National Academy of Sciences

National Academy of Engineering

Institute of Medicine

National Research Council

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.

Proportionately fewer women and underrepresented minorities are found in the engineering profession than in the U.S. workforce in general and in all other scientific or technical fields. As Wm. A. Wulf, president of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), has noted, for the United States to remain competitive in a global technological society, the country as a whole must take serious steps to ensure that we have a diverse, well trained, multicultural workforce. To further that goal, the NAE established the Program on Diversity in the Engineering Workforce, which leads the NAE’s efforts to increase diversity in the U.S. engineering workforce, by bringing together stakeholders from industry, government, academia, and nonprofit organizations to share their knowledge, identify needs, and discuss ways to address those needs.

As first steps towards addressing this issue, the NAE convened the “Summit on Women in Engineering” in May 1999, developed the “Celebration of Women in Engineering” web site (www.nae.edu/cwe), and convened a workshop to develop a business case for diversity in September 1999. The Committee on Diversity in the Engineering Workforce was established in November 1999, followed by the Forum on Diversity in the Engineering Workforce in January 2000. The workshop, “Best Practices in Managing Diversity,” is the latest in the NAE’s ongoing efforts to increase diversity in engineering.

The workshop brought together leaders of corporations that have been recognized for outstanding diversity programs and members of the NAE Committee and the NAE Forum on Diversity in the Engineering Workforce. Many thanks to the members of the committee and forum for their assistance in identifying and recruiting workshop speakers and participants and facilitating and reporting on breakout discussions.

The papers in this volume represent the authors’ views as presented at the workshop. The questions and answers and summaries of the breakout discussions were taken from a transcript of the workshop. The participants did not attempt to provide any formal conclusions or recommendations, focusing instead on collecting information and informing the discussion of the issues.