Women's College Coalition

Research on women’s colleges has focused primarily on students, generally documenting academic and social benefits of attending these institutions. However, it is also important to explore the professoriate at women’s colleges, as faculty play an important role in shaping the climate for students. One question is whether faculty at women’s colleges are similar to those teaching at small, liberal arts colleges, or whether they might be additionally characterized as highlighting “womencentered” educational approaches. This report reveals whether faculty at women’s colleges are distinguished by such traits, whether they are notably different from faculty at other small colleges, and whether faculty gender plays a role in explaining the differences that are observed.