Two CMU Computer Science Professors Resign, Citing “sexist management”
post-gazette.com
post-gazette.com
They won't consider how much you "demonstrated interest" in CS to get into the program. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17446996 [Edit: this isn't only for the CS program, and it's not only about women, but you can fill in the blanks I guess]
I think it makes sense if you think women (IIRC this was about the gender gap in CS) tend not to be directed toward CS as much as men are in middle/high school, or if you think their accomplishments might have been downplayed or not played up as much due to someone else's sexism. After all when you're recruiting for college you don't care so much about a person's past accomplishments so much as future potential.
[1] https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/2018...
After reading this article, I have to reserve judgement. There aren't specifics yet, just people who I am interested in listening to and wish to hear more from. We may come to know eventually, but we don't know yet.
He left Berkeley to CMU to stay close to his son, Avrim Blum then at CMU, and grand kids. Avrim moved to Toyota Technological Inst, Chicago for greener pastures last year.
It is kind of expected of Prof Blum couple to leave CMU to Chicago to stay close with his son. Wish they had given more substance to their claims of 'sexist management'.
Just because they didn't share the substance with you, doesn't mean they didn't share it with CMU administrators.
I don't know how academia works, but what is the implication of "resigning" vs "retiring"? Does that change what happens with pensions or is it just a semantic difference used for emphasis?
Resigning = I don't want to work here anymore
They are trying to emphasize that they are leaving because of dissatisfaction with the school, not just because they are old and are ready to stop working.
Is there any news out there with info on whether this is a long-term or widespread issue at CMU or is it more of a localized problem?
It's incongruent to see these two figures share the same podium. (See it while you can: https://www.cmu.edu/swartz-center-for-entrepreneurship/about... )
^-- this archive link seems to work fine.
Lenore and Manuel Blum — both longtime professors of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University — have submitted their resignations.
In a Monday morning email blast to staffers in the School of Computer Science, Ms. Blum, founder of the university’s Project Olympus business incubator, made accusations about “professional harassment” and “sexist management” on the school’s Oakland campus over the last three years.
In the email obtained by the Post-Gazette, she pointed specifically to changes made in recent years under a “new entrepreneurial management structure on campus.”
Monday evening, Ms. Blum confirmed the resignations, noting they will take effect Aug. 31, 2019, as the couple have been on sabbatical for the past year.
“Carnegie Mellon University is saddened by Lenore and Manuel Blum’s decision to resign from the university. We recognize their lasting contributions to the university, the City of Pittsburgh, and to the field of computer science,” CMU spokesperson Abby Simmons said in an emailed statement.
“Lenore and Manuel raised some important issues in the email announcing their resignation,” she continued. “Please know that we are committed to examining them, and acting accordingly on our findings.”
The Blums have compiled impressive resumes.
Ms. Blum, 75, who earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1968, has been a professor of computer science at CMU since 1999.
She is the founder and faculty adviser for the university group “Women@SCS,” which has a mission to empower women's academic, social and professional opportunities in the computer sciences.
In 2007, she founded CMU’s Project Olympus startup incubator, which has supported a number of successful companies on campus. For example, portfolio company Safaba was acquired by Amazon in September 2015 for its automated text translation software and Facebook bought Faciometrics in November 2016 to boost its facial recognition algorithms.
Manuel Blum, 80, who also holds a Ph.D. in mathematics from MIT, has been a professor of computer science at CMU since 2001.
In 1995, he received the Turing Award — the highest honor in the computer science field, often likened to the Nobel Prize — for his contributions to the foundations of computational complexity theory.
Ms. Blum, in her email, did not detail specifics as to what drove the decision to resign beyond describing an atmosphere that she felt put up roadblocks and kept her out of major decisions, including refusals to answer her emails. On numerous occasions, she wrote, she tried to resolve troublesome situations, but they have not been resolved.
“So we are resigning. We are not retiring, we are resigning,” she wrote. “No parties please.”
To me, what they have done by resigning is not more significant than someone young in their career simply speaking out. It is commendable that they spoke out, but I don't see the resignations as adding much punch.
as a someone in graduate school for computer science [not cmu] I find this shocking and am INTENSELY curious about the details. hard to imagine a more effective resignation.
imagine if steve jobs resigned from apple because the boards was being sexist or something-I think that resignation would get a LOT of attention. that might be sorta similar to this situation.
First, because of their gravitas as prestigious researchers. (I'm actually a bit uncomfortable about that -- most people who experience gender discrimination haven't won Turing Awards, but we should still listen to them.)
Second, because sticking your neck out about gender issues guarantees a ferocious response and will make your life hell, so nobody does it whimsically. So what if they're not 35? Doing this at 75/80 is still incredibly unpleasant.
Like I said in my other post, I think we as members of the public do not have enough information to pass judgment. But if the Blums choose to say more, I hope we will all give them a fair hearing.
One might almost hear a tinge of regret that they aren't retiring now with a nice party at UC Berkeley....