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Washington Wire
Edited by
Trudy L. Jackson Bosilovic, MS
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Greetings!,
AWIS will be holding elections for the national governing board and the AWIS governance committee invites nominations or self-nominations of members who wish to be considered as potential candidates. In assembling the final slate of candidates, the governance committee will consider the balance of disciplines, skills, geography, and employment sector required for a well-rounded board.
This year, we are looking to fill the office of Treasurer and three Councilor positions. All current AWIS members are eligible to run for board positions.
As per AWIS bylaws, a Treasurer shall be elected every second year and shall serve as the chief fiscal officer of the association. The Treasurer shall present the budget for each fiscal year and review the finances of the association on an ongoing basis. Councilors assume responsibility for AWIS initiatives, represent the membership on the Board, and help set policy for the organization. They serve for a period of three (3) years and should be prepared to attend up to three Board meetings per year. (AWIS does not reimburse travel expenses.)
For more information, view a copy of the AWIS Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws or the 2011-2014 Strategic Plan.
By February 15, 2014 please e-mail a resume (no longer than two pages) and a statement of interest to: president@awis.org - put "ELECTION" in the subject line.
Please include:
- Name
- Mailing address (home or work)
- Phone numbers (work, cell, fax)
- E-mail address
- Position for which the candidate is running President-Elect, Councilor)
- CV (maximum 2 pages) including current professional position and professional activities
Statement of Interest (maximum two pages) which should address (1) Involvement in AWIS; (2) Why the candidate is interested in the position for which he or she is running; (3) Women in science issues that the candidate would work on as goals for National AWIS.
We look forward to receiving your nominations for the AWIS National Board of Governors!
Best Regards,
Janet Bandows Koster
Executive Director & CEO
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 Careers |
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Contributed by Meghan Mott, PhD
4 Reasons Not to Accept a Promotion
Fast-paced upward mobility is the hallmark of career success. But before you accept that promotion, step back and consider whether this particular opportunity is right for you. Don't let pride block out reality, consider whether this position really appeals to you, and don't take a job that requires you to sacrifice your own happiness.
→ Just say no
More Speaking Opportunities for Women in Science
A new study in mBio finds that when a woman is part of the organizing team of a scientific symposium, the proportion of female speakers increases by 72% compared to symposia convened by men alone. Analysis of two meetings of the American Society for Microbiology determined this significant gender ratio, and the authors hope that other scientific organizations will analyze and re-design their speaker lists as a result.
→ Gender diversity
Why Women Are Underrepresented in Academic Medicine
In 2011, only 14% of department chairs and 12% of deans in medical schools were female. What is keeping women out of these leadership positions? A recent paper suggests that women may prefer teaching to publishing research papers. Whatever the reason, female faculty members are more likely to be on the clinician-educator track than their male colleagues.
→ Academic disparity
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Contributed by Katherine Wendelsdorf, PhD
The War Against the Common Core
The Common Core State Standards Initiative, popularly known as Common Core, was initiated by most US Governors to make sure students across the United States are learning the skills they need to succeed in a global economy. As a response to the low scores of U.S. students on international tests, the standards are meant to improve U.S. schools as well as better prepare students for higher education. For example, students will learn less content, but in greater depth and have fewer lectures with more conversations. Joy Resmovits gives a helpful overview of the Core, its goals/approach, as well as the political backlash that threatens this needed educational overhaul.
→ The Core War
Effectively Engage Creationist Students in your Classroom
Are some science teachers failing their pupils by not confronting creationist arguments when they come up during lessons on evolution? In this 27 min. video, science journalist Adam Rutherford interviews science professors including Jeremy Pritchard at the University of Birmingham and London's Natural History Museum. Pritchard points out that creationism is still a pervasive belief among science students and argues that teachers should respectfully engage them in discussion. He does so through traveling lectures/workshops which are described.
