Kansas State University

Final Report to the University

ACTIONS RESULTING FROM THE AUGUST 2010 SURVEY OF K-STATE’S FEMALE FACULTY AND STAFF CONDUCTED BY WOMEN OF K-STATE LEADERSHIP AND PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN NOVEMBER 5, 2011

A survey of K-State’s female faculty and staff was administered in August of 2010.  The top concerns from the survey were identified in a report written by Chris Feit of the Office of Planning and Analysis (Appendix A).  A committee composed of three members of the Women of K-State Leadership Committee (WoKSLC) and three members of the President’s Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) met in January of 2011 to discuss the best ways to address these concerns.  Recommendations were developed (Appendix B), and then were discussed in WoKSLC and PCSW meetings. 

In May of 2011, Noel Schulz, chair of the WoKSLC, and Nancy Baker, chair of the PCSW, met with President Kirk Schulz, Associate Provost Brian Niehoff (representing Provost and Senior Vice President April Mason), Vice President of Administration and Finance Bruce Shubert, Vice President of Student Life Pat Bosco, and Assistant to the President Jackie Hartman.   The list of recommendations was presented and discussed in this meeting.  President Schulz discussed the issues with his cabinet, and then Jackie Hartman provided a written response. 

The following will occur in response to the requests and discussions:

1.  President Schulz has established a $10,000 fund to be used for professional development activities for classified and unclassified employees.  Information on the distribution of this fund will be available by January 2012.
2. Since both the Unclassified Task Force and the survey of female employees identified supervisory training as an area needing improvement, the President and the Assistant Vice President for the Division of Human Resources and Parking have agreed to arrange for a needs assessment of our Human Resources Division to identify potential training opportunities as well as other areas where we can improve.  In addition, the Division of Human Resources is working to improve the classification of unclassified employees to provide consistency across titles and classifications.
3. The Division of Facilities has a form on its website to report lighting outages at:  http://www.k-state.edu/facilities/forms/repairlights . In addition, outages can be reported by calling 532-6389 or sending an email torepairs@ksu.edu . Facilities is conducting an on-campus lighting study to determine areas where lighting will be added.  In some areas, new lights have already been installed. 
4. President Schulz has agreed to fund a Graduate Research Assistant to reevaluate the statistical model of the Faculty Salary Equity Study so potential salary discrepancies can be determined and addressed.  An update will be available in June 2012.
5. K-State will participate in the FY 2012 COACHE Survey, administered by Harvard University.  This climate survey will be received by all faculty members.  After the HLC visit is completed, an internal climate survey will be developed and administered to unclassified and classified staff. 
6. A program for non-academic directors will be conducted, beginning in January of 2012, to focus on leadership, professional development, policy issues, resources, and other information and networking to assist these leaders in their job responsibilities.

In addition to the actions approved and supported by President Schulz, the following have been addressed by the PCSW and WoKS Leadership Committee. 

1. Round table discussions were held during a women’s luncheon that took place in the summer of 2011 and during a women’s breakfast held as part of the Research and Extension Annual Conference to allow opportunities to share ideas and concerns on balancing personal and professional activities. 
2. Brown bag lunches are being held twice a month during the fall semester to provide networking opportunities for women, as well as information on subjects relating to life outside of work.
3. The PCSW has identified sixteen areas across campus and met with Facilities and Human Resources personnel to convert these spaces to lactation rooms for nursing mothers.  Seven of the spaces have been approved and are now awaiting the work necessary to prepare them for use. 

Within the last year, a search committee training program was developed.  While this was not done in response to the survey results, it addresses some of the hiring and retention concerns brought forth by survey respondents.  Focus groups have been conducted to collect further information and suggestions on the hiring process.  The results of these groups will be available in the spring of 2012.

A survey of female students was conducted in October of 2011 and the results from this will be combined with the faculty and staff survey results to see if there are similar concerns and /or student-focused issues.   The WoKSLC and PCSW will work with student leaders to determine recommended actions based on the results of the student survey. 

The WoKSLC and PCSW will continue to follow-up on the activities outlined in this report and updates will be provided as new information is available.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

Nancy Baker                                                                           Noel Schulz
Computer Information Specialist                                               Chair, WoKSLC                       
Former Chair, PCSW                                                                Paslay Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
njbaker@k-state.edu                                                               noels@k-state.edu