Closing the Girl Gap in Science

Article here. Excerpt:

'At most colleges and universities, women outnumber men — at 57 percent nationally. But Southern finds itself among a smattering of campuses with a few too many good men: women make up just 44 percent of undergraduates. And over all, only about 30 percent of Southern’s students in STEM fields — science, technology, engineering and math — are women.

Flanking the cheer camp director at an evening pep rally last summer, two university recruiters tossed out beach balls and pumped up Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” whipping an already raucous crowd into a frenzy of gleeful shrieking. They passed out raffle prizes to the girls who had diligently completed “Saluki V.I.P.” information cards. Within 24 hours, the office of admissions had created for each an individualized Web page so recruiters could keep in touch, encouraging the girls to visit Carbondale and, ultimately, apply for admission.

“The idea is that any pre-college-age group of girls who are visiting the university should be in touch with our recruitment staff, not in a heavy-handed way, but as an opportunity to get the message out that coming to S.I.U. can transform their lives,” says Rita Cheng, the university’s new chancellor and first woman in the post.'

It's not enough that women generally outnumber men on college campuses, and earn more advanced degrees, too, and are getting higher GPAs. It's that if there are even a few campuses where men outnumber women, that is insufferable. And if there are any depts. where there are more male students than female, that too needs immediate redress, and the national press needs to shine the spotlight on it. Hey, anyone ever see the MSM complain about the near-total lack of men in nursing, a relatively well-compensated field? Not me. Not once.