→ Spreading Darwin's word
Demand Better STEM Education, Not More Money
Charles Babbage, a mathematician and engineer blogger for The Economist, makes the argument that rapid improvement in STEM education is important for the U.S. economy. This under-performing generation of U.S. students will soon have to compete with their better educated Asian counterparts in a globalized job market. Babbage makes the case that increased funding, which has been the current approach, is not effective. Rather, schools should be held more accountable for the STEM funds they currently receive.
→ It's not the money
Creating a STEM Identity
The Pennsylvania Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) program promotes interest in STEM education among minorities in impoverished areas of Philadelphia. The successful approach goes beyond mere exposure to STEM topics to create a sense of identity in kids, so that they assume the identity of a scientist.
→ Beyond exposure
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 Science & Technology |
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Contributed by Demetra Farley, PhD
What You See When Dreaming
Have you ever awakened from an exciting dream only to find that you have completely forgotten the details of the dream? Scientists from Kyoto, Japan may have uncovered a mechanism to bring those dreams back to life. In a paper published in Science, the researchers report on using MRI technology to document the thoughts of the study's participants and to predict sleep visualizations.
→ Dream on
Women Receive Womb Transplants
After more than ten years of research, doctors from Sweden succeeded in transplanting wombs into nine female patients.Though all nine surgeries were successful, it remains unknown whether the women with the transplanted wombs will be able to conceive and support a fetus to childbirth.
→ New life
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Member Profile
Member Level
Expires
____________________
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At Takeda, we continue to transform the future of healthcare by bringing important medicines to market. We are driven to improve lives.
___________________________
March 5-7, 2014
The Meso Foundation
hosts their 11th annual International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma in Alexandria, VA.
For more information and registration
www.curemeso.org/symposium
______________________
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AWIS 2014 Winter Webinar Series
Mark Your Calendars!
1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EST
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1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EST
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1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EST
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1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EST
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February 25, 2014
12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1:00 - 2:00 p.m. EST
__________________________
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Sacramento, CA
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Member Spotlight
Kate Sleeth, PhD
AWIS member since 2011
Congratulations to Kate Sleeth, Academic Programs Administrator at City of Hope, who was just appointed as Chair of the Oversight Committee for the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) Board of Directors.
_____________________
Coming in February 2014!  Written by our very own Dr. Donna J. Dean and CEO Janet Bandows Koster, this book distills and leverages best practices and policies to support STEM work-life satisfaction. _______________________
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January is National Mentoring Month!
Whether you've had a direct mentor-mentee relationship, or you've just admired someone's professional acumen, we've all been touched by someone who has helped to foster our personal and professional growth.
AWIS wants to hear how a woman in STEM has made a difference in your life/career! Send us a photo, along with a short paragraph about your mentor and how they made a difference, and it may be featured in the next issue of the AWIS Magazine! Submit your story by email to utano@awis.org by 12:00 p.m. EST on January 24, 2014.
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1321 Duke Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
(703) 894-4490
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 Work-Life Satisfaction |
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Contributed by Catherine Moorwood, PhD
Five New Year's Resolutions for Your Science Career
Are you still deciding on your resolutions for 2014? Are you one of the many that have broken some already? Here are five suggestions for positive changes that scientists can make for a happier, healthier, and more balanced new year.
→ Researchers resolve
Why We Should Value Caregiving
Anne Marie Slaughter proposes a reinvented America where equal value is placed on caring and competition. Caregivers should be recognized as contributing just as much to society and the economy as breadwinners, and infrastructure should be created to support them. This could include affordable child and elder care and paid family leave for women and men.
→ Who cares?
Work Out for Work-Life Satisfaction
New research has shown a surprising correlation between rates of regular exercise and feelings of satisfaction about work-life balance. The study's authors suggest that although exercising takes time, its stress-busting effects lead people to feel like they're better able to manage their family and career commitments.
