Professor Mommy: Finding Work-Family Balance in Academia

247 Pages·2011·1.76 MB·English

by  Rachel Connelly

Praise for Professor Mommy
“Bowdoin faculty members Connelly and Ghodsee are mothers who’ve strug-
gled with the challenges of research, teaching, publishing, and caring for chil-
dren in defiance of the conventional wisdom that women in academia have
to choose between family and career. . . . They are frank about sacrifices and
challenges encountered during graduate study and the PhD dissertation, and
they detail the hurdles presented by low salaries, undesirable work locations,
and long working hours. But they also note the rewards of both academic life
and motherhood. Women interested in careers in academia should appreciate
this helpful, encouraging resource.”
—Booklist
“Two Bowdoin College professors address the challenges of pursuing an aca-
demic career while raising children, offering counsel and advice to women
seeking to combine ‘the life of the mind with the joys of motherhood.’ . . . A
well-presented guidebook for academics.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Professor Mommy addresses many concerns of professional women in aca-
demia who desire to combine their professions with motherhood . . . . An
overall outstanding read.”
—Journal of Employment Counseling
“With this new how-to guide for mothers in academia, Rachel Connelly
and Kristen Ghodsee invite women academics to muster their courage and
proceed despite the potential pitfalls. Their unblinking analysis of the risks
and rewards of combining academic life with motherhood is a welcome and
unique addition to the literature on the topic. . . . The book is an essential
resource for anyone considering the life of a ‘professor mommy.’”
—On Campus With Women,
Association of American Colleges and Universities
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“Don’t believe the myths—you can conquer the academy while raising chil-
dren. It isn’t easy but few worthwhile things in life are. Connelly and Ghodsee
show, step by step, how smart women win at work and win at home by pro-
tecting their time and focusing on what matters most (hint: it’s not grading
papers or ironing shirts!).”
—Laura Vanderkam, author of
168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think
“Rachel Connelly and Kristen Ghodsee have written a book that is not just
a must-read for anyone contemplating the intricate and as-yet imperfect
balance of academic life and family life but for anyone at all interested in
promoting equity in the workplace and, more importantly, in the world of
ideas. They show it is not easy, but it is indeed possible to be both a successful
academic and a loving parent with a rich family life. More, Professor Mommy
is a call to action: that lasting change and that longed-for balance will come
only when men become aware of the stacked deck against women and when
women academics make the hard decision not to opt out but to opt in, writ-
ing, publishing, thinking, promoting their ideas, and by their very presence,
change the calcified system from within.”
—Brigid Schulte, Washington Post; Pulitzer Prize co-winner
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Professor Mommy
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Professor Mommy
Finding Work-Family
Balance in Academia
RACHEL CONNELLY AND
KRISTEN GHODSEE
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC.
Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK
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Published by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706
http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com
Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom
Copyright © 2011 by Rachel Connelly and Kristen Ghodsee
Preface and afterword copyright © 2014 by Rachel Connelly and Kristen Ghodsee
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems,
without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote
passages in a review.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
The hardback edition of this book was previously cataloged by the Library of Congress as
follows:
Connelly, Rachel.
Professor mommy : finding work-family balance in academia / Rachel Connelly and
Kristen Ghodsee.
p. cm.
Includes index.
1. Women college teachers—United States—Social conditions. 2. Women in higher
education—United States—Social conditions. 3. Work and family—United States.
4. Working mothers—United States. I. Ghodsee, Kristen Rogheh, 1970– II. Title.
LB2332.3.C66 2011
378.082—dc22 2011006009
ISBN 978-1-4422-0858-2 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-4422-0859-9 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-4422-0860-5 (electronic)
™
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for
Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Printed in the United States of America
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For our children
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Contents
Preface to the Paperback Edition xi
Acknowledgments xvii
Introduction: Why We Decided to Write This Book and
Who We Are Anyway 1
1 A Success Story—Told with the 20/20 Vision of Hindsight 13
2 T he Nefarious Nine, or The Not-So-Pretty Truth about
Motherhood and Academia 23
3 K now Thyself, Part I: On Deciding to Become an Academic 41
4 K now Thyself, Part II: Deciding Whether to Become a Mother,
How Many Children to Have, and When to Have Them 63
5 T he Last Year of Graduate School: Heading for the Job Market
and Choosing the Right Institution 83
6 O n the Tenure Track, Part I: Research and Networking 111
7 O n the Tenure Track, Part II: Teaching, Service, and Finding
Time for Your Family 135
8 S o You Made It: The Early Years after Tenure 157
9 C oming Up for Full Professor: Your Last Promotion 171
ix
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