Rising Athenas, Male Allies and the Power of Gender Partnership

Wednesday, February 10th 2021
This event is sponsored by VMWare

Based on their books Athena Rising and Good Guys, Brad Johnson & David Smith make the business case for male engagement in gender equality. Using social science evidence and organizational best practices, they provide the “how to” for men, women, and organizational leaders who want to be intentional, inclusive, and excellent allies, leveraging mentorship, sponsorship, and workplace partnership to create a more diverse workforce.

W. Brad Johnson, PhD
Professor of Psychology, Department of Leadership, Ethics, and Law, United States Naval Academy; Faculty Associate, Graduate School of Education, Johns Hopkins University

A clinical psychologist and former commissioned officer in the Navy’s Medical Service Corps, Dr. Johnson served as a psychologist at Bethesda Naval Hospital and the Medical Clinic at Pearl Harbor where he was the division head for psychology. He is an award-winning mentor with distinguished mentor awards from the National Institutes of Health and the American Psychological Association. He is also a fellow of the American Psychological Association and recipient of the Johns Hopkins University Teaching Excellence Award. ...

He has served as chair of the American Psychological Association’s Ethics Committee and as president of the Society for Military Psychology. Dr. Johnson is the author of more than 130 journal articles and book chapters—many on the topic of mentoring—and 14 books, in the areas of mentoring, gender in the workplace, and professional ethics. Recent books include: Good Guys: How Men Can Become Better Allies for Women in the Workplace (2020, October, with David Smith), The Elements of Mentoring (3rd Ed.) (2018, with Charles Ridley), Athena Rising: How and Why Men Should Mentor Women (2016, with David Smith), On Being a Mentor: A Guide for Higher Education Faculty (2nd Ed.) (2015), The Elements of Ethics for Professionals (2008, with Charles Ridley), and Becoming a Leader the Annapolis Way (2006, with Greg Harper). He speaks around the globe on the topics of mentorship and cross-gender workplace relationships.

David Smith, PhD
Associate Professor of Sociology, National Security Affairs Department, United States Naval War College

A former Navy pilot, Dr. Smith led diverse organizations of women and men culminating in command of a squadron in combat and flew more than 3,000 hours over 30 years including combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. As a sociologist trained in military sociology and social psychology, he focuses his research in gender, work, and family issues including bias in performance evaluations, retention of women, dual career families, military families, and women in the military. ...

Dr. Smith is the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters—many on the topic of gender and the workplace—and 2 books in the area of gender in the workplace and inclusive mentoring relationships. These books include Good Guys: How Men Can Be Better Allies for Women in the Workplace (October 2020 with Brad Johnson) and Athena Rising: How and Why Men Should Mentor Women (September 2016 with Brad Johnson). He speaks around the globe on the topics of mentorship and cross-gender workplace relationships.