Sometimes Mitch Maio’s classmates know him, even before he sets foot in the door.
As the weeks go on and he gets to know them, someone will mention, “I’ve heard of you before.”
It’s an awkward situation. But as an involved male student in the women’s studies department, Maio stands out.
His female counterparts attend classes on the other side of campus. Darby Brown’s classmates may not recognize her, but she does feel watched. Being one of the few women studying and working in the School of Computing can be intimidating.
“The guys are watching because there’s five of you and 50 of them,” she said.
The experience of sitting in a classroom, with seats filled by members of the opposite sex is not unique in higher education.
And while enrollment at the U by gender approaches half and half, lopsided demographics characterize women’s studies, some fields of education, all of engineering and other programs.
Many faculty and students express a desire for change, either passively or through focused efforts. The sentiment echoes from around campus: Ideally, this is not how things should be.
They often site a simple origin for gender discrepancies: stereotypes.
But deconstructing our collective image of the nerdy man in the smudged lab coat, the motherly woman looking after children or the man-hating femi-nazi is a long, tedious undertaking.
One of Few
For Cambria Lambertsen, who graduated from the U’s civil engineering program in 1999, sitting in classes filled with men had little impact on the education she received.
“I never felt like I was limited in any way, shape or form in my learning environment because I was a woman,” she said.
In fact, limits did not seem much of an issue for female students in the first environmental engineering class Kraig Johnson taught at the U.
Ten of the civil engineering professor’s 60 students were women, but come finals, they occupied about half of the top 10 spots in the class. The rest clustered near the top. This may be an extreme example, but he suggests that perhaps female engineering students are more likely to be motivated by pure interest in the subject matter.
“Males are pressured to go into fields such as engineering and computers,” said Mike Cuthbert, a sophomore in civil engineering student. “The women are the ones that really want to be there.”
Under slightly different guises, this phenomena appears in other academic programs.
Some of the top students in early childhood education are men with a genuine interest and skill for working with young children, said Cheryl Wright, who coordinates the undergraduate portion of the early childhood education program. These students’ visibility also lends advantages.
“I would say males, given they are a rarity, would have a great advantage over our top female candidates,” she said.
And it was men in the women’s studies department who were behind the creation of Utah Men Against Sexual Violence.
“You’re looking at a guy who is screaming for men to get involved in these issues,” said Marty Liccardo, a male senior in women’s studies and UMASV member. “My career after this is going to be getting men involved in these kinds of fights.”
Women’s studies often attracts those with an “altruistic notion about making the world a better place,” said Debra Burrington, the department’s associate director.
“I think it does appeal to women more than men,” she said, making the notable exception of the men involved in UMASV.
Maio may, in part, owe some of his minor celebrity status to UMASV, after receiving considerable attention last fall when he founded the organization. But if a woman had founded a similar organization, would it have garnered half the attention?
The expereinces of students who sit in the majority vary as much as those like Lambertsen and Brown’s?some feel it acutely, for others it’s just not that big a deal.
Natalie Willmore, a freshman in elementary education, sees advantages to classes with few men in them.
“In some ways it’s easier, there’s not all that sexual related tension,” she says. “I knew I wouldn’t meet a lot of guys, but that’s fine. I have my boyfriend.”
Her view is echoed from the north side of campus.
“I’m at school to study engineering,” said Russell Christensen, a computer engineering junior.
In general education classes, men and women might make different contributions, “but engineering is just math,” said fellow computer engineering junior Scott Little.
Change Afoot?
But the administration in the College of Engineering and other programs in similar situations do not share Little’s take.
The college aims to help bridge the gender gap before it reaches the college level by expanding and formulating outreach programs.
Money donated by Intel Corporation last year will go to introducing 10th and 11th grade girls to engineering. And this spring, the college hopes to double the number of Girl Scouts who participate in a program designed to acquaint them with the different disciplines of engineering.
At the moment, JoAnn Lighty, associate dean for the college, estimates that women make up about 14 percent of engineering undergraduate and graduate students?woefully short of the 50/50 goal.
If engineering is a creative profession, Lighty said, then it can only benefit from a wider bank of experiences to draw from. She cites an article by the president of the National Academy of Engineering who writes that a dearth of women, and diversity in general, exacts a cost measurable only in “might have beens.”
Women are not only shaped differently than men; they have different needs. These show up when women, rather than men, draw up the design of a car chassis or a computer interface.
The effects of increased female enrollment will eventually trickle down to the products on the market, Lighty said.
The gradual change would also alter some students’ social experiences.
For one thing, the company of women would make clubs and activities much more appealing, said Rick Everson, a civil engineering senior.
“I’m not talking about being attracted to them or hooking up while you’re there. It just adds a really different side to it, more flavor than a bunch of guys,” he said.
Walking a Fine Line
While the impact of more women designing software or solving transportation dilemmas may not show up for years, the gender composition of a class can hold immediate relevancy to the content of a women’s studies course.
Despite what its name may indicate, the department does not confine itself to the study of women, according to Associate Director Debra Burrington.
As of next fall, women’s studies at the U officially becomes gender studies?catching up with the more inclusive and progressive material it teaches.
And naturally, the department anticipates the change will make some men more comfortable taking its courses, Burrington said.
She estimates women comprise 98 percent of departmental majors and minors. However, graduation requirements, in the form of the diversity credit, draw in many male students to certain women’s studies courses.
Already, she has an increase in student interest at summer orientation where she discussed the switch with incoming students.
The name change comes late to the U. The department has essentially taught gender studies for the past decade, she said.
Increasingly, universities around the country are making similar changes.
Majors and minors whose diplomas face?or escape?involuntary alteration, respond with mixed emotions.
“I’m so excited about the name change, but I am glad my degree will say ‘women’s studies,'” said Marisa Black who plans to graduate this May. To Black, those words represent a unique role for women?who academia has a history of overlooking.
And for Maio, more male bodies in women’s studies brings mixed blessings. Men must get involved if soc
iety is ever to see change, he said. On the other hand, completely co-ed classes might threaten the unique female-dominated environment invaluable to his education.
“It’s not just by default that women’s studies courses are predominantly female in number. It’s also by design,” Burrington said. But as a teacher, she disagrees with that approach. “I like the presence of men because I think discussion is part of what’s needed to begin making certain social changes.”
“We don’t live in a society of just men or just women,” said Corinne Full, a teaching assistant in women’s studies. “It’s really important to have men and women involved in a dialogue about gender issues.”
Up From Zero
This year lightning struck the early childhood education licensure program?in the metaphorical form of two male applicants.
“I’m hoping they’re both strong candidates so we can get them in the cohort. It would be nice to have that perspective,” said Cathi Allen, an early childhood education cohort leader. The program prepares about 13 students to teach kindergarten through third grade every year.
Overall, the number of applicants has doubled. Allen attributes this to a strengthened advising program.
Bigger societal changes may also kick in at some point. Men have become more involved in parenting, but that has yet to translate to men seeking an academic understanding of young children, Wright said.
Regardless of how, Allen looks forward to men acquiring an interest. More men in education means more male role models for kids, especially kids from single parent homes.
But whether or not a shift will make any difference is debatable.
“A good teacher is a good teacher. It doesn’t matter,” said Matt New, a senior in elementary education.
The Hurdles
“I was told my entire life ‘You can do anything you want to,'” said Dana Robison, a sophomore in mechanical engineering.
Despite having an engineer father, she felt she was pushed towards the arts and the humanities. All the while, her brother?more right brained than she?was nudged in the opposite direction.
“I didn’t like the dolls. I liked the stuff my brother got. I wanted to build things,” she said. A technical career never seemed as viable a path as one in the arts or humanities.
But after studying modern dance for several years at the U, Robison quit, took some time off and returned to study engineering.
“I think I’m better suited for this. I feel like it’s more of a challenge academically,” she said.
While few seem to doubt the aptitude of female students in engineering, the finger of blame is often pointed at the bank of life experiences the curriculum expect students to draw from.
Men are more likely to have experience disassembling and reassembling an old car. Lacking this hands-on experience, a female student may find certain examples esoteric and theoretical, according to Kraig Johnson, a professor of civil engineering.
“We don’t have the backgrounds, we’re starting from scratch. I came from dance, so if I can do this, anybody can do it,” Robison said.
She doesn’t find her unique status intimidating, but people sometimes react with surprise when they learn she started in the dance program.
“I think it would be much harder to have been a man in dance than a woman in engineering as far as social issues go,” she said, broaching the issue of sexual orientation. Men in such a female dominated field face the assumption that they are gay.
Facing Stereotypes
“Everyone assumes [women’s studies] is solely for women. If you’re interested in women’s issues, people assume you’re gay or a woman,” Maio said.
Stereotypes do not always creep in from the outside, some are nurtured within a program.
When Maio first enrolled in a women’s studies class, his older sister warned him: ‘Make sure you don’t hit on any girls in the class.’ Doing so would have sent out the message that he had enrolled solely to get a date.
For the first few weeks of every class, Maio tried to earn the respect and trust of his predominantly female classmates?he sat back and listened.
“It lets them know I was serious. Then they are much more willing to listen to my opinion,” Maio said. It is a small price to pay for access to such a unique environment.
He has taken a similar tactic with his teammates on the U’s baseball team and managed to win respect for his interests, he said. His minor has become something of a running joke for the team.
Stereotypes about women’s studies can deter both male and female students, according to Burrington. People don’t understand what it’s about.
It’s intimidating for anyone, man or woman, to tell someone they are a women’s studies major, Full said. Sometimes she has met the response, ‘So you hate men, then.’
The Realm of Women
“I’m very hesitant when I think of male teachers,” said Betsy Young, who is pursuing a license in early childhood education. She said she is responding to the heavily female stereotype attached to teachers.
Because men in early childhood education are so rare, she asks herself ‘why are they here, let me see them teach.’ But ultimately, she assumes male teachers would be as effective as female ones.
Matt Davis, an applicant to the early childhood licensure program, faced a similar response while student teaching last fall.
“Some of the parents seemed kind of leery, wondering ‘why is he here.’ By the end of the semester, I hope they thought I was a good teacher for their kids,” Davis said.
“A lot of people will say it’s predominantly female because it’s a caring occupation. I don’t think it should be said that men can’t be caring,” Allen said.
Low salaries, not a lack of ability, prevent many men from entering education, she said.
However, the level of encouragement for men in fields like early childhood education may also be lagging. In sharp contrast to the College of Engineering, most female-dominated programs do not offer scholarships or actively recruit men, despite their eagerness for male students.
Many students who enter education, primarily women, see themselves as second-income earners. For men who see themselves as breadwinners, education is rarely a viable career.
“When we see a certain profession as a female profession, society at large tends to devalue the importance of that,” said Gina Post, an elementary education cohort leader. This shows up in salaries.
And the cycle continues, keeping both male and female students out of teaching majors.
However, the salary only covers nine months’ work, and that schedule makes it a family-friendly profession, ideal for many, most often women, who see themselves only supplementing a household income.
According to New, many of his female classmates are already married. Like Maio, he avoids being forward with female classmates.
“Yeah, sometimes I feel somewhat isolated,” he said.