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FLAGS SPEAKER SERIES

The FLAGS Speaker Series will feature gender equity experts presending on a wide range of topics. Stay tuned for more events soon!

PAST EVENT

Tuesday, December 7, 2021, 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM 

Equity-Minded Reform of Teaching and Service Workloads

by Dr. KerryAnn O’Meara

About the Workshop

The unequal distribution of faculty workload is one of the most important, yet least talked about, inequities that shape the experiences of faculty members within colleges and universities. As a result of the pandemic, faculty workloads are increasing and growing more inequitable. In particular, women faculty and faculty from historically minoritized identities face unusually high service, teaching, and mentoring workloads. Inclusion and equity require departments and institutions to identify and dismantle systems that maintain unequal workloads and avoid longer time to advancement, higher stress, increased burnout, and greater willingness to leave for women and BIPOC faculty. 

This workshop presentation by KerryAnn O’Meara, P.I. of the NSF, Faculty Workload and Rewards Project and co-author of an American Council on Education report and set of resources, shares what she learned with colleagues during a five-year, action research project aimed at promoting equity in how faculty labor is taken up, assigned, and rewarded. She considers how workload inequities emerge in "discretionary spaces," and the evidence-based policies and practices departments have used to identify inequalities, assess faculty and university needs, and re-design workload with equity in mind.

About the Speaker   

KerryAnn O’Meara (she, her) is a Professor of Higher Education and  a Distinguished Scholar-Teacher at the  University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP).  Her research examines faculty careers and academic rewards systems with a particular focus on equity-minded organizational practices that support full participation.  Current NSF-funded projects examine equity in hiring, workload, promotion and tenure policy reform, and equity-minded reform of discretionary spaces in academic affairs. She consults with universities on promotion and tenure policy reform, faculty development programs, and organizational practices that sustain equitable workloads. 

Intended Audience

All 91¹ú²ú¾«Æ· Faculty and Staff are invited to attend. This talk may be particularly relevant to those who are involved in workload decisions and procedures, or to those who may someday be in such positions.

About FLAGS

FLAGS (Faculty Leaders Advancing Gender Equity in STEM) is the 91¹ú²ú¾«Æ· incarnation of an NSF ADVANCE Adaptation grant. The goal of the grant is to improve gender equity among STEM faculty (and, ultimately, all faculty) by adapting evidence-based practices from previous ADVANCE programs or other sources to 91¹ú²ú¾«Æ·. Our team consists of both faculty and administrators, tenure-track individuals and lecturers, and we represent multiple colleges and perspectives.