Public policy

WE13 Session: “What Does Public Policy Mean for Women Engineers?”

Paula Stenzler

Chair, Government Relations and Public Policy Committee

Agenda

• Welcome/ Overview

• Participant Ask

• GRPP- Who are we?

• Current Environment

• Current Public Policy Issues Related to Women and STEM

• Talking Points

• Importance of Congressional Visits/ Action Alerts

• Repeat Participant Ask/ Q&A

• Closing Remarks

Participant Ask

• You are about to learn about four diversity in STEM bills SWE supports.

• Post-session, we will be asking you to go to the SWE public policy web site, and review an “action alert” that urges you to contact your Representative and two Senators to support these four bills.

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GRPP- Who Are We?

• Government Relations & Public Policy (GRPP)

Committee: • Chair: Paula Stenzler

• Chair-Elect: Betty Irish

•GRPP Board and HQ Contact: • Betty Shanahan, SWE Executive Director and CEO

• Part-time Representation in Washington: • Melissa Carl, SWE Washington Representative

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SWE Public Policy Focus Areas

• Title IX and STEM

•SWE is the lead organization

•Primary area for the focus of SWE’s efforts

• K-12 STEM Education

•SWE is a supporting organization – others lead this effort

• Affirmative Action / Equal Opportunity

•Fills gap in policy statements related to women in the non-academic workforce

•Primarily for educational or informational purposes for our members

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Non-profit, Non-partisan

• SWE is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit professional organization. SWE is non-partisan, bi-partisan in its advocacy activities.

• SWE strictly follows IRS guidelines related to advocacy/ lobbying.

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Important!

• A SWE member must be expressly authorized by the SWE

President or Executive Director to represent the Society,

and present or explain approved SWE statements or

positions; i.e. Congressional testimony before House/

Senate Committees.

• Without this authorization, any statement by a member

must be identified as providing a personal viewpoint.

When you are meeting with your Member of Congress, you

are supporting SWE’s position.

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Current Environment

Melissa Carl

SWE Washington Representative

Current Environment (cont.)

• On October 1st, the federal government shut down for the first time in 17 years

• The White House Office of Management and Budget has posted the shutdown contingency plans of the federal science and engineering agencies on its web site.

Current Environment (cont.)

• Previously, sequestration from the Budget Control Act commenced in March of 2013

• Non-defense discretionary spending now faces a 5.5% to 7.8% cut annually over the next ten years, while defense discretionary spending faces a 8.5% to 10% cut annually

Current Environment (cont.)

• Even in the pre-sequester constrained environment, President Obama had sought to maintain funding for non-defense research and development (R&D) and STEM education.

• In FY 12, Congress cut his request, but provided much more for R&D and STEM education than many expected.

• As of March 1, the federal science and engineering agencies were subject to the sequester. Agencies are implementing it in very different ways.

Profile of Congress

• 75 new Members of House and 14 new Senators were elected in November of 2012.

• For the first time, 101 women serve in Congress (20 Senators, 78 Representatives and 3 Delegates)

• This House Democratic Caucus is the most diverse in its history.

• 80 women

• 43 African American members (15 African American women, including 2 delegates)

• 27 Hispanic members, including 1 delegate and the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico (7 Hispanic women)

• 12 Asian/ Pacific Islander members (6 women)

Profile of Congress (cont.)

• According to Congressional Research Service (CRS), only 19 members of the 113th Congress have PhDs, while 21 members of the House and 1 member of the Senate have no educational degree beyond a high school diploma.

• While there are 169 Members of Congress who have law degrees, there are only 11 Representatives with engineering degrees and 1 Senator

Spending Divide

• Current budget impasse

• Need to pass a continuing resolution for government to be fully open again

• FY 2014 House budget resolution, which reduced federal budget more than the sequester

• FY 2014 Senate budget resolution

• Sequestration

• President Obama’s FY14 budget (was released April 8- dead on arrival in Congress, both Republicans and Democrats)

Current Public Policy Issues Related to Women and STEM

Paula Stenzler

FY14 Chair, SWE Government Relations and Public Policy Committee

Core Message

• Through the recent visits and action alert, we are educating Members and staff about how a commitment to attaining a diverse and inclusive U.S. science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce would help maintain our competitiveness through innovation.

• However, we need to acknowledge the current budget situation, and the fact that Congress must prioritize funding.

Core Message

• Women and other under-represented groups currently represent only a small portion of the STEM workforce.

• While funding for R&D and STEM education are important, Congress and the Administration must prioritize resources to those efforts that target underrepresented groups in STEM; i.e. the ADVANCE program.

Changing Demographics

5.6%

76.2%

3.2%

0.3%

14.8%

U.S. Population

(Census Bureau, 2010)

U.S. Engineers

(NSF, 2010)

Women as percent of selected U.S. occupations, 2011

Core Message (cont.)

• Leveraging the U.S.’s diverse population is our country’s unique advantage in a global competition.

• A truly diverse workforce will fuel increased innovation when it takes advantage of the variety of approaches and perspectives offered by diversity.

Overview of Talking Points

Melissa Carl

SWE Washington Representative

Talking Points

• Much attention has been paid to STEM issues, but unfortunately little has focused on the critical importance of having a diverse U.S. STEM workforce.

Talking Points (cont.)

• While SWE appreciates both President Obama increasing funding levels for STEM activities in his federal budget request and the Senate dedicating additional funding for a domestic STEM workforce development initiative in its immigration bill, we encourage Congress to focus more clearly on the importance of ensuring the advancement of women and underrepresented minorities in the STEM workforce.

