If You Overlook Women and Girls In Science – You’re Missing Half the Picture

Feb. 11 is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science – a day to recognize the important role women and girls play in science and technology communities. The theme of 2019 is “Investment in Women and Girls in Science for Inclusive Green Growth.”

Dr. Lisa Manning is an associate professor in the Physics Department at Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences. Manning explains her love of her science and its ties to discovery in this VIDEO. She details why women and girls must be given access to scientific resources, experiences and education to move the field forward.

Manning says:

“I think it’s really important for women and girls to think about science as an area that they can excel for many reasons. First of all, it’s about fairness. I think that the diversity of our world is reflected in who scientists are. We get products that are better that are able to be used by a wider variety of people. We also have this idea that things that are more technological are for men. I think having everybody have access to those things enables them to be more creative, to do more exciting things.

“I think having women in science and engineering enables us to see things in a different way and see things in a broader way and understand or discover things we may not have had access to before.

“If we don’t involve women and girls in our workforce, especially science and engineering, then we’re just missing out on 50 percent of the world. We don’t want to do that. We want everyone to be excited and involved in the scientific enterprise.”

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Sharon Dotger is an associate professor at Syracuse University’s School of Education, whose research and training focus is on how students learn science and how learning is related to teaching. She says institutions need to create actionable policies to support women and girls pursue science education.

Dotger says:

“Internationally, men dominate the sciences. This problem, however, is not for women and girls to address on their own. If parity is the goal, institutions, such as our own, need to develop actionable policies that support women and girls’ complete participation in the full scope of the science enterprise. This includes science education.”

To request interviews or get more information:

Daryl Lovell
Media Relations Manager
Division of Marketing and Communications

T 315.443.1184   M 315.380.0206
dalovell@syr.edu | @DarylLovell

Syracuse University