> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://research-pop.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Why one new professor stopped hiding her family responsibilities - URL: https://research-pop.com/why-one-new-professor-stopped-hiding-her-family-responsibilities/ - Published: 2026-10-03T12:15:29.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-03T12:15:29.000Z - Author: ResearchPOP - Tags: Career ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/7c/5e/7c5e0911-739b-4a35-94eb-3e810bf78ba7/content/images/2026/10/Screenshot-2026-10-03-at-14.14.30.png) Source: [https://www.science.org/content/article/new-assistant-professor-i-thought-i-needed-hide-my-family-responsibilities?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F](https://www.science.org/content/article/new-assistant-professor-i-thought-i-needed-hide-my-family-responsibilities?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F&ref=research-pop.com) When Alexandra Piotrowski-Daspit became an assistant professor at the University of Michigan, she was also raising young children. In a Science Working Life essay, she reflects on the pressure she felt to keep those family responsibilities out of sight. She believed that a capable scientist and laboratory leader should always be available. School pickups, childhood illnesses, pregnancy-related needs and breastfeeding breaks were things to fit around work without inconveniencing anyone. She responded by becoming more efficient and pushing unfinished tasks into evenings, weekends and whatever gaps remained. But family life resisted that careful scheduling. Childcare arrangements changed, children became ill and exhaustion accumulated. When her plans fell apart, she interpreted the disruption as a failure to manage her time. Trying to conceal caregiving added another burden to the work of caregiving itself. A turning point came when she was invited to join a group for mothers who had not yet received tenure. There, members could discuss competing responsibilities openly, exchange practical strategies and recognize experiences they had previously faced alone. These conversations helped Piotrowski-Daspit see that the difficulties she encountered were shared by other academics. She began to speak more directly about her own constraints. A meeting might need to move because of a school pickup or another family commitment. Explaining why made those conversations more honest and eased the pressure to appear endlessly available. That change also shaped the laboratory culture she wanted to create. Students and early-career researchers learn about academic life partly by watching the people who lead them. If a supervisor hides every caregiving responsibility or personal limit, trainees may conclude that a scientific career requires the same concealment. Piotrowski-Daspit wanted them to see a fuller picture: scientists raise families, manage health needs, maintain relationships and sometimes need to adjust their schedules. Making these responsibilities visible could help others imagine how their own lives might fit within a research career. Her essay offers a personal account of learning to lead while caring for a family. Openness did not remove the competing demands on her time, but it changed how she understood and communicated them. She no longer had to make caregiving invisible to demonstrate her commitment to science. Author: Alexandra Piotrowski-Daspit, assistant professor at the University of Michigan Source: Science ยท Working Life Published: Oct 1, 2026 Original article: [Science](https://www.science.org/content/article/new-assistant-professor-i-thought-i-needed-hide-my-family-responsibilities?ref=research-pop.com) --- ## Research POP Notes This article reflects the independent interpretation of the Research POP team and does not represent the views of the authors, their institutions or the journal. If you identify any inaccuracies or have concerns regarding the content, figures or attribution, please contact us at [team.researchpop@gmail.com](mailto:team.researchpop@gmail.com). We will review the matter promptly and make corrections or remove the relevant material where appropriate.