[fullmetal]

Ahhh gotcha :)

[fullmetal]

Ahhh gotcha :)

[oman]

oman, I know what you mean about substantive barriers and this not being a directly substantive barrier, but I think it affects the way women approach the task of finding a job in such an atmosphere, and I'm willing to give Harder the benefit of the doubt when she says that things just got harder now that more caution and due diligence is being applied to this kind of job search.  I mean, I'm also tempted to say 'no big deal,' but I'm not in their shoes...ah well.

Now I will address your post.

I agree with it in terms of the type of networking Harder says will be taken away from her.  My sense is that even though the casual private dinner will be less likely, that in the end it will likely have little effect on the number of interviews (done in daylight at the athletic offices) women may get for these positions.  And that women like Harder will still be sought out by departments who may feel pressure to diversify and hire more women.  Or indeed by people who want to hire her for any other reason related to or unrelated to her qualifications. 

People in all industries hire people based on reasons that most of us don't feel are fair.  If this has a chilling effect on the way universities go about making their hiring decisions, that may be a positive, not a negative thing for applicants as a whole.

The ultimate question is whether it has a chilling effect on the actual hiring of qualified women in these positions.  I guess we will just have to look at the numbers as well as the particular positions involved.  I have no idea whether this particular position "Student Athlete Development Coordinator" is similar to those at other schools, or how those schools staff them.  I'm not sure if various schools will discriminate purposefully one way or the other on certain positions.

But the most critical problem and one that would overwhelm the problems that women face in getting football related positions were best stated by Harder herself in her op-ed:

For the most part, college football is still a man's world. While other college sports have some sort of female equivalent where both genders hold coaching positions, football does not.

I would think in the vast majority of football positions, a legitimate business reason for not hiring would be "I wanted someone who had actually played the game" would carry significant weight. 

Ultimately, it seems to me you can take another more positive conclusion from this situaiton -- well qualified women are going to be in big demand and the non-qualified ones will have a tougher time.

[oman]

oman, I know what you mean about substantive barriers and this not being a directly substantive barrier, but I think it affects the way women approach the task of finding a job in such an atmosphere, and I'm willing to give Harder the benefit of the doubt when she says that things just got harder now that more caution and due diligence is being applied to this kind of job search.  I mean, I'm also tempted to say 'no big deal,' but I'm not in their shoes...ah well.

Now I will address your post.

I agree with it in terms of the type of networking Harder says will be taken away from her.  My sense is that even though the casual private dinner will be less likely, that in the end it will likely have little effect on the number of interviews (done in daylight at the athletic offices) women may get for these positions.  And that women like Harder will still be sought out by departments who may feel pressure to diversify and hire more women.  Or indeed by people who want to hire her for any other reason related to or unrelated to her qualifications. 

People in all industries hire people based on reasons that most of us don't feel are fair.  If this has a chilling effect on the way universities go about making their hiring decisions, that may be a positive, not a negative thing for applicants as a whole.

The ultimate question is whether it has a chilling effect on the actual hiring of qualified women in these positions.  I guess we will just have to look at the numbers as well as the particular positions involved.  I have no idea whether this particular position "Student Athlete Development Coordinator" is similar to those at other schools, or how those schools staff them.  I'm not sure if various schools will discriminate purposefully one way or the other on certain positions.

But the most critical problem and one that would overwhelm the problems that women face in getting football related positions were best stated by Harder herself in her op-ed:

For the most part, college football is still a man's world. While other college sports have some sort of female equivalent where both genders hold coaching positions, football does not.

I would think in the vast majority of football positions, a legitimate business reason for not hiring would be "I wanted someone who had actually played the game" would carry significant weight. 

Ultimately, it seems to me you can take another more positive conclusion from this situaiton -- well qualified women are going to be in big demand and the non-qualified ones will have a tougher time.