When Dr. Lalita Oka joined Fresno State in 2013, she was the only female professor in the Civil and Geomatics Engineering Department. She also noted how few, if any, female students she had in her engineering classes.
“I was teaching a number of classes that had no female students,” said Oka. “Even those classes that had female students, it was like one or two in a class of 50 students. So it was really minimal female presence in our department.”
Oka and colleagues Dr. Kimberly Stillmaker and Dr. Arezoo Sadrinez led a grant application for a three-pronged approach to bring about systemic change to increase the representation of women faculty members — especially underrepresented minority women — in the field of engineering. In doing so, they hope to attract more female engineering students.
The National Science Foundation has awarded Fresno State’s proposal for a $1.25 million grant to strengthen the representation of the female engineering professoriate in the California State University system. In addition to Fresno State, three other CSU campuses will share in this grant — Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo; San José State University and Cal State Los Angeles. Ultimately, the benefits could involve up to 11 other CSU campuses with engineering programs.
“This grant is significant in how it will transform our approach to supporting women professors in engineering,” said Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval. “Through identifying the main challenging issues, we will strengthen opportunities and implement a holistic approach to encourage female students to pursue the field. Consequently, by expanding the scope of the grant beyond just one campus, we will leverage the combined power of the greater CSU system.”
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