Women’s Studies Update
VOLUME X, NUMBER 6 MARCH 2004

COORDINATOR’S CORNER

Greetings. I would like to keep my comments brief, as I'm hoping you will focus on the many activities happening during Women's History Month. March 8 is International Women's Day. We are planning to show short film clips in the Diversity Center all morning, and we need volunteers to lead a discussion after each film. If you are interested, please contact Laura Albright at 626-7632 for more information or to sign up for a 1-hour block.

I do want to mention my opportunity to attend the Association for Women in Psychology 29th Annual Feminist Psychology Conference, from which I just returned. This year's meeting focus was "Perspectives on Women's Well-Being: Feminist Psychology, Science, & Practice." Of special interest to me were some of the presentations addressing the challenges in teaching diversity courses. Speakers revealed that we are not alone in some of the challenges we face. Other workshops of interest addressed women's friendships and the obstacles facing women in "post-liberation" Afghanistan, as well as issues of sexual harassment and opportunities for under-represented groups like Women-of-Color and L/G/B/T individuals. I am happy to share what I brought home from the conference with other interested folks.

Once again, please look at the calendar of events for Women's History Month and attend the ones that fit your (and your students') schedules. We really need your support at these events. Also, we are still collecting recipes and stories for our "Recipes, Reading, and Eating" activity, scheduled for March 10th. Think about the memories associated with some of your favorite dishes and submit (by March 4th) and share (on March 10th) that story and recipe.

CONGRATULATIONS(!) are in order for Dr. Rosemary Conover, who will receive the prestigious H. Aldous Dixon Award at a luncheon on March 8th at noon.

PROFILING ….

Given that this is Women’s History Month, I thought that it would be appropriate to devote this space to considering the important role that cross-listed and special topics courses have played in the history of our own program. From its inception, the program has relied on offerings from many other departments as well as the Honors program to "flesh out" the curriculum available to our students. In planning for the first years, we collected together courses that focused on women’s issues and had been offered previouslyy on campus. Such courses as "Sex Roles: Past, Present and Future" (Soc./Anthro.) and several English courses whose titles began with "Perspectives in Women’s Literature" had been taught prior to the program’s establishment, and the Honors Program had supported "Women’s Perspectives in Biology" for several years as well. Some of the original courses are still taught; others have been superseded or have "morphed" into new versions that fit better the requirements that the program designers established for its educational focus and philosophy. The approval of a "Special Topics" course number for Women’s Studies opened an additional avenue to support occasional courses that were not part of the permanent curriculum. Some of these courses have been cross-listed with other departments or programs as well, such as Kathryn MacKay’s and John Lamborn’s course on "Gay and Lesbian Studies: An Introduction to the Literature," cross-listed with the Honors Program. Funding for these courses has been provided on many occasions by Continuing Education or by grants (such as R.S.&P.G. or Hemingway Faculty Vitality) awarded to the faculty members designing and teaching the course. In other instances, the "home" department supports classes as part of their faculty member’s course load.

In terms of the sheer number of courses and faculty members contributing to the program, our greatest support has been from the English Department. Over the years, eight faculty members have taught about a dozen courses, most of which have been offered multiple times. We also owe a debt of gratitude to the Honors Program, the second most "involved" in providing space, funds, and, often, students; many of our minors have been Honors Program students as well. Communication, Foreign Language, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology/Anthropology have all supported multiple courses that were cross-listed; single course offerings have come from Child and Family Studies, Economics, Gerontology, Health, History and Theatre.

Many of us have been concerned that the new semester calendar has decreased the number of cross-listed courses departments can offer, without really knowing the magnitude of the effect. It is significant. The "quarter years" of the program had an average number of 16 courses offered per year. This is somewhat inflated by two "boom" years (’94/’95 and ‘97/’98) each with 25 cross-listed or special topics courses; without those years, the average is a bit over 12. However, in contrast, the "semester years" average 9 courses, with a low of 4 in ‘02/’03. It is difficult for faculty to fit the time to design and teach a new course into a busy teaching schedule, regardless of the level of their own or student interest in the topic. It is difficult also for departments to cover the basic requirements, let alone offer specialty upper division courses. It is important to keep trying, however, so that all Weber State students, not just Women’s Studies minors, can have as rich an undergraduate experience as possible.

CALENDAR
3 Mar. - SWS Wisdom on Wednesdays, "Women Inspiring Hope and Possibility," WSU
President Ann Millner, UB Blrm. A, noon.

-"Plural Marriage, Women's Rights, and the Constitution in the 19th Century," Sarah Gordon; Library Special Collections, 3:00 PM (sponsