Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Our Mission Statement

Gender and sexuality are fundamental categories of social organization and power. Our program examines gender and sexuality as they intersect with race, ethnicity, class, nationality, ability, and other sites of social inequality. Our students critique and evaluate these relations of power within a transnational context. As a discipline grounded in women’s studies, we seek to make visible women’s contributions and struggles. We affirm a feminist commitment to social justice and engaged citizenship. Feminist and queer theories inform our work as we collaborate across disciplinary boundaries to transform knowledge, practices, and institutions.

WGS Program Learning Outcomes

• Analyze the workings of sex, gender, and sexuality using a variety of disciplinary approaches.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the commonalities and differences among feminist theory, gender theory, and queer theory.
• Critique social institutions, organizations, and practices using feminist, gender, and queer theories.
• Recognize women’s contributions and struggles in a transnational and historical context.
• Articulate the ways in which gender and sexuality intersect with other sites of social inequality, such as race, ethnicity, class, nationality, and dis/ability.
• Engage in experiences that apply theoretical frameworks to social action.

“We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back.”
–Malala Yousafzai