Equity e-News

Dialogue with the Experts
"Gender Equity Now:
Celebrating 30 Years of Title IX"
May 20-31, 2002

Dialogue Panelists

Craig Flood, Facilitator, Educational Equity Consultant, Malta, NY. For the past 20 years Dr. Flood has conducted research, written and developed programs in the areas of career development, gender and mathematics, gender equity issues for boys, sexual harassment in schools, and school violence prevention.

Leslie Annexstein, Senior Counsel, National Women’s Law Center, Washington, DC. At the Center, Ms. Annexstein participates in litigation, advocacy and public education to enhance the legal protections provided by Title IX, in areas such as career education, sexual harassment, athletics, and standardized testing. She also is the vice-chair of the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education.

Barbara Bitters, Director, Equity Mission Team, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Madison, WI. Since beginning her gender equity career in 1975, Ms. Bitters has worked at the local, state, and federal levels. One of the first groups of WEEA grantees, her project was to develop in-service training modules on Title IX and "sex role stereotyping."

Jacqueline R. Cooke, Regional Administrator, U.S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau Region I, Boston, MA. Ms. Cooke promotes the rights and interests of working women in the six New England states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. During her tenure at the agency, she has worked with employers, women’s organizations, commissions on employment rights, girls’ organizations, and non-profit associations.

Karen Furia, Regional Administrator, Region X, U.S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau, Seattle, WA. Ms. Furia’s responsibilities include coordinating the pilot test of a new national program, Women and Girls in Technology (WGIT), designed to increase the participation of females in technology.

Emile Rosenberg, Assistant Superintendent, Waltham Public Schools, Waltham, MA. Dr. Rosenberg has over 30 years experience as a teacher and administrator. For the past 16 years he has served in his current position in Waltham, a suburb of Boston, which has eight elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school. Dr. Rosenberg supervises and evaluates the principals of each of these schools and performs other duties, including that of equity specialist for the school system.

Linda Shevitz, Educational Equity Specialist, Maryland Department of Education, Baltimore, MD. Ms. Shevitz is the Title IX coordinator for the state. Her office provides assistance to all Maryland school systems and advises the state superintendent of schools on issues related to educational equity and federal and state civil rights in education laws. Ms. Shevitz is also a past president of the Association for Gender Equity Leadership in Education (AGELE) and former vice-chair and current member of the National Coalition of Women and Girls in Education.

Josefina V. Tinajero, Associate Dean, College of Education, University of Texas, El Paso TX. Dr. Tinajero has directed the Mother-Daughter Program at the University of Texas at El Paso for the past 15 years. A current WEEA grantee, this project (Educational Enhancement for Mothers and Daughters Program) addresses two major barriers to Latinas’ participation in higher education: low educational and career expectations of girls and their mothers and lack of knowledge about how to prepare for, finance, and succeed in college.

Mary White, Director, Project EAGLES: Equity and Gender Learning Experience, Phoenix, AZ. Dr. White directs a current WEEA grant in the largest elementary school district in the state. The goal is to encourage confidence and competence in middle school girls’ pursuit of math, science, and engineering careers. The project trains teachers on gender equitable classroom practices, sexual harassment and bullying issues, and the impact of gender and racial inequities in education, particularly in math and science fields.