Women in Science and Healthcare (WiSH)

WiSH has two missions:

1. To highlight the accomplishments of female scientists and clinicians.
2. To interrogate the causes of and solutions for persistent hurdles to women’s advancement in STEM.

The Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science (RFUMS) Women in Science and Healthcare (WiSH) Annual Symposium was launched in 2016 to honor our namesake, an international icon for women in science. Rosalind Franklin’s unparalleled X-ray crystallography captured proof of the double-helical structure of DNA, launching an ongoing revolution in medical genetics. RFUMS is the only U.S. health sciences university named for a woman, honoring Dr. Franklin’s brilliance and perseverance in the face of gender discrimination that continues today in science, technology, engineering, math (STEM), and healthcare professions.

Across healthcare and biomedical research, women comprise a sizable majority of the workforce but a small minority of leaders and are consistently paid less than male counterparts. The WiSH Symposium and Speaker Series confronts these disparities, examines their causes, and explores ways to overcome them through lectures, workshops, panel discussions, and student engagement.

Upcoming Events

Announcement for next year's WiSH Symposium coming soon!

 

Past Events

March 20, 2023 - WiSH Seminar Series
Speaker: Lilia Cortina, PhD
University Diversity and Social Transformation
Professor of Psychology, Women’s & Gender
Studies, and Management & Organizations
University of Michigan

 

"Sexual Harassment in the Academy: From Science to Solutions"

 

February 1, 2023 - WiSH Seminar Series
Speaker: Professor Katie Watson, JD
Associate Professor of Medical Education, Medical Social Sciences, and Ob/Gyn
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Author - Scarlet A: The Ethics, Law and Politics of Ordinary Abortion (Oxford 2018)

"Are Women Still People Under the Constitution? Reproductive Justice, Women's Personhood, and the Contemporary Abortion Debate"

 

October 24, 2022 - 7th Annual WiSH Symposium:
Women's Bodies Under the Microscope

Keynote Speaker & Panelist: Paula A. Johnson, MD, MPH, President, Wellesley College.

"Sex Does Matter: How Sex, Gender, and Race Impact Science and Medicine"

 

April 13, 2022 - WiSH Seminar Series

Speaker: Lisa VanHoose PT, PhD, MPH, FAAPT, Clinical Professor - Physical Therapy Department, Baylor University.
Owner and Executive Director of the Ujima Institute

"Building a Culture of Ujima for Female Success"

September 23, 2021 - 6th Annual WiSH Symposium:
Intersectionality Under the Microscope

Keynote Speaker & Panelist: Jioni A. Lewis, PhD, Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology, University of Maryland.

"Applying Intersectionality to Center Black Women in Health Equity"

 

October 13, 2021 - WiSH Seminar Series

Speaker: Eve Marder, PhD, Victor and Gwendolyn Beinfield Professor of Neuroscience & Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham MA. 

"When to Stay and When to Go"

 

December 9, 2021 - WiSH Seminar Series

Speaker: Amy Gottlieb, MD, FACP, Chief Faculty Development Officer, Baystate Health.
Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, UMass Chan Medical School-Baystate. 

"Closing the Gender Pay Gap in Medicine: Identifying Drivers of Inequity and Devising Solutions"

 

 

The Annual Symposium

Each year we explore a different aspect of the problem, symbolized by the iconic photo of Dr. Franklin and “Under the Microscope” title.

• 2016: Gender Bias Under the Microscope (keynotes by Mahzarin Banaji and Sarah Richardson, both of Harvard University)
• 2017: Gender Segregation in Healthcare Professions (keynote Ann Bell, Univ. Delaware)
• 2018: Gendered Innovations in Science and Healthcare (keynote Londa Schiebinger, Stanford Univ.)
• 2019: Sexual Harassment Under the Microscope (keynote Veronica Arreola, Univ. Illinois)
• 2020: HERSTORY Under the Microscope: Celebrating Rosalind Franklin’s 100 Year Legacy (keynote Robin Jensen, Univ. Utah)
• 2021: Intersectionality Under the Microscope: Applying Intersectionality to Center Black Women in Health Equity (keynote Jioni Lewis, Univ. Maryland)

 

Seminar Series

In 2020-21, we marked the centennial of Dr. Franklin’s birth with a seminar series showcasing how “her-story” has poignantly influenced women in STEM.

To go deeper into the theme of each symposium, a seminar series is being launched to continue the conversation through the academic year.