Memo from Norman L. Sheets to Kenneth A. Shaw, 1973

TOWSON STATE COLLEGE MEMORANDUM DATE December 18, 1973 TO: Dean Kenneth A. Shaw FROM: Norman L. Sheets SUBJECT: Status of Women Report Following are my comments concerning the report on the Status of Women: 1. On page 2, the conclusion beginning with "women faculty are still concentrated at the bottom of the scale" may be correct if a strict statistical analysis is used. It would seem to me, in order to have a true picture, it would be necessary for a study to be conducted that would show the credentials including degree and years of experience of each faculty member. The end results would be the same as far as the numbers are concerned, but an explanation of why this situation exists would become more clear. 2. The last paragraph on page 2 indicating that the actual number in the upper rank is caused by promotion and hiring practices is true. I think it is an unfair statement, however, to fault the administration for this procedure, since rank, both at the time of appointment and through promotion, originates with departmental committees made up of faculty. In the case of promotion, of course, it also involves divisional committees which are elected faculty. This greatly limits the ability of the administration to control hiring and promotion practices, since to do so would be in direct violation of the governance document and faculty action. 3. I would strongly disagree with the statement on page 3 under table 2-b which indicates that there are certain disciplines in which the doctorate is nearly mandatory. My objection is to the elimination of Audio Visual Communications, Health Science and Physical Education. It would appear that certain departments have been selected in an attempt to influence the statistics to show a foregone conclusion. I would make the same comment with the table included on page 4 where Nursing has been singled out as an atypical department. 4. The conclusion at the bottom of the page 4 is also based on an assumption that cannot be substantiated. In order for a clear picture to be shown