→ Feel-good factor
10 Minute Work-Life Tune-up for Women
These quick tips and advice from women in leadership positions could help you keep work and life in equilibrium. Managing your own, and others', expectations, and knowing when to delegate, will go a long way to creating a more harmonious 2014.
→ How she does it
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 Health |
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 Editor's Choice |
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The Editor's Choice is a new Washington Wire section and will be filled with reports and articles that the AWIS National Staff and other AWIS members would like you to see. In this issue we have an additional article that we thought you might be interested in reading.
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 Opportunities |
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OSTP Summer 2014 Internship Program
The Office of Science and Technology Policy is currently accepting applications for its Summer 2014 Internship Program. The application deadline is 11:59 pm Friday, March 7, 2014. Students who are U.S. citizens and who will be actively enrolled during the 2014 academic year are welcome to apply. For questions, please contact Rebecca Grimm rgrimm@ostp.eop.gov. NEW OPPORTUNITY!
The National Inventors Hall of Fame Call for Nominations
The National Inventors Hall of Fame wants to increase the diversity of its candidate pool and the technologies represented, and we hope that you can assist us in that endeavor. The National Inventors Hall of Fame was established in 1973 to honor individuals who conceived, patented, and advanced great technological achievements that have benefited our society. The criteria for Induction require that candidates hold a U.S. patent and that they have contributed to the nation's welfare and the progress of science, the economy, and the useful arts. Contact Rini Paiva, Executive Director, National Inventors hall of Fame at rpaiva@invent.org. NEW OPPORTUNITY!
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Career Services New Public Service and Nonprofit Career Fair
Organizations representing service and non-profit sectors attend this new event to talk with students and alumni about full-time and internship opportunities. February 26, 2014.
NIH Funding Opportunity Announcement - Modeling the Scientific Workforce (RFA-GM-14-011)
This FOA solicits cooperative agreement applications that propose to develop computational models for better understanding of the dynamics of the scientific workforce in the United States. These models may be used to inform program development and management, identify questions that need additional research, and guide the collection and analysis of the data to answer these questions. (Open January 4, 2014 - February 4, 2014, by 5:00 pm local time of applicant organization)
BBRG Scholars-In-Residence Program
Each year, the BBRG hosts a new group of approximately ten competitively selected scholars from the U.S. and abroad for a period of one academic year. (from August 21, 2014 to May 15, 2015). The BBRG Scholars-in-Residence Program is open to senior and junior faculty (tenured and untenured), visiting scholars, postdoctoral scholars and independent scholars, from any country, whose work is centrally on gender and women. Applicants must have received their Ph.D. (or its equivalent) at least one year prior to the projected beginning of their residency at BBRG. (Applications due March 15, 2014)
BBRG Affiliated Scholars Program
The BBRG Affiliated Visiting Scholars Program is designed to accommodate scholars who would like to spend a relatively short period of time in residence, ranging from one month to six months. The BBRG Affiliated Visiting Scholars Program is open to senior and junior faculty (tenured and untenured), visiting scholars, postdoctoral scholars and independent scholars, from the U.S. and abroad, whose work is centrally on women and gender. Applicants must have the Ph.D. (or its equivalent) in hand one year prior to the beginning of the appointment. (Applications accepted throughout the academic year)
Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Biology will offer a limited number of travel awards to early career investigators at the Assistant Professor or equivalent industry scientist level.
Small Business Postdoctoral Research Diversity Fellowship
The Small Business Postdoctoral Research Diversity Fellowship program aims to encourage creative and highly-trained recipients of doctoral degrees in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematical disciplines to engage in hands-on research projects in their areas of expertise at the kind of small innovative businesses that historically have fueled the nation's economic regime. Each research fellow will receive a stipend of at least $75,000 plus health insurance benefits.
NSF's Career-Life Balance (CLB) Initiative
Scientists now have the opportunity to submit supplemental funding requests to support additional personnel (e.g., research technicians or equivalent). This will help sustain research when the Principal Investigator is on family leave.
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