When people question whether it matters or not that the administration and staff at Fairfield University are dominated by a male population, I have to laugh. Out loud. Ah, yes, let the best man win and, in this instance, get the job. I have no doubt that the university wants only the creme of the crop, and for whatever reason or another, the majority of them happen to be men. Oops, “our bad.”
That’s just not good enough in my mind and it does, indeed, matter. I am an English major who has yet to take an English class with a female professor. Consequence, maybe. But, I am a junior who has taken a total of seven English literature and writing courses. Women-related issues nearly jump off the pages of some of the contemporary literature I have read here and it would be nice, and perhaps even intellectually stimulating, if I could discuss them with an educated woman. Yes, I know, there are female English professors, but they are few and far between.
Even more so, in a country that has yet to see a woman president, it would be encouraging to look up to female administrators. We live through example. And an environment that quietly, and probably subconsciously, nurtures a society that is primarily governed by males provides poor reiteration for us.
I know that this is a problem that has been discussed and hopefully even addressed in some factions of the school, and we certainly don’t stand alone in dealing with it. But lets try harder. Research, interview and find more women who can help to diversify Fairfield. Because it matters, trust me.
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