Specific Asks (House)

1) Co-sponsor H.R. 1358, STEM Opportunities Act of 2013, sponsored by Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), Ranking Member, House Science, Space and Technology Committee; Ranking Member Johnson provided remarks at SWE’s March 2013 Capitol Hill Day reception to introduce the bill;

Specific Asks (House)

2) Co-sponsor H.R. 1343, Project Ready STEM Act, sponsored by Congresswoman Marcia Fudge (D-OH), Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus;

Specific Asks (House and Senate)

3) Co-sponsor H.R. 2426/ S. 1178, Educating Tomorrow’s Engineers Act, sponsored by Representatives Paul Tonko (D-NY), Joe Kennedy (D-MA), and Walter Jones (R-NC) in the House and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in the Senate.

Specific Asks (Senate)

4) Co-sponsor S. 288, Women and Minorities in STEM Booster Act, sponsored by Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Chair of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Importance of Congressional Visits/ Action Alerts

Betty Irish

FY14 Chair-Elect, SWE Government Relations and Public Policy Committee

Advocacy partners

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Importance of Advocacy

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• “All politics is local”: Members of Congress are concerned about what their constituents think, and how potential legislation will affect their districts

• Given the lack of engineers in Congress, many do not realize women and minorities are underrepresented in the engineering population

• It is important for you to let your Members of Congress know that the diversity in STEM issues are very important to you, and that you would like their support.

Importance of Advocacy

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• The main purpose of advocacy is relationship building for you and your professional organization.

• They should not be one-shot meetings/ e-mails.

• Remember, staff members are your friends! • Responsible for multiple issues; • You – and SWE/ your

professional organization – can offer to serve as a resource and expert on engineering issues.

Before the Meeting/ Communication

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• Research the past positions of your Members of Congress related to STEM issues, as well as what Congressional Committee(s) he/she is a member of • www.house.gov • www.senate.gov

• If supportive, remember to thank the Member/ staff, but it is best not to “preach to the choir.” Respect the staff member’s limited time, and know that you can contact that individual again when there is action on an issue.

Congressional Staff Roles

• Chief of Staff or Administrative Assistant • Legislative Director • Senior Legislative Assistant • Legislative Assistant • Legislative Correspondent • Staff Assistant

Meeting with your Legislator

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• Arrive on time; or better yet, arrive early! • Always be courteous!

• Meeting may be delayed; • Staff may be late; • Meet with staff instead of Member of Congress

• Respect their Time! • Plan for 10 minutes max

– Introductions: 2 minutes

– Issue points (with ask!): 3-4 minutes

– Questions/discussion: 4-5 minutes

– If still have time, follow-up points: 2-3 minutes

Meeting with your Legislator

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1. Introductions • Who do you represent; • Why are you here; • Personal expertise; • “Thank you” for past support of diversity in STEM

issues (if appropriate)

2. Message 3. Specific “Asks”

• Requests for Congressional Action • Please note: You should only need a general level of

understanding of the bills of interest and your society’s position for your meetings, and any detailed questions can be referred to the SWE Washington Representative.

If Legislator is Supportive…

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• Thank them, and thank them again.

• Be a resource. If they need additional information or help, offer to assist them.

• Encourage them to move from being a supporter to a champion of your cause. Ask them if they will write a guest column, speak at a public event, or any other action that will support your position. However, it is typically best to refrain from these activities close to an election, and please coordinate these activities with the SWE Washington Representative.

If Legislator is NOT Supportive…

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• Thank them for their time and don’t spend a lot of your time. If they really do not support your cause, move on and spend your time on those who will.

• Stay friendly and cordial. Although you disagree on this issue, you might find agreement on other issues, and there might be opportunities to work together in the future.

If Legislator is undecided…

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• Seek to understand their reservations and continue to educate them about your side of the issue.

• If they request additional information, provide it to them in a timely manner.

• Think about their supporters and which ones you could try to mobilize on your behalf.

After the meeting

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• Send a thank you note for the meeting and discussion

• Send additional materials that they may have requested

• Follow-up on your “ask”

• Reiterate your offer to be a resource

• Finally, keep in touch with the staffer, and follow-up a couple months later

Communicating with your Legislator

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• Members of Congress receive thousands of emails on a daily basis, and it is very important to send your email in such a way that it doesn't get lost in the masses. Use the same guidelines as if you were writing a formal letter.

• Your purpose for writing should be stated in the first paragraph of the letter. If your letter pertains to a specific piece of legislation, identify it accordingly, e.g., House bill: H. R. ____, Senate bill: S.____.

Communicating with your Legislator

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• Be courteous, to the point, and include key information, using examples to support your position (never use inflammatory language, even if you disagree).

• Address only one issue in each e-mail to help keep your message concise.

Please note: You should only need a general level of understanding of the aforementioned bills and your society’s position for your meetings, and any detailed questions can be referred to the SWE Washington Representative.

Action Alert

• Discussion of Draft Action Alert

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Additional Resources

• ACS How-to Video:

• http://pointers.audiovideoweb.com/stcasx/il80win10115/OLGA/speaking_for_science.wmv/play.asx

Public Policy Section of SWE Website

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Repeated Participant Ask

• You just learned about four diversity in STEM bills SWE supports.

• Post-session, please go to the SWE public policy web site, and review the “action alert” that urges you to contact your Representative and two Senators to support these four bills.

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Questions?

Thanks for attending this WE13 session, and we hope you will get more involved in SWE’s

public policy activities in the coming year.