The section titled “Where Are All the Men?” from Mitch Daniels’2022 Annual Open Letter to the People of Purdue from Mitch Daniels.
If 2020 was the year when a search for value asserted itself, 2021 was the year when the nation finally discovered an issue long in plain view. Sparked by a major article in The Wall Street Journal, a host of journals began examining the 3:2 disparity in women to men on college campuses. The New York Times reported, “The latest enrollment numbers for Spring 2021 show a record gap between the sexes.”
There is nothing new about the phenomenon; it dates back at least three decades. What was new was the dawning realization that, in a knowledge economy where educational credentials and the skills that (theoretically) they confer are more and more essential, leaving half the population behind would be a problem for society. Again, The New York Times reported, “The simple mathematics of more women than men earning college degrees means that many highly educated women will either have to partner with less-educated men, or forgo partnership,” resulting in a lower birthrate. How ironic if, after a half- century of historic, overdue progress integrating women fully into the nation’s economic, social and political life, we gave back the immense societal gains of that climb because men stopped holding up their end.
Assuming one agrees that this is a problem, Purdue is playing a part in addressing it. Our historic average of about 57% men in the undergraduate population has held remarkably steady, even as many other schools saw that share drop to the low 40’s or even lower. There is no intention behind this against the trend position, and no mystery about the reasons. Young men and women select into various disciplines at very different rates, and the STEM subjects which are relatively predominant at Purdue tend to attract men.
We have, and will extend, a host of programs to recruit more women into these disciplines. As one example, our 26% female share of engineering students is one of the nation’s highest. (I have sometimes observed that no one ever writes to express concern that we need more men in our 87% female veterinary medicine college, or our 89% female nursing department, or our 64% female college of pharmacy.) Purdue cannot solve this looming national problem, but sending out thousands of exceptional young engineers, computer scientists, and other technology experts who happen to be men is a contribution few other institutions are making.
C: Purdue is making its contribution to society by sending out exceptional experts regards of their gender.
D: There is a 3:2 disparity in women to men on college campuses.
G: In a knowledge economy where educational credentials and skills are essential, the gap between the sexs entering college is a serious problem for society
M: Purdue has a relatively stable 57% men in the undergraduate population due to its relatively predominant STEM subjects attracting men.
W: Purdue has programs to recruit more women into STEM disciplines.
C: Purdue is making its contribution to society by sending out exceptional experts regards of their gender.
$(D \& G \& M \& W) \supset C$.