Gender Diversity in Computer Science: Some Data, Some Experience, Some Suggestions

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Gender Diversity in Computer Science Some Data,
Some Experience, Some Suggestions

• Ruth E. Davis
• Robert W. Peters Professor of Computer
  Engineering
• Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies

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Diversity in Computing data, experience,
suggestions

• Why diversity matters
• The Incredible Shrinking Pipeline1
• Data from US and elsewhere
• Efforts to widen the pipe
• Anita Borg Institute
• SCU
• CMU
• What can be done and resources to help
• Recruitment
• Retention
• NCWIT, ACM-W, CRA-W, ABI, Project Athena SWAN,
  UK Resource Center for Women in SET, Systers,
  TAP, Women_at_SCS at CMU
• 1 The Incredible Shrinking Pipeline Tracy Camp,
  Colorado School of Mines An edited version of
  this paper appears in Communications of the ACM,
  vol. 40, no. 10, pp. 103-110, Oct. 1997

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Why Diversity Matters

• Diversity of participation is critical for
  computing.
• Our thinking patterns are shaped by our
  experience, and thus the greater the diversity of
  our backgrounds and experience, the greater the
  diversity of our thinking and the greater the
  likelihood for new and creative solutions to the
  problems with which we are faced.
• Eg., Technology for the home vs the family
• MITs kitchen of the future

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Some reasons we dont have diversity - IMAGE

• Most people have no idea what engineers (or
  computer scientists) do
• Bill Wulf, President of the National Academies of
  Engineering, quoted a Gallup poll recording the
  general publics association of words with
  engineers
• invents 2
• creative .. 3
• train operator 5
• Most students who choose engineering had the
  benefit of knowing someone in the profession
  this kind of connection serves to perpetuate the
  lack of diversity in the field

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The Shrinking Pipeline 2002-03
Tracy Camp Colorado School of Mines
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Total B.A./B.S. Degrees Awarded - U.S.
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B.A./B.S. Degrees to Women U.S.
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of B.A./B.S. Degrees Awarded in Science and
Engineering to Women Source U.S. Department of
Education
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The Incredible Shrinking Pipeline
Percentage Change in Degrees Awarded to Women
(1983-84 to 2002-03) Bio/Life Sciences
increased by 32.3 Physical Sciences increased by
49.3 Engineering increased by 57.8 Computer
Science decreased by 27.2
Tracy Camp Colorado School of Mines
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Number of CS Majors Plummeting

• New CS majors at US CRA institutions
• 15,958 (2000)
• 7,952 (2005)
• Bachelor degrees awarded at US CRA institutions
• 14,227 (2003-04)
• 11,808 (2004-05) down 17 in one year!
• Interest in CS major at ALL U.S. degree-granting
  institutions
• 70 drop 2000-2005
• 80 drop (1998-2004) and
• 93 since peak in 1982

See http//www.cra.org/CRN/articles/march06/vegso.
html
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Womens ParticipationSource Sally Ride Science
1970 conclusion women were not interested in
law, business, and medicine
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Why so different for Computing?

• IMAGE
• Computer labs in middle/high schools
• Bad or nonexistent counseling interest in math
  and science ignored without magnetic attraction
  to computers
• Experience starting out behind
• Confidence drops interest drops

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A Small Global Snapshot

• Downward Trend
• Australia
• Finland
• Germany
• UK

Slight Downward Trend Mexico Thailand Tanza
nia
Slight Upward Trend Nigeria Turkey
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Women Academic Staff USA 12.4 Women Academic
Staff NZ 15.8
Women in Academic Rank
Academic Rank
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Experience - efforts to widen the pipe

• Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology
• Mission
• to increase the impact of women on all aspects
  of technology and
• to increase the positive impact of technology on
  the world's women.
• Systers online community
• Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing
• Tech Leader Workshops
• Women of Vision Awards in Innovation, Social
  Impact, and Leadership
• Virtual Development Center

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Virtual Development Center (VDC)

• In 1999, Santa Clara University was one of three
  inaugural sites for the VDC (MIT, Purdue, and
  SCU)
• VDC sites, now at 9 universities,
• Involve the community in innovation workshops
• Brainstorm about how technology can improve our
  lives
• Technical and non-technical participants
• Creating a safe, non-judgmental thinking space
• Students work with the community in implementing
  some projects
• Annual VDC Conference brings together all
  participants to share experience and results

