A Quarterly Newsletter

 
June 2000- Volume 2:4

In Her Own Words:
10 Attributes Make Women
Great Leaders and Educators
by
Judith Van Baron, Ph.D.
VP for External Affairs
Savannah College of Art and Design - GA

Recent articles list women's deficiencies, offering solutions to help women compensate by emulating men. Critics tell women their voices are too high and their stature is too short. They listen too well and are too easily interrupted. They ask too many questions and issue too few declarative and imperative sentences. And, they fidget too much. Many women listen, undervaluing those positive attributes that actually tilt the playing field in their favor. As a VP at the Savannah College of Art and Design, I've found President Richard Rowan and Provost Paula Rowan value women and equity: the board of trustees is 50% women and top leadership is 80% women. I believe 10 major attributes contribute to women's success on campus:

1. The catcher in the rye

Since women have learned to recognize danger to themselves, they are well equipped to recognize danger to others, especially those younger, gentler or more innocent. Unlike deer frozen in the headlights of oncoming destruction, women act if a threat arises, catching children before they run headlong over a precipice.

2. Thanksgiving Dinner

Especially working together, women always manage to get everything ready for "Thanksgiving Dinner" at the right time. On campus, this ability translates to women being well organized, having superb timing, seeing the big picture and caring about those they serve.

3. Liberty and justice for all

Just as mothers love all their children equally, I have found women administrators seek success for all their employees, and women educators seek success for all their students. In student-centered education, equity is key.

4. Pygmalions persist

Women are the makers, the shapers, the recipients, becoming both the sculptor and the sculpture. Malleability is not a weakness; flexibility is a strength. Not fitting the mold is a sign of creativity and imagination. Not living up to a long established ideal can be seen as avant-garde, progressive, growth-producing and strengthening. Working with young people on campus, women are adept at helping them find their own way rather than forcing them down a well-trod path.

5. Narcissism at work

Critics fault women for being too introspective, too analytic about relationships and what they mean, too vain and self-conscious. Some even complain about women fidgeting in meetings. Movements considered fidgets as a woman sits down at a meeting are a means of gathering data about the space and its inhabitants. If a man moves his antennae four times and a woman moves hers nine times, who learns more? Being self-conscious can mean you see not only your own image, but others around you. Schools must look within and gather much data to make adjustments.
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6. Quiltmakers and basketweavers

Women did not invent the great monuments of civilization, but they may have made everything else, especially those requiring attention to detail, subtle as well as obvious teamwork, and an understanding of the underlying patterns and intricacies of life. Working with thousands of students means working with the details of thousands of lives. Women have a profound talent for making order out of the most confounding intricacies of apparent chaos, moving well from the pieces to the whole, creating quilts from scraps and baskets from plants.

7. Whodunit?

Women are told they ask a lot of questions, raising their voices at the end of sentences in query. Perhaps they are seeking information, having been at it long before society recognized the incredible power of information and named a highway after it. Other animals do the same, using all their senses to know their environment. Called "sniffing the wind," "pricking the ears" or "narrowing the eyes" in animals, it is very valuable on campus.

8. What's in a name?

Historically women have managed to do without the added extra name identities such as Jr., Sr., I or II. Their sense of self-identity serves them well as leaders and instills self-confidence, and they see themselves as individuals rather than inheritors of another's privilege, fillers of another's shoes. Often lacking a trailblazer, they have become bold, brave, inventive and able to make a difference in their own name.

9. The mothers of invention

Necessity forces women to find solutions when resources are scarce. Whether it's greasing the pan or untangling the snarl, mentoring the student or the faculty member, women are skilled at finding answers. As higher education seeks solutions to new challenges, women can play a vital role as finders and problem-solvers.

10. The unbroken circle

Life is a continuum, if not linear at least holistic. In symbols and icons, women are often described as that perfection of continuums, the circle, represented as the egg, the centered being, the cradle of new life. Their contributions bring to education a strong, productive approach. Random experiments are infantile gestures without a centered focus to keep the continuum strong and priorities recognizable. Women keep the circle intact.

 

Reprinted with permission of Mary Dee Wenniger, editor and publisher of the WOMEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION© NEWSLETTER, April 1998 issue.



WRC
SUMMER
VIDEO SERIES

"HOW TO HANDLE CONFLICT and MANAGE ANGER," a three-part video series, will be presented in consecutive weekly presentations during July and August. Please join us for any or all of the series. The dates, times, and locations of these presentations are included in the WRC Calendar of Events.

The series is packed with important tools guaranteed to give you more confidence and help you achieve more satisfying results each time you encounter a conflict situation. This program delivers real answers to problems caused by emotionally charged feelings. If fear, guilt, frustration, and anger are emotions you equate with conflict, this video series will guide and enlighten you.

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Volume I of the series will cover six rules that de-escalate tension, along with the three dimensions of anger and how to bring them into focus. In Volume II, 10 conflict resolution skills every manager should know will be addressed and five false assumptions men hold about women will be discussed. The 3-step A.C.E.S. Method to conflict resolution and learning to choose your words well will be dealt with throughout Volume III.

Kit Grant conducts this series and each videotape is approximately 40-50 minutes in length. "HOW TO HANDLE CONFLICT and MANAGE ANGER" is an informative series that can be easily applied to the day-to-day applications in your respective department or area.


WOMEN'S
SUMMER HEALTH
SERIES HIGHLIGHTS

Summer programs for the WRC Women's Health Series will include seminars with Ms. Janet Hall, P.T., of The Therapy Center in Johnson City. Ms. Hall will return to discuss corrective strategies, for the individual, in "Conquer Incontinence."

