For Women To Stay In Computer Science, Supportive Environment Is Key

The building only has room for one, and for a while it was men-only.

“But when the computer science department moved up there, they came into that area and they insisted that it was changed to a female bathroom,” says Rose-Hulman computer science professor David Fisher. “And the reason was because it sent a message that we’re a boys club, and they didn’t want to do that.”

He says it’s just one piece of the gender-inclusive puzzle the school is grappling with as the number of women in the major increases.

But the environment university officials are most focused on changing is in the classroom.

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• Source: Wbaa

Universities are seeing success in recruiting more women to their computer science programs, but making sure they want to stay in the major is a different challenge. And colleges can struggle to make sure the environment is as inclusive as possible. For example, in the computer science department at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, there’s only one bathroom.

Read more at: wbaa.org