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Engaging students with the community to meet real
needs is a win-win-win proposition

• Students Win
• They get a real design experience
• Deal with real clients
• Design constraints arise from real-world concerns
• Community clients Win
• Access to free development of a needed project
• Confidence in dealing with technology
• Profession wins
• Public learns more about what we do
• A greater variety of young people become
  interested in pursuing computing

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Results appeals to diverse population

• The positive impact of these projects on society
  attracts disproportionately more of our young
  women and ethnic minorities in the field. At a
  time when our student body was 23 female and 15
  underrepresented minorities
• 75 of students involved in community projects
  were female
• 50 of students involved in community projects
  were of ethnic groups underrepresented in
  engineering

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SCU Virtual Development Center

• VDC Supported Projects (99-05)
• Icoordinate family/work/friends calendar
  manager
• PRaCVac Programmable Remote Control Vacuum
  Cleaner
• Viridia Fetal Monitor design of Biomedical
  products
• Remote Home Appliance Control project
• Pioneering Women in Engineering
• ANEW Action Now in Employment for Women
• KnowItAll a software homework helper for grades
  1-4
• Virtual Garden
• HomeSafe Keeper
• SmartHome Energy Monitor
• RFID tags for tracking kids in daycare

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SCU Virtual Development Center

• For several years we have worked with HomeSafe, a
  transitional community for survivors of domestic
  violence
• Newer community partners include
• GAINS Girls Achieving In Nontraditional
  Subjects
• A program of the Santa Clara Unified School
  District
• Kelly Park Zoo
• Santa Clara Senior Citizens Center
• Kids On Campus university daycare center

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Other community-based projects at SCU

• El Salvador projects
• solar water pump for Isla Zacatillo
• Human powered utility vehicle
• Brick oven design seismic sustainability study
  for clay brick structures
• Bamboo reinforced concrete
• Hay bale house construction (wall anchorage)
• EMT vehicle monitoring system
• Projects aimed at assisting the disabled
• Music glove
• Eye movement mouse control
• Multi-adjustable wheelchair
• Assistive technology

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Other efforts at SCU (recruitment)

• SES Summer Engineering Seminar (5-day
  residential program for junior and senior high
  school students)
• GetSET Get Science Engineering and Technology
  (one week residential program offered in summer
  to high school girls, in collaboration with SWE)
• Educator Breakfasts high school counselors,
  teachers, and administrators, and community
  leaders come to campus to hear about programs in
  the Engineering School
• ACM/JETT Summer course for high school CS
  teachers
• NYLF/Tech
• Robotics competitions high school outreach
  events

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Other efforts at SCU (retention)

• MUSE Mentoring Underrepresented Students in
  Engineering
• FUSE Frontiers for Underrepresented Students in
  Engineering (one week early move-in and study
  program for first year first generation students,
  also some programming throughout the year for
  these and continuing students)
• School-sponsored annual dinner for women faculty
  and undergraduates
• Big Sister Program pairing returning students
  with first year students in same major
• Student Organizations

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Efforts at Carnegie Mellon

• Unlocking the Clubhouse -
• Jane Margolis and Allan Fisher
• Research started in 1995
• Hundreds of interviews, repeated every semester,
  male and female students, about their histories
  with computing, interests, motivations,
  aspirations, reasons for majoring in CS, and
  experience in the undergraduate program
• Identified crucial periods in students
  attachments to the field, and factors that
  contributed to, or inhibited their ability to
  succeed
• Problem areas identified included
• Experience gaps
• Confidence doubts
• Curriculum and pedagogy
• Peer culture

Transforming the Culture of Computing at
Carnegie Mellon Lenore Blum
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Carnegie Mellon University
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Carnegie Mellon University
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How did this happen?

