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The Pitt News

Artis’ Big Night

Pitt’s new guard is having a stellar season, Pg. 9

The independent student newspaper of the University of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | january 13, 2017 | Volume 107 | Issue 102

NEW BILL AIMS TO END WAGE GAP Amanda Reed

Assistant News Editor

Sophomore Cecilia Lacey creates a canvas painting during a fundraiser for the Women’s Choral Ensemble on Thursday night. Meghan Sunners ASSISTANT VISUAL EDITOR

OSTEM CREATES SPACE FOR LGBTQ+ STUDENTS

Janine Faust Staff Writer

Before he came out as gay to his lab group, Alexander Rowden had to figure out what to say when his classmates asked his opinion on certain female celebrities. “They’d be like, ‘Scarlett Johansson’s pretty hot, right?’ and I’d just say she wasn’t really my type or something,” Rowden, a junior math and computer science major, said. According to Rowden, this is the sort of basic heteronormativity that he and other

LGBTQ+ STEM majors on campus want to challenge through the creation of an oSTEM chapter at Pitt. oSTEM, which stands for Out in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, is a national organization with over 50 chapters nationwide. The group is dedicated to educating and empowering LGBTQ+ individuals working in STEM fields and also provides networking opportunities, academic and professional mentoring and career support for those individuals. The organization

provides an online career center, information sessions on professional issues and helps students find financial aid. Cortland Russell, the president-elect of oSTEM’s national organization, said a 2005 IBM-sponsored focus group at the Human Rights Campaign headquarters in Washington D.C. inspired the group to start oSTEM. The organization draws in people who want to find connections between their lives as STEM students and their identities as See oSTEMon page 2

If a new bill passes in Pittsburgh, the city could be joining New York and Philadelphia in closing the pay gap. Pittsburgh City Councilman Dan Gilman introduced legislation on Jan. 10 that would prohibit the city from asking for job applicants’ salary history in an effort to reduce wage inequity for women and minorities. The legislation also encourages private companies to create similar policies, according to the release. “By passing this legislation, the City of Pittsburgh is taking a stand against inequality and standing up for fairness and the family-sustaining wages that once built Pittsburgh,” he said in a release. A 2010 study by the National Institute of Health — cited for the legislation — showed that, on average, women receive $7,000 less than men when negotiating their salaries. This was attributed partly to previous salary history and bargaining behavior based on gender norms. According to the study, women anticipate that their assertiveness will lead to backlash like inconsistent workplace evaluations. Because of this, they use See New Bill on page 4


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