Issues surrounding women and racial minority college faculty have been a recurring them in my blog, especially in regard to the challenges that they face in succeeding that frankly, White male professors are less likely to face. Along those same lines, Inside Higher Education reports that a new study argues that while colleges and universities often have welcoming-sounding policies in place, the actual collegial climate in a particular department may be quite different for women and minority junior faculty:

[T]he study pointed to the importance of remembering the difference between establishing sound policies (which many institutions have done) and making sure that they are effective and working for everyone (which is more difficult). “A change in policy does not necessarily mean a change in practice or climate,” [the study’s authors] said.

In many cases, colleges that have adopted policies may need “to drill down” to the department level to see why they are or aren’t working. The breakdowns on climate and collegiality are important, Trower said, because professors entering academe today are more likely to place a high value on such qualities than were previous generations of academics, who might have been more likely to accept a lousy a climate at a prestigious institution. . . .

Women see upper limits on teaching and committee assignments as a more important issue than do men. Women are more likely to value stop-the-clock policies on tenure, child care, and the availability of paid or unpaid personal leave. Junior faculty who are not white are much more likely than their white colleagues to see child care and a spousal hiring program as important.

Actually, the study’s finding that what exists in principle at the university level doesn’t always translate smoothly onto the departmental level is not new. In fact, this discrepancy occurs frequently as departments have a lot of latitude in determining how to take action on particular university-wide “goals” such as who to hire and what benefits to give to particular professors.

In my relatively limited experience as a faculty member, I recognize that there are both benefits and drawbacks to giving departments significant power to implement general university-wide goals. However, when it comes to diversifying faculty to be more inclusive and welcoming towards women and racial minorities, the White male establishment culture that exists in many departments is an incredible barrier to overcome.