They Took Knocks For Opportunities

If Kay Walter had thought too long about the “glass ceiling” hovering above her career in 1974, she might have given up a rewarding profession in the corrections field.

But Walter was too busy to ponder. So she actively pursued the job as a Spokane County parole officer. Didn’t really matter that she would be the first female officer to handle an all-male caseload.

Didn’t matter that she didn’t have women mentors to go to for advice.

Walter took the job, did it well and then became the mentor to other women breaking into the corrections field. Now Walter is the superintendent of Airway Heights Corrections Center, in charge of 2,000 inmates and a staff of 600.

In a recent newspaper article, reporter Julie Sullivan highlighted an interesting phenomenon. Women are now in the upper levels of management at all state prison facilities in Spokane County. Walter runs the state’s second largest prison and women also head the Pine Lodge Pre-Release center in Medical Lake and two work-release centers in Spokane.

The women have excelled in a predominately male profession. It seems fitting on Dr. Martin Luther King Day to take a look at the formula for finding and keeping the jobs that provide economic opportunity for women, people of color and those men and women trying to work out of low-income jobs.

So what did the women do?

First, they were helped by laws that opened up non-traditional fields.

The entry of women into corrections, for instance, was originally fostered by an amendment to the Civil Rights Act which opened up careers for women in law enforcement.

Second, they weren’t afraid of being “pioneers.” People who venture into jobs where others like them haven’t been before often face resistance from the workers entrenched in that profession. The corrections women put up with remarks about their appearance. When they made mistakes, they were told women couldn’t do the job. The women persevered by doing the best job they could, proving wrong the naysayers.

Third, the women found mentors and took advantage of networking. Fortunately, young women now have more programs and opportunities to pursue non-traditional work. The Community Colleges of Spokane’s Institute for Extended Learning, for instance, offers programs that help women learn technical and non-traditional skills.

Women working in typically male jobs - such as law enforcement, construction and engineering - earn 20 percent to 30 percent more than women in more traditional female jobs.

Finally, the women knew they could add a missing dimension to their profession.

Research shows that mixed-gender corrections facilities are more humane and less abusive. Plus male inmates benefit from positive role models in the women supervisors.

“I don’t think it makes a difference whether you’re a male or female as long as you’re given the opportunities to prove you’re competent,” Walter said.

Walter’s competent example shows that everyone benefits when job opportunities are available to all.