• Summer Institute for AP CS teachers
• Included talking to teachers about the gender gap
  and what they could do about it
• Admissions Raj Reddy said he wanted to attract
  the students who demonstrate potential to be
  world leaders and visionaries in computer
  science
• Community Building Women_at_SCS Advisory Council
• Big Sister program, other events
• Consulting on curriculum
• Outreach activities
• Information dissemination
• Website - http//women.cs.cmu.edu/
• Grace Hopper 2000
• Women_at_SCS Roadshow

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What can you do?

• For suggestions, try
• J. Sanders
• Lifting the Barriers 600 strategies that
  really work
• J. McGrath Cohoon, SIGCSE article
• Recruiting and Retaining Women in
  Undergraduate Computing Majors
• 19 recommendations
• NCWIT Inaugural Practices Workshop
• Top Ten ideas from Workshop Notes

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The Name of the Game is
Recruit
AND
Retain
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BUT FIRST

• Talk with your current students (and past
  students if possible)
• What attracted them to the program?
• What makes them stay?
• What makes them consider leaving?
• What do they think of the environment?
• In classes
• In labs
• In extracurricular groups/activities
• How do they think you can attract and keep more
  women and minority students?

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Recruitment

• 1. Meet computing teachers of feeder H.S.
• a. The Geek Factor (myth)
• b. The Magnetic Attraction
• c. Computing with a Purpose
• d. Jobs, jobs, and more jobs
• e. Importance of encouragement

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Recruitment

• 2. Advertise CS in feeder high schools
• a. Posters with double diversity
• b. Job advertisements

Tracy Camp Colorado School of Mines
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Recruitment
3. Presentations to H.S. Seniors a. Change
image (Geek Factor) b. Include role models
c. Computing with a Purpose d. Jobs,
jobs, and more jobs
History classes, womens sports teams
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The Women_at_SCS Outreach Roadshow Diversifying the
Images of Computer Science http//women.cs.cmu.ed
u/
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Retention

• 1. Evaluate CS1 and CS2
• a. Make CS1 your best class
• b. Assignments with purpose
• c. Consider faculty research seminars
• d. Consider media computation focus

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Retention

• 2. Create multiple paths to become major
• a. CS1 section for experienced CS majors
• b. CS1 section for inexperienced CS majors
• c. CS1 course for non-majors (recruit)

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Retention

• 3. Create a welcoming culture
• a. Give gender-equity training
• Imposter Syndrome
• Abilities vs. Luck
• Hard Exam vs. Abilities
• b. Provide mentoring, encouragement
• c. Create professional community

Everything bad happens worse for minority
members
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Post-Clubhouse ReflectionsAllan Fisher, November
2005

• If you dont ...
• have a leadership-level commitment to
  institutional and cultural change ...
• make it a high priority ...
• know your numbers ...
• have a champion (or two) ...

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Post-Clubhouse ReflectionsAllan Fisher

• Then you wont ...
• escape the trap of well-meaning inaction.
• get results.

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Resources
ACM'S Committee on Women in Computing
www.acm.org/women
www.anitaborg.org
www.cra.org/Activities/craw
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ACM-W Ambassadors
Canada
South Africa
Turkey
(Watch this space)
Australia
United Kingdom
Germany
Pakistan
India
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Resources
http//www.ncwit.org
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Resources

• Athena Project Scientific Womens Academic
  Network

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Resources (cont.)
Inroads (SIGCSE journal) June 2002
Pale and Male 19th Century Design in a 21st
Century World
What do you say? Open Letters to Women
Considering a CS Major
RR Women in Undergraduate Computing Majors
People Who Make a Difference Mentors and Role
Models
Priming the Pipeline
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Special Issues on Women in Computing
Inroads (ACM SIGCSE journal), June
2002 Communications of the ACM November 1990 and
January 1995 IEEE Annals on the History of
Computing Fall 1996 and October 2003
Pathways CD
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Top Ten Ideas (for Academia)Source NCWIT
Inaugural Practices Workshop

• Understand your system know your numbers
• Build a powerful team
• Listen to students
• Focus on the bottlenecks
• Catalyze and support a womens community

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Top Ten Ideas (for Academia)Source NCWIT
Inaugural Practices Workshop

• 6. Broaden the culture
• 7. Reach out to the feeder community
• 8. Watch the student experience like a hawk.
• 9. Adapt to changing times.
• 10. Remember the law of educational diversity

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QUESTIONS???