Behind the Pay Gap
Campus Action Project Teams

The 2007-2008 Campus Action Project provides a platform to raise awareness of an important issue young women face as they transition from undergraduate studies to first careers and graduate school- the inequity in pay between women and men in the workplace.

AAUW Leadership and Training Institute is pleased to announce this year’s Campus Action Project (CAP) grant awardees. Seven teams from around the country have been selected to implement projects based on recommendations from the AAUW Educational Foundation research report Behind the Pay Gap that was released in spring 2007. The selected projects focus on promoting careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) among women and girls; encouraging women to negotiate for better quality jobs and pay; and raising awareness of the gender pay gap with the goal of ending gender discrimination.

Alfred University, Alfred, NY
Dreams to Reality
The goal of this project is to put a face on the gender pay gap to raise student awareness of the issue. The centerpiece of this project will be a student-produced and directed documentary highlighting the financial hopes, dreams, and realities of Alfred University (AU) alumni one and 10 years after graduation, to draw parallels to AAUW Educational Foundation research. The Alfred University CAP team will also organize and sponsor skill-building workshops to ensure that students acquire skills as well as awareness, so they can work to achieve economic equity in their lives and in the larger society.

Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA
Negotiating Cents for Women
The team from Bucknell University will sponsor a series of events to educate students about the persistent gender pay gap. The events will focus on teaching negotiation skills and on promoting science, technology, engineering, and math fields to women and girls. Planned events include a presentation by a noted woman expert on the art of wage negotiation; a workshop series developed in conjunction with the Women’s Resource Center and the Career Development Center to focus on resume and cover letter writing, interviewing skills, and budgeting; and a service learning project targeted at girls that will both promote interest in STEM careers and teach negotiation skills from a very young age.

Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY
Negotiations U
This project is designed to empower women students to learn and use evidence-based negotiations strategies and techniques in professional and work situations and to provide a safe space for women to learn to participate actively in negotiations. The CAP team will identify a group of 10-15 women student leaders who will research, develop, and deliver salary negotiations training to their peers on the Clarkson University campus. The project will culminate with a negotiations contest where students who participated in the training sessions will be able to use the skills and concepts taught in the trainings to compete for prizes.

Dakota State University, Madison, SD
Careers for Women in Science and Technology
The Women in Science and Technology program at the Dakota State University strives to mentor and retain women students in traditionally male dominated science and technology fields. This CAP project supports this endeavor by helping to prepare and increase women students’ awareness of local and regional career opportunities in science and technology fields. The project will focus on the following: teaching students job search and interviewing techniques specifically geared to scientific research fields, organizing field trips to local science and technology employers, and sponsoring a Women in Science and Technology (WIST) speaker series to provide students with networking opportunities with professional women in science and technology.

Purdue University- Calumet, Hammond, IN
Podcast Mentoring for Wage Equity and Women’s Economic Empowerment in northwest Indiana
A faculty-student team will develop a series of mentoring podcasts on the gender wage gap and remedies women can use to increase their earnings. The podcasts will include educational content on the causes and consequences of the wage gap, instructional content on job interview techniques, salary negotiation, and motivational messages narrated by successful professional women. The project places special emphasis on engaging and supporting Latinas who, on average, earn the lowest wages in northwest Indiana.

Rogue Community College- Riverside, Medford, OR
Education and Pay Equity Conference
The Rogue Community College (RCC) CAP team will sponsor the Education and Pay Equity Conference on Equal Pay Day 2008. The team will promote the conference to local high school and college women who want to learn about technical majors and better paying careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)—a key AAUW pay equity strategy. The conference will feature motivational speakers, informational sessions on the history of pay equity, and hands-on activities to introduce participants to technical careers. The team will also create a conference Web-page and a pay-equity tool kit to support the conference activities and plans to provide follow-up academic advising guidance and support to women and girls who are interested in learning more about STEM fields.

University of Alaska- Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK
Behind the Pay Gap: The Now You Know Campaign
The objectives of this project are to raise awareness of the gender pay gap, teach students practical skills in negotiation strategies, and initiate commemoration of Equal Pay Day at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. The public service campaign will feature vignettes developed and performed by the Now You Know Players student performance group that highlight issues related to the gender pay gap and demonstrate how to negotiate for salary, benefits, and other job conditions. The performances will be supported by a wider media campaign designed to educate the campus and raise awareness of the pay gap.

Questions? Call AAUW's Leadership and Training Institute at 202/728/3318 or send an e-mail to lti@aauw.org.