Affirmative action brings women to top administration. (In Her Own Words).

During the past decade, colleges and universities have emphasized hiring women, with increased efforts to prepare, recruit and retain women in top administration.

Affirmative action to increase diversity has been controversial from the very start, especially in the past few years. Some claim that women got senior jobs not as the best candidates but at the expense of white males, blaming the affirmative action.

In many professions, women have made important gains. In 1960, there were 50 million women in the workforce and 97 million men; by 2000, the workforce was expected to have 135 million women and 150 million men.

But the news has not been all positive on campus. While the number of women working in higher education increased, a disproportionate number remain in lower paying, lower-growth jobs. A 1991 report on affirmative action found that, "While some progress has been made, two decades of affirmative action have not substantially altered the percentage of minorities and women in higher education faculty and professional ranks."

Women as faculty and presidents

Women are still far from equal on campus. Assessing the impact of affirmative action in last two decades shows progress in the professorate has been modest: Female professors increased from 36% in 1983 to 44% in 1995.

But in the college presidency, women have made important progress. From 1986 to 2001 the number of women who head colleges and universities doubled from 9.5% to 21.1%, up from just 5% in 1975.