Lehigh ADVANCE began offering periodic full day sessions for women in STEM to devote to their writing practice in 2014. The value of the event is a mulit-disciplinary, multi-rank event where faculty can set individual goals, share their progress and move forward with publications or other scholarly writing. Past participants said preparing for the event was useful, even as much as the time to write. In one day, faculty can experience 3-4 blocks of unstructured writing time to improve writing success, at least one group meal to facilitate connections among faculty, and a time to move, stretch, and be to relax the body and prepare the mind for the work of scientific writing. By keeping the event on campus, participating faculty can maintain their work-life. The time out of the classroom or office means faculty are away from interruptions and devote their time to writing grants, and/or finalizing papers and articles, etc. The impact of this activity will be measured by following up with participants on the outcomes of their writing projects.
A comprehensive set of interlocking programs will maximize the impact of interdisciplinarity in creating and maintaining a critical mass of women STEM faculty.
