MPOWIR (Mentoring Physical Oceanography Women to Increase Retention): Perspective and Experiences from 15 Years of Mentorship and Community-Building

The Mentoring Physical Oceanography Womxn to Increase Retention (MPOWIR) program was initiated in 2005 to address a systematic deficit in retention of womxn physical oceanographers at higher career levels compared to their representation at the PhD level. The program has focused on community and discipline-based mentoring. The principal elements of the program include monthly confidential virtual mentoring groups, a biannual in person conference alternating with a virtual conference, speaker series, webinars, and town-hall meetings. Through program assessments, MPOWIR womxn indicate the program has had a large impact on their lives, with the greatest impact on expansion of professional networks and exposure to professional development skills. Collected data about participants also indicate that a large majority of MPOWIR participants who received PhDs prior to 2012 are in faculty or university/government/non-profit research positions. By involving the physical oceanography community in the mentoring program, MPOWIR has also developed a supportive network of senior scientists able to effect change at their home institutions. By sharing the successful path MPOWIR has taken to increase retention and visibility of womxn in physical oceanography, we will outline programs modeled on MPOWIR and practical adaptations to expand retention in other disciplines and for other historically under-represented groups.