Breaking In & Building Up: Women and Underrepresented Populations in Nontraditional Occupations

Today, we are speaking with Jen Roman, Program Director of our Emergency Medical Services program here at Madison College, Fire Captain with Madison Fire, and champion volunteer with Girl Scouts. Let’s dive into her experience as a woman leader in a male dominated field and her efforts to make a lasting impact that not only invites more women into these spaces, but make it a better experience for them as well. How did she make the move from acting to working in Fire Protection? How has she helped change the way pregnancy is seen and addressed in Fire Service? How is she inspiring the next generation of young women to be leaders in any field they choose. Today, we explore all that and more.

This week, we are speaking with Nan Mortenson and Crystal Rossman of Dutch’s Auto Service here in Madison, Wisconsin. According to 2020 Department of Labor Statistics, women make up 9% of all professionals in auto maintenance nationally. Female mechanics, specifically, represent closer to 2% of the field.

With me today we are joined by Hannah Wolf, instructor of Metal Fabrication & Related Metals at Madison College. In addition to being an instructor, she also leads critical efforts in recruiting, with a special focus in underrepresented populations. I first met Hannah two years ago when I started at the college, and she is one of the most open, supportive, fun, and cool instructors I have had the pleasure to work with. And she fixed a metal sculpture of mine that I had broken in a move, so she very generous as well.

While the career landscape may be constantly changing in many ways, some things have historically remained the same. At Madison Area Technical College, 68 programs are considered Nontraditional for women, meaning women make up less than 25% of that occupation’s aggregate workforce. It doesn’t take much research to find that the fields that are largely male dominated, both blue and white collar, often have higher starting pay rates and lifelong earning potential. In this podcast, Breaking in and Building Up, we explore the personal stories of women breaking into, working in, and leading change in nontraditional occupations such as STEM and the trades. We also explore current trends, challenges, equity gaps, and how education at all levels can help to support underrepresented populations to achieve their goals, regardless of gender or other identity markers that marginalize them in these fields.