WOMEN AND GENDER STUDIES CORE

Take the following course:

PACS-305  Gender and Conflict

This course looks at the intersection of gender and conflict to understand what it means to say that a conflict is gendered. It uses gender as an organizing concept to study issues of gender equality, justice, and peace, challenging andinterrogating dichotomous, oppositionalconstructions of masculinity and femininity to understand how they contribute to direct, structural, and cultural violence. 

3 CreditsS,I,CW,SW-ERPrerequisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109


ADDITIONAL COURSES

Take five of the following courses:

HS-280 Victorian Science, Sexuality & Medicine

This class investigates the changing meanings and entanglements of Victorian science and medical practice through the lens of class, gender, and race. We will examine ideas about the body and disease, the changing role of medicine and the social construction of scientific knowledge.

4 CreditsWK-HT,HPre- or Co-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109.

HS-322 Women in Medieval Life

What did women do in the Middle Ages? What was it like to be a nun? Was anyone really a witch? By reading medieval women’s own accounts and the accounts of people who knew (or claimed to know) them, we can learn a great deal. In this course we will look at various aspects of women's lives during the Middle Ages and try to answer as many questions as we can. While we’re at it, we will have to examine medieval ideas of what it meant to be a man – ideas that, much of the time, were conceptualized as the opposites of ideas about women. The course is topical instead of chronological and is organized around themes and ideas.

4 CreditsH, CW, WK-HTPrerequisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109

HS-367 Women in Africa

This course will provide students with an understanding of women in sub-Saharan African cultures, their history, traditions, diversity, resilience and adaptability. To do this we will be looking at social structure, kinship networks, economic systems, gender relations, ethnicity and ethnic conflicts, traditional religion, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and other health issues.

4 CreditsCA, H, I, CTDH 

PS-209 Sexual Politics

In this course, we will discuss the history of sex and gender in political theory and practice. In part one, we will discuss highlights of the history of gender politics in the United States. In part two, we will build on this knowledge by exploring what feminists have to say on important current topics, such as gendered violence and sexuality.

3 CreditsS 

PS-298 Gender and Health Care

In this course, we will discuss gender and healthcare policy around the world, focusing on the ethical responsibilities of healthcare policymakers and providers. We consider how gender affects policy and health outcomes in various ways, depending on the cultural context. Class discussions will address topics such as reproductive rights and LGBTQ healthcare access.

3 CreditsSW-ERPre-Req or Co-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109

CM-310 Understanding Health Inequity

In this class, students will learn how to read, understand, and conduct social research about individuals and systems that create disparity in health care and outcomes. The research that we will read and learn to conduct will rely on texts and stories rather than numbers and statistics. The class will address questions such as: what conditions are present that allow some populations greater access to health care than others? What social problems underlie the disparities in health outcomes for women, people of color, and people from low-income backgrounds. Students will gather and analyze their own research data.

3 CreditsS, WK-SIPre-Req or Co-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109

CM-405A Women, Work & Identity

Women. Work. Identity. These three words are related in a complex web that many of us struggle to untangle for our entire working lives. In this course, we identify and name the components of the relationships among these words--all in the context of the unique perspective that the communication discipline offers.

3 CreditsSPrerequisites: CM130 or CM230 or CM220 or CM365 or permission of the instructor.

EN-162 Women and Literature

Studies literature by and about women; looks at the rich history of women's literature and the variety of traditional and non- traditional approaches women have used to describe their experience, from poetry, plays, and novels to letters and diaries; explores the effect of culture on women's writing.

4 CreditsH 

EN-215 Boys Will Be Boys

This course explores the experiences of men and boys as represented through works of fiction and analyzed via cultural, economic and social contexts. The course considers " maleness " as a social construct and how perceptions within American society influence men's actions and the ways in which they perceive themselves, other men, women, and social situations.

3 CreditsH 

EN-385 Queer Literature

By applying queer theory frameworks to a variety of texts, we will examine literary representations of LGBTQ identity. Readings will include works by James Baldwin, John Rechy, Audre Lorde, Leslie Feinberg, Tony Kushner, and others. Topics will include: biological essentialism vs. the social construction of gender and sexual identity; authenticity and performance; social and legal forms of identity categorization and boundary maintenance; the role of literature in social reform; and more.

4 CreditsCA, HPrerequisites: EN110 or EN109.

SW-241  Children, Youth, and Family Services

This course involves a critical analysis of child and family services, practices, and policies, while exposing students to the challenging risks and needs, traumatic and institutional experiences of high-risk youth and families, as well as sources of strength, protection, and resilience. Students will participate in analyzing and interpreting research using needs assessment data provided by the instructor, and complete a scaffolded research paper assignment to analyze a specific issue of interest.

3 CreditsCW,S,WK-SI 

SO-203 Minority Experiences

An exploration of the factors that shape the experiences of minority group members in both domestic and global contexts. The social processes that functions to construct minority identity among racial, ethnic, gender, and ability groups are studied.

3 CreditsSPrerequisites: SO101 or AN151.

PY-211 Race, Ethnicity, and Identity Studies

This course explores the constructs of race, ethnicity, and identity with a focus on how they help us understand ourselves, societies, and the relationship between self and society. The course explores race, racism, antiracism, equality, and hierarchy. As a Social Inquiry course, this course emphasizes social scientific methodologies to address these topics.

3 CreditsS,WK-SIPre- or Co-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109.

RL-250  Women in the Bible

This course focuses on the female characters in the Bible and on its teachings about the social and religious roles specific to women. The course studies those texts in both their ancient and modern contexts, with special attention to how they interact with culture, and explores what meanings those biblical passages can have for women (and men) today. 

4 CreditsCA,H,WK-HTPre- or co-requisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109

RL-265  U.S. Religious Diversity

This course looks at the history of conflict and cooperation between different religious groups in the United States, as well as how religious diversity has impacted, and been impacted by, American politics.

3 CreditsCA,H 

SP-401 Gender Fiction in Hispanic Literature

This course, formerly titled Women in Hispanic Fiction, examines gender constructs in works by Latin American and Spanish authors. Among the topics that will be examined are the construction of gender and identity roles, historical spheres of participation for men and women, and the changing definition of such identity markers and roles. The course will focus on a broad historical range of literary works, examining how gender identities are presented in these works through their intersectionality with sexuality, class, race, age, and politics. In addition to the primary texts, students read critical essays on gender and discuss films and podcasts that develop topics parallel to those in the texts. 

3 CreditsI, H, CWPrerequisites: SP-250 or SP-255.(Previous Course Title: Women in Hispanic Fiction)


Secondary Emphasis Credit Total = 18

Six credits must be at the 300/400-level.  Any course exception must be approved by the advisor and/or department chair.