The Future of Women in Aviation: Trends in Participation in Postsecondary Aviation Education
Page
Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research
David C. Ison
David C. Ison
Over the past three decades, the enrollments of
women in postsecondary education have grown
significantly. According to the National Center for
Education Statistics, the percentage of undergraduate
studentswho are women grew fiom 42.3 in 1970to 56.1 in
2000
(U.S. Department of Education, 2004)
. By 2005 this
number had risen further to 57.4%
(National Center for
Education Statistics, 2008)
. These figures, however, are
averages across all majors and fields of study. Historically,
though, there have been certain subjects in which women
have lagged such as in the science, technology, engineering
and mathematics (STEM) fields
(Turney, 2004; Babco,
2003)
. In particular, women have consistently been
underrepresentedthroughout the aviation industry
(Hedge,
2007)
.
The importanceofdiversityin higher educationhas been highlighted by a variety of research (Fassinger, 2008; Umbach, 2006; Lockwood, 2005; Turney, et al, 2002; Willdorf,2000; Brinson and Kottler, 1993;Luedtke, 1993).
Thus an assortment of programs and initiatives has been
undertaken over the years to improve women and minority
representation in general and in specific fields
(American
Council on Education, 2008; The Sallie Mae Fund, 2008;
The White House, 2003; W.K. Kellogg Foundations, n.d.)
.
Significanteffort has also been put forth to raise the number
of women and minorities in the STEM fields
(Burke and
Mattis, 2007; Commission on Professionals in Science and
Technology, 2006; Committee on Equal Opportunity in
ScienceandEngineering,2004;Babco,2003)
. Furthermore,
the Federal government and several private organizations
have made concerted efforts to improve participation rates
by women and minorities in the aviation industry
(Federal
Aviation Administration, 2008; The Wolf Aviation Fund,
2008; Federal Aviation Administration, 2007a; Women in
Aviation, 2007)
.
Unfortunately, little research exists that
investigateswhether there has been any improvement in the
quantity of women moving through the aviation industry
supply pipeline, i.e. aviation higher education. This lack of
complete and current data exists for all aspects of
participation by women in postsecondary aviation. The
critical importance of identifLing participation rates of
women in postsecondary aviation is exemplified by the fact
that college degreeshave essentially become a gatekeeper to
the world of professional aviation as the industry in general
has come to favor or require this level of education for
employment
(Hamilton, 2008; U.S. Department of Labor
Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2007; Hanson and Oster, 1997)
.
Of course this data is also critical to aviation human
resources managers because as population demographics
continue to change, the industry will have to increasingly
rely on the employment of women and minority college
graduates
(Turney and Maxtant,2004; Hanson and Oster,
1997; Villazon, 1992)
. Considering the lack of available
data, the efforts that have been put forth to help increase the
participation rates of women in aviation, and the importance
of diversity to the future of the industry, there is a
significant need to quantify and analyze the participation
rates of women in aviation higher education.
Diversity in the Classroom: Women in Higher
Education
Although women have never faced the virulent
opposition to their inclusion in higher education like that
which occurred during desegregation,they were not always
welcome in the postsecondary world. In the colonial era,
"women were excluded &om colleges by statute"
(Thelin,
2004, p. 30)
. However, following the creation ofthe United
States, women began to make limited progress towards
participatingin higher education. "Between 1800 and 1860
at least fourteen institutions enrolled women for advanced
studiesin what is thought to have been 'college-level' work"
(Thelin, 2004, p. 55)
. This was followed by the opening of
the first women's colleges during the mid 19thcentmy. Yet
much of women's educationduringthis period took place in
normal schools which were designed primarily to produce
educators for the nation's youth
(Thelin, 2004)
.
The next significant change for women in higher
education did not take place until after the Civil War when
they were finally allowed to attend institutions side-by-side
with men. Yet, according to
Thelin (2004)
, even though
women were accepted in a coeducational habitat, the
education they received was not always equal. Even in light
of these challenges, women attended schools in record
numbers vastly helping the growth and support of women's
collegesas well as laying the foundations for both curricular
and extracurricular focuses related to women's interests at
other institutions
(Thelin,2004)
. During the early part of the
20" century, the "proportion of women students grew
slowly, fiom 32 to 37 percent (1890-1913), but the
proportion of women in coeducational i (...truncated)