Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies

The annual Women Studies Colloquium attracts guest speakers like Jennifer Terry, Associate Professor of Women’s Studies (University of California, Irvine), who participated in the 2005 event. Terry has written extensively on social, cultural, and scientific discourses of gender and sexuality. She is the author of An American Obsession: Science, Medicine, and Homosexuality in Modern Society (1999) and co-editor of Processed Lives: Gender and Technology in Everyday Life (1997) as well as Deviant Bodies: Critical Perspectives on Difference in Science and Popular Culture.

Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSX) is a cross-disciplinary program that investigates the social, psychological, biological, and cultural construction of gender, as well as the ways women and men place themselves within gender systems.

The WGSX curriculum thrives on courses offered in most academic areas and is grounded in a liberal arts environment that values interdisciplinary and culturally plural perspectives. Some courses, including Introduction to Women Studies and Introduction to Gender Studies, are taught by multi-disciplinary teams of faculty.

St. Mary's Project (SMP)

The St. Mary's Project is the capstone experience for many students. Students doing a St. Mary's Project in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies choose a topic in consultation with both their adviser in their major as well as a member of the WGSX faculty. Examples of past projects include:

• Women in the Naxi culture of southwestern China
• Women’s autobiography
• VIGIL/ANTE: Current ethical and personal dilemmas surrounding sexual assault and rape
• Gender sexuality cyberspace
• The legality and morality of prostitution
• Women: Why do we wear what we wear?
• Cross-cultural and cross-sex interactions among Gambian and U.S. women

Travel Abroad

Students in the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Study program often study abroad in order to gain cross-cultural understanding of gender and gender relations. In the past students have incorporated WGSX research and/or independent study into their travel abroad experiences.

Life After St. Mary's

The cross-disciplinary approach of the Women, Gender, and Sexuality program prepares its students for success in a variety of graduate studies and professional opportunities. Recent graduate programs attended by WGSX students include:

• Case Western University
• University of Pittsburgh
• Simmons College
• UCLA

Students have entered a number of career fields, including:

• Americorps
• Legal research
• Library science
• Ms. Foundation
• Non-governmental organizations
• Not-for-profit advocacy groups
• Organic farming
• Teaching

Special Opportunities

The Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program sponsors or is affiliated with a rich variety of co-curricular opportunities, both on and off campus. Some of these include:

• The Annual Women Studies Colloquium in connection with Women’s History Month
• The WGSX Living-Learning Center (LLC): a residential community for students who are interested in the study of Women, Gender and Sexuality.
• Feminists for United Sexual Equality (FUSE): a student club providing a variety of programming on and off-campus including workshops, guest speakers, activism, and an annual production of The Vagina Monologues.
• St. Mary’s Triangle and Rainbow Society (STARS): resource for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and allied community. In the past this student club has sponsored activities such as the National Day of Silence, National Coming Out Day, and activism in support of domestic partner benefits locally and regionally.
• Transcending Boundaries: An Interdisciplinary Conference in Gender Studies, planned annually by members of the WGSX LLC, FUSE, and other interested students.
• Underwire: An Annual Journal of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies : journal includes essays, articles of an academic nature, poetry, photography, and artwork by students, faculty, and staff.

For more information, visit the
Women, Gender and Sexuality Department Web site at
http://www.smcm.edu/wgsx/home.html