FALL 2025 UNDERGRADUATE COURSES
This course introduces foundational concepts and theories in the interdisciplinary field of Women's Studies by centering the experiences of women and the social construction of feminine gender roles. With emphasis on how interlocking systems of oppression shape women's lives, this course offers a critical examination of the way gender intersects with race, class and sexuality and demonstrates how activism is inherent in Women's Studies discourse. Students will be introduced to feminist and queer theory as frames of analysis for examining pop culture, identity and politics that contribute to defining the category of woman.
This course, "Women, Gender, and Power in the Global South", explores how systems of power and resistance are shaped by gender in the Global South. We will examine feminist movements, colonial and postcolonial legacies, and the socio-political challenges faced by women and gender minorities across diverse regions, including South Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Through an intersectional lens, students will engage with voices and scholarship from the Global South to better understand the transnational dynamics of gender and power.
Gender and Climate Change: We live in a time of global warming, mass extinction, and pervasive pollution of air, water, and land, raising urgent concerns about a viable future. This course explores historical, philosophical, sociological, and humanistic perspectives on how gender inequality across the globe is connected to environmental damage and climate change. We will examine feminist, Indigenous, and LGBTQ climate justice movements alongside the gendered implications of global policies and practices related to the history and development of environmental thought, in order to answer the question: How are gender and climate change connected?
Examines social and cultural issues in relation to violence in relation to gender and sexuality, including men鈥檚 violence against women, hate crimes directed at LGBTQ people, pop culture representations, and social movements acting in resistance to gender-based violence.听
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Men and Masculinities critically examines the multiple and shifting meanings of manhood and their impact on boys and men across culture, politics, work, and family life. The course unpacks both the privileges of masculinity鈥攍ike career advantages and societal power鈥攁nd its hidden costs, from shorter lifespans to emotional repression. The course also looks at men through a humanities lens, highlighting male feminists and the diverse, often overlooked, ways men have resisted rigid gender norms.
This course explores the historical evolution, current status, and future directions of women in
the medical field. It will examine the contributions of women to medicine, the challenges they
have faced (and continue to face) in academia, research, and clinical practice. In addition, we
will examine the cultural and social factors such as bias, discrimination, poverty and legal
interventions that influence women鈥檚 roles across the healthcare continuum as both caregivers
and as patients. This course will provide an overview of women鈥檚 health, including social,
physical and medical conditions and diseases. Through critical readings, discussions, film and
expert guest speakers students will explore the unique healthcare needs of women and the
artificial obstacles in the journey toward gender equity throughout the medical profession.