themselves, at least there are mechanisms and protections for women to say something.
Dr. Sandra Brown also notes that women are more empowered to take action. She says that it is incredibly important to talk to someone you trust about the issues you are facing.
Moving Forward: Topics of Future Discussion
Ensuring that time spent on diversity and minority-related issues receive proper recognition from academic institutions
Changing the culture of academia to allow for a greater work-life balance, geared towards women
Promoting women as scientists and avoiding the ‘reputation tax’; ensuring that female scientific work is known and recognized
Speaking up when gendered harassment is occurring to bring awareness to the issue and push for change
Developing protections for students and faculty within academic departments