April 20, 2006
The 35 year Club
Last summer, University Week contacted employees who have worked here 35 years or longer and asked them for their reminiscences about the UW over the years. This week’s memories come from Bruce Finlayson, professor of chemical engineering.
In the early 70s, I brought my kids to work one day each during their school vacation. My 6-year-old daughter awakened me to the facts of my field. After following me around for a morning, going to class, etc., we were walking past the Chemistry Building on the way to the HUB for lunch. She looked up at me, her hand in mine, and said, “Daddy, where are all the girls?”
At that time only a few women were in chemical engineering. It wasn’t more than a few years, though, before the percentage was 30, and it has been steady at 40 percent for over a decade.
Probably (soon to be ex Harvard president) Larry Summers wishes he had had a daughter to clue him in. I’m a visual learner, and that remark was so significant that I can point to the spot on campus where my daughter said it (well, within about 10 feet anyway).
