Initiatives

Leadership Development

Our goal is to develop and enhance the academic environment for women faculty and trainees through networking, mentorship, professional development and advocacy.

Tracking Gender Equity

The Women’s Task Force tracks gender balance in leadership roles within the Cancer Center, in seminar and symposium speakers, and internal awards. The task force also monitors salary equity.

Surveys

The Women’s Task Force has surveyed female and male faculty members in a Hillman Cancer Center Climate Survey and is currently developing a survey for new parents.

Networking and Career Development Initiatives

Our goal is to bring female faculty and trainees together to discuss topics such as mentoring, negotiation skills, work-life balance and career advancement.  We have monthly Female Faculty/Trainee Luncheons that focus on these areas.

Education

To promote gender equity and awareness of implicit biases, we have bi-annual training sessions with the Title IX Office at the University of Pittsburgh.  In addition, we have been presenting our findings through posters at the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Annual Scientific Retreat and to the broader community annually at the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Basic Science Seminar Series.  We have also been sharing our initiatives with other departments throughout the campus.

Guidelines

The Women’s Task Force has created a faculty guideline for bringing children to work, gender equity policies for the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Basic Science Seminar Series, and for UPMC Hillman Cancer Center funded workshops, symposiums and the annual retreat.