There are a number of *solutions* being bounced around here, but the
problem we are actually able to solve for our own community is a little
bit fuzzy to me. I'd like to try to summarize along with the
suggestions on measurable goals that may address it (none mutually
exclusive). Please correct me if I'm mistaken.
Our Problem:
There is a perception of exclusivity in the Code4Lib community, which
discourages participation by those who are not white, male, and
experienced hackers.
Actionable and measurable goals to make it more inclusive:
#1: Increase Diversity in Presenters
#2: Find mentors for those who want to learn how to hack or improve
their chops to help build confidence and participation
The problem with Code4Lib4Women...
Diversity allows us to see the world from multiple perspectives, adding
greater value to our work. It also makes people of all backgrounds feel
welcome and included. By segregating the community in such a way,
Code4Lib does not benefit from diversification. Inclusion should be our
goal, not segregation.
On mentorship...
I really like the mentorship suggestion as I would not know how to hack
if I didn't have a mentor to show me the ropes, and Laura is dead on:
you don't get this stuff in library school (yet?). I don't think it's
as simple as the wiki list to see who knows what and who wants to learn
what -- that's not mentorship.
In my opinion, a potential hacker needs to SEE how experienced hackers
work and solve specific problems. Then the noob needs to try hacking in
the wild and have a welcoming individual (not an intimidating
listserv/chatroom) to answer questions.
In that respect, I would suggest the preconference hackfests/workshops
that involve some kind of pair programming with
experienced/inexperienced hackers, which could follow up into a mentor
relationship outside of the conference. I do like the idea of
mentor/mentee speed-dating to align interests, but in this sense, the
workshop/hackfest you sign up for kind of does that for you (assuming
all the preconference proposals[1] are actually going to happen).
[1] http://wiki.code4lib.org/index.php/2013_preconference_proposals
-Shaun
On 11/28/12 2:56 PM, Erik Hetzner wrote:
> At Tue, 27 Nov 2012 10:35:54 -0500,
> Laura B. Palumbo wrote:
>>
>> As a soon to be librarian and a female engineer, I can tell you that your
>> numbers generally reflect the status of women in the STEM areas as a
>> whole. According to the Economics and Statistics Administration, women
>> hold less than 25% of tech jobs (2009). I think that you are right on
>> target in wondering how to attract more women into the techy end of
>> libraries; in addition to promoting STEM areas to young women, I feel that
>> a good place to start is to advocate for more integration of coding
>> (beyond basic web design) into required library courses.
>
> Hi all,
>
> CS (computing, programming, library tech, etc.) is especially
> distressing because women are a) underrepresented when compared to
> most other STEM fields (save perhaps engineering or physics), and b)
> the underrepresentation of women has been getting *worse* in CS over
> the past 20 years.
>
> See, e.g., [1] and [2]
>
> best, Erik
>
> 1. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/business/16digi.html
> 2. http://crookedtimber.org/2011/02/04/gender-divides-in-philosophy-and-other-disciplines/
>
>
>
> Sent from my free software system <http://fsf.org/>.
>
--
Shaun D. Ellis
Digital Library Interface Developer
Firestone Library, Princeton University
voice: 609.258.1698 | [log in to unmask]
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