Family-Friendly Policies & Controversies

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The APSA Council recently formed a council subcommittee to prepare an agenda for actions in response to concerns about careers and family in political science. Members of the subcommittee included Frances Hagopian,who prepared the report, Jack Snyder, Marsha Pripstein Posusney, Judith Baer, Gary Segura, Shirley Geiger, and Jeff Spinner-Halev.

Comments from members are welcome. Please send them to Michael Brintnall (brintnall@apsanet.org) at APSA.

Work & Family Subcommittee Report (PDF)

2003 CONFERENCE FOR CHAIRS
A departmental chairs perspective on creating family-friendly workplaces
sponsored by the APSA Departmental Services Program Committee.

The 2003 Conference for Political Science Department Chairs was dedicated to the topic of family-friendly departments and explored the flexibility chairs have in fostering a more family-friendly workplace.

Post-Conference Summary

The Conference was a great success as family-friendly policies are an important topic for all members of the educational community. Participants found the advice provided by panel discussants to be useful and informative.

Some of the advice to department chairs includes:

Reassess the role of the female faculty in your department and making a conscious effort to groom them into tenure positions as much as their male counterparts;
socializing graduate students into the reality of the profession; and
seriously accepting your position as advocates, innovators and mentors to your faculty.

Panel discussants included Theda Skocpol, APSA President, APSA President; Susan Pharr, Chair, APSA DSC Committee and Department of Political Science, Harvard University; Judith Gruber, Chair, Department of Political Science, University of California-Berkeley; Vita Rabinowitz, Professor of Psychology and co-director of Gender Equity Project, Hunter College, City University of New York; James Sheffield, Chair, Department of Political Science, Wichita State University; Jack Snyder, Columbia University and APSA Council; and Marsha Pripstein Posusney, Bryant College and APSA Council.

Conference Agenda

I. Introductions (20 minutes)

A. Opening from Susan Pharr, Chair, Departmental Services Committee (3 minutes)

B. Welcome and Introduction of Topic, Theda Skocpol (10 minutes)

1. Participants Introduce Themselves, by Name and Institution (7 minutes)

II. Creating Family-Friendly Workplaces: A Chair's Perspective (40 minutes)

Discussants share their experiences and knowledge about options chairs have within their departments

III. Questions and Discussion (60 minutes)

A. Participant comments and questions of discussants welcome (40 minutes)

B. Concluding Question - How can APSA assist department chairs in helping them create more family-friendly workplaces? (20 minutes)

Conference Background
The APSA Conference for Department Chairs is held each year during the APSA Annual Meeting. These conferences are devoted to discussion of issues important to political science department chairs and are part of APSA's Departmental Services Program (DSP).

For information about APSA services for chairs and departments, visit www.apsanet.org/dsp.cfm or contact

Departmental Services Program
American Political Science Assn.
1527 New Hampshire Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20036-1206
Phone: 202.483.2512
Email: dsp@apsanet.org

Friday, August 29, 2003
12:00 - 2:00 PM
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Panel Participants
Theda Skocpol, APSA President, APSA President
Susan Pharr, Chair, APSA DSC Committee and Department of Political Science, Harvard University
Judith Gruber, Chair, Department of Political Science, University of California-Berkeley
Vita Rabinowitz, Professor of Psychology and co-director of Gender Equity Project, Hunter College, City University of New York
James Sheffield, Chair, Department of Political Science, Wichita State University
Jack Snyder, Columbia University and APSA Council
Marsha Pripstein Posusney, Bryant College and APSA Council