Seeking Solutions: Maximizing American Talent by Advancing Women of Color in Academia is the summary of a 2013 conference convened by the Committee on Women in Science, Engineering and Medicine of the National Research Council to discuss the current status of women of color in academia and explore the challenges and successful initiatives for creating the institutional changes required to increase representation of women of color at all levels of the academic workforce. While the number of women, including minority women, pursuing higher education in science, engineering and medicine has grown, the number of minority women faculty in all institutions of higher education has remained small and has grown less rapidly than the numbers of nonminority women or minority men. Seeking Solutions reviews the existing research on education and academic career patterns for minority women in science, engineering, and medicine to enhance understanding of the barriers and challenges to the full participation of all minority women in STEM disciplines and academic careers. Additionally, this report identifies reliable and credible data source and data gaps, as well as key aspects of exemplary policies and programs that are effective in enhancing minority women's participation in faculty ranks. Success in academia is predicated on many factors and is not solely a function of talent. Seeking Solutions elucidates those other factors and highlights ways that institutions and the individuals working there can take action to create institutional cultures hospitable to people of any gender, race, and ethnicity.Table of ContentsFront MatterIntroduction1 Statistics on the Career Pathways of Women of Color Faculty in Academia2 People Behind the Statistics3 Multiple Marginality: Gender, Race, and Equity in Science Education and Research4 The Key Role of Professional Societies5 Impact of Federal Agencies: Leading by Example6 Successful Practices and Strategies for Institutional Transformation7 Successful Strategies and Resources for Moving Ahead8 Moving ForwardAppendix A-1: Education and Academic Career Outcomes for Women of Color in Science and EngineeringAppendix A-2: Women of Color among STEM Faculty: Experiences in AcademiaAppendix B: Agenda and List of ParticipantsAppendix C: Biographies of SpeakersAppendix D: Annotated BibliographiesAppendix E-1: Call for Written Testimony & Summary of Programmatic Efforts and Recommendations from Written TestimoniesAppendix E-2: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and Minority Women in ScienceAppendix E-3: Women of Color in Astronomy and AstrophysicsAppendix E-4: American Chemical Society Written TestimoniesAppendix E-5: American Indian Science and Engineering Society Written TestimonyAppendix E-6: Women of Color in Physics Departments: A Data Picture17Appendix E-7: American Mathematical Society Written TestimonyAppendix E-8: American Meteorological Society Written TestimonyAppendix E-9: American Physical Society Written TestimonyAppendix E-10: American Political Science Association Written TestimonyAppendix E-11: American Psychological Association Written TestimonyAppendix E-12: American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Written TestimonyAppendix E-13: American Society for Civil EngineeringAppendix E-14: American Society of Engineering EducationAppendix E-15: American Society of Mechanical EngineeringAppendix E-16: American Society for Microbiology Written TestimonyAppendix E-17: American Sociological Association Written TestimonyAppendix E-18: Association for Women in Mathematics Written TestimonyAppendix E-19: Biomedical Engineering Society Written TestimonyAppendix E-20: Academic Women of Color in Computing: A Testimony on the Issues and Possible SolutionsAppendix E-21: Geological Society of America Written TestimonyAppendix E-22: NASA and Women of Color: Recruitment, Building a Pipeline, and Ensuring Inclusion and Diversity in the WorkforceAppendix E-23: National Institutes of Health Efforts to Promote Advancement of Women of Color in Biomedical ResearchAppendix E-24: National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers Written TestimonyAppendix E-25: National Postdoctoral Association Written TestimonyAppendix E-26: National Society of Hispanic PhysicistsAppendix E-27: National Society of Black PhysicistsAppendix E-28: Rutgers University Women of Color Scholars InitiativeAppendix E-29: Society for Neuroscience Written Testimony