SWE - Spring 2009 - (Page 72) SWE Scrapbook SWE Archives presents a regular series spotlighting women’s engineering history Dressed for Success In the 1950s and ’60s, newspapers and magazines made much ado about the physical appearance, curves, and clothes of women engineers. Articles frequently assured readers that, despite the slide rules, the women engineers profiled were paragons of womanhood. While such articles may have raised the eyebrows and ire of some women engineers, others saw the articles as an opportunity to transcend stereotypes of homely women clutching their slide rules. At a time when society placed high value on femininity, some women engineers worried that images of Rosie the Riveter and women wearing hard hats might discourage young women from entering a rewarding profession. SWE presidents and members informed reporters that modern-day women engineers spent far more time at the drafting table than in mines and muddy fields. To demonstrate that slide rules and lipstick do mix, the New York Section hosted fashion shows in 1959 and 1961 featuring couture designed specifically for engineering fieldwork. Some SWE members modeled on weekends to fund their higher education, and in the process helped redefine the image of the “typical” woman engineer. — Troy Eller, SWE Archivist A typical headline from the era extolled the virtues of beauty over brain power. DuPont Magazine featured an article on fashions designed by Baba specifically for women engineers. The dresses were for the New York Section’s fashion show and fundraiser in 1961. The May 1958 issue of The National Business Woman printed a story “as told by” SWE member Dot Merrill, giving it this headline. 72 SWE SPRING 2009 Marlene Schmidt, an electronics engineer from East Germany, was featured in a popular magazine after she was crowned Miss Universe in 1961. SWE presented Schmidt with an honorary membership that year at the Eastern Seaboard Conference in Pittsburgh.
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of SWE - Spring 2009 SWE - Spring 2009 Heritage Club Contents President's Note View from the Executive Suite Editor’s Page Honoring Women’s History Public Policy Update First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy At the Intersection of Engineering and Public Policy From Research to Reality Coffee Table Dialogues Membership Information & Calendar A&B Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People Point of View: Your Role in Public Policy Career Toolbox: Communicating with Congress; Finding Your Voice Corporate Partnership Council Media Shelf: Women’s History Opportunity Index SWE Scrapbook: Dressed for Success SWE - Spring 2009 SWE - Spring 2009 - SWE - Spring 2009 (Page Cover1) SWE - Spring 2009 - SWE - Spring 2009 (Page Cover2) SWE - Spring 2009 - Heritage Club (Page 1) SWE - Spring 2009 - Heritage Club (Page 2) SWE - Spring 2009 - Contents (Page 3) SWE - Spring 2009 - Contents (Page 4) SWE - Spring 2009 - President's Note (Page 5) SWE - Spring 2009 - President's Note (Page 6) SWE - Spring 2009 - View from the Executive Suite (Page 7) SWE - Spring 2009 - View from the Executive Suite (Page 8) SWE - Spring 2009 - Editor’s Page (Page 9) SWE - Spring 2009 - Honoring Women’s History (Page 10) SWE - Spring 2009 - Honoring Women’s History (Page 11) SWE - Spring 2009 - Honoring Women’s History (Page 12) SWE - Spring 2009 - Honoring Women’s History (Page 13) SWE - Spring 2009 - Public Policy Update (Page 14) SWE - Spring 2009 - Public Policy Update (Page 15) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 16) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 17) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 18) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 19) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 20) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 21) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 22) SWE - Spring 2009 - First Lady: The “Second-Hardest Job in America” (Page 23) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 24) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 25) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 26) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 27) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 28) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 29) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 30) SWE - Spring 2009 - Bringing Science and Engineering into Public Policy (Page 31) SWE - Spring 2009 - At the Intersection of Engineering and Public Policy (Page 32) SWE - Spring 2009 - At the Intersection of Engineering and Public Policy (Page 33) SWE - Spring 2009 - At the Intersection of Engineering and Public Policy (Page 34) SWE - Spring 2009 - At the Intersection of Engineering and Public Policy (Page 35) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 36) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 37) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 38) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 39) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 40) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 41) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 42) SWE - Spring 2009 - From Research to Reality (Page 43) SWE - Spring 2009 - Coffee Table Dialogues (Page 44) SWE - Spring 2009 - Coffee Table Dialogues (Page 45) SWE - Spring 2009 - Coffee Table Dialogues (Page 46) SWE - Spring 2009 - Coffee Table Dialogues (Page 47) SWE - Spring 2009 - Membership Information & Calendar A&B (Page 48) SWE - Spring 2009 - Membership Information & Calendar A&B (Page 49) SWE - Spring 2009 - Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge (Page 50) SWE - Spring 2009 - Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge (Page 51) SWE - Spring 2009 - Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge (Page 52) SWE - Spring 2009 - Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge (Page 53) SWE - Spring 2009 - Winning Essays from the Lava Lounge (Page 54) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 55) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 56) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 57) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 58) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 59) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 60) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 61) SWE - Spring 2009 - Engineering World: Issues • Events • Technology • People (Page 62) SWE - Spring 2009 - Point of View: Your Role in Public Policy (Page 63) SWE - Spring 2009 - Career Toolbox: Communicating with Congress; Finding Your Voice (Page 64) SWE - Spring 2009 - Corporate Partnership Council (Page 65) SWE - Spring 2009 - Corporate Partnership Council (Page 66) SWE - Spring 2009 - Corporate Partnership Council (Page 67) SWE - Spring 2009 - Media Shelf: Women’s History (Page 68) SWE - Spring 2009 - Media Shelf: Women’s History (Page 69) SWE - Spring 2009 - Media Shelf: Women’s History (Page 70) SWE - Spring 2009 - Opportunity Index (Page 71) SWE - Spring 2009 - SWE Scrapbook: Dressed for Success (Page 72) SWE - Spring 2009 - SWE Scrapbook: Dressed for Success (Page Cover3) SWE - Spring 2009 - SWE Scrapbook: Dressed for Success (Page Cover4)
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