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Ms. Jennie Walls, M.S.N., assistant professor in the Department of Family and Community Nursing at ETSU, will conduct a seminar on "Techniques and Strategies for Self-Breast Care." Recent breast cancer statistics, preventive health measures, along with self-breast care, will be included in this seminar. The dates, times, and locations of these seminars are included in the WRC Calendar of Events.

   

 

Women's Resource Center
Calendar of Events

For more information on the events listed contact the WRC at 423-439-7847.


EVENTS-Main Campus

JUNE

Book Review Group
Wednesday, June 21, Women's Resource Center, Panhellenic Hall, Basement Suite 2, noon.
 Participants will meet to discuss Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout. New readers always welcome.

Women's Health Series Lunch Break Seminar
Tuesday, June 27, D. P. Culp University Center, East Tennessee Room, 3rd Floor, noon.
"Conquer Incontinence" will be the topic of this women's health seminar. Janet Hall, P.T., a physical therapist with The Therapy Center, Inc., in Johnson City, will discuss corrective strategies that can be used to assist the individual in dealing with the difficulties of incontinence. See article.

JULY

Women's Health Series Lunch Break Seminar
Tuesday, July 18, D. P. Culp University Center, East Tennessee Room, 3rd Floor, noon.
"Techniques and Strategies for Self-Breast Care" will be the topic of this women's health seminar. Jennie Walls, M.S.N., assistant professor in the Department of Family and Community Nursing, will discuss techniques and strategies for self-breast care, along with preventive health measures. See article.

Book Review Group
Wednesday, July 19, Women's Resource Center, Panhellenic Hall, Basement Suite 2, noon.
 Participants will meet to discuss The Saving Graces by Patricia Gaffney. Facilitated by Ms. Gaye Griffith. New readers always welcome.

"HOW TO HANDLE CONFLICT and MANAGE ANGER" Video Series
Wednesday, July 26, D. P. Culp University Center, Meeting Room 6, 3rd Floor, noon.
Volume I of the series will include six rules that de-escalate tension, along with the three dimensions of anger and how to bring them into focus. See article.

AUGUST

"HOW TO HANDLE CONFLICT and MANAGE ANGER" Video Series
Wednesday, August 2, D. P. Culp University Center, Meeting Room 6, 3rd Floor, noon.
Volume II of the series will cover 10 conflict resolution skills every manager should know and discuss five false assumptions men hold about women. See article.

"HOW TO HANDLE CONFLICT and MANAGE ANGER" Video Series
Wednesday, August 9, D. P. Culp University Center, Meeting Room 6, 3rd Floor, noon.
The 3-step A.C.E.S. Method to conflict resolution and learning to choose your words well will be dealt with throughout Volume III. See article.

Book Review Group
Wednesday, August 16, Women's Resource Center, Panhellenic Hall, Basement Suite 2, noon.
Participants will meet to discuss Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2) by J. K. Rowling. Facilitated by Dr. Jan Henley. New readers always welcome.

 

ALL OF THE ABOVE EVENTS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

 
OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS

 

JUNE 2000

Making A Difference - Leading With Energy, Passion, and Integrity
National Conference 2000, June 15-17, Marriott's Camelback Inn Resort/Golf Club & Spa, Scottsdale, Ariz. This is a National Institute for Leadership Development Conference. Sessions include: "The Future of Money," "Pathways to Success," and " You've Got What It Takes."
Contact: National Institute for Leadership Development, 602-285-7494.

WOMEN'S STUDIES at ETSU

The Women's Studies minor at East Tennessee State University provides students with an interdisciplinary education about history, society, culture, politics, and economics as related to women. It creates an increased awareness of gender issues, fosters individual development and decision-making, and encourages effective participation in addressing gender issues in an increasingly complex society.

Courses are designed to assist students in developing philosophical and historical perspectives on gender issues to broader societal issues, appreciating the contributions of women to the sciences and humanities.

The minor in Women's Studies requires the completion of 18 hours of coursework. Required courses include Introduction to Women's Studies, along with a three-hour senior seminar. Elective courses are located throughout the departments of art, communication, criminal justice, English, family and community nursing, history, philosophy, sociology, and social work.

For additional information regarding the Women's Studies minor, contact co-advisors Dr. Amber Kinser at 423-439-7571 or Dr. Marie Tedesco at 423-439-5339.

Women's Studies courses for Fall Semester 2000 include the following:
COURSE ID COURSE TITLE
ARTA 4957/5957 Women Artists and Their Art -Monday & Wednesday, 1:40-3:00 p.m.

ENGL 3270
Literature of Popular Culture: Female Heroes in Speculative Fiction -Tuesday & Thursday, 11:15 a.m.-12:35 p.m.

ENGL 4957/5957
Women Writers Since the Renaissance -Tuesday & Thursday, 11:15 a.m-12:35 p.m.

ENGL 5960
Literature of Southern Appalachia: Women Writers -Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 12:35-1:30 p.m.

HIST 4957/5957
History of Women in the United States: Colonial Period to 1945 -Thursday, 6:00-8:55 p.m.

SOWK 3000
Human Behavior/Social Environment -Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 8:15-9:10 a.m.

WMST 2010


Introduction to Women's Studies -Section 001: Tuesday and Thursday, 9:45-11:45 a.m., main campus. -Section 301: Wednesday, 6:00 p.m., Kingsport campus.

East Tennessee State University is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution and is fully in accord with the belief that educational and employment opportunities should be available to all eligible persons without regard to age, sex, color, race, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, or sexual orientation. Printed by East Tennessee State University Press.
TBR 220-066-99 2.5M

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