For some people, what they do for a living is a job. For others, it is a career. For Judith Rodin, it is a calling. Rodin, Yale University's provost, shared her thoughts on the decisions facing University women at the Trustees' Council of Penn Women's 6th Annual Career Dinner last night. "Sometimes I sit down and I think, 'Wow! Somebody is actually paying me to do this! This is amazing!'" she said. "I urge all of you to take the time to seek out your calling, whatever it may be." Rodin, who is rumored to be under consideration for the University presidency, is the highest-ranking woman in the Ivy League and is the first woman ever to become chairperson of a psychology department. Despite the fact that woman tend to "leak out of the academic pipeline," she said she is confident about the opportunities for women. "Women have some very important gender traits that should be used as strengths, but are often seen as weaknesses," she said. "We are much more responsive to social and emotional needs." Rodin described these qualities as essential for a new kind of leader she sees emerging, which she termed the "decisive enabler." "I have seen a new breed of leader who is both strong and collaborative," she said. "It is 'governing with a soul'." One of the major obstacles facing women is the expectation that they won't attain the same level of success as men, she added. Drawing on her own experience, she explained how she almost opted not to attend graduate school. "I didn't think I could think of an idea for a dissertation that would be original enough," she said. Rodin also addressed the issue of the cost of a college education, saying that in the last 10 years, tuition has risen almost twice as fast as inflation. Costs have to be kept under control, she said. She was clear in her commitment to academia. "Between cutting a business office and a department we should always cut the business office," she said. "We're in the business of education." Dawna Voelkl, administrative assistant to the Trustees Council, said the dinner was organized to provide University women with the opportunity to meet successful female graduates. Each graduate was paired with two students who had an interest in her field of expertise. College junior Laura Koweek said Rodin was "extremely impressive." "What [Rodin] said has implications for all women," she said. "She's done things nobody has ever done before." Asha Bhationi, also a College junior, said she was impressed with Rodin's ability to "juggle everything." "She's amazing – she's a great woman and a great mother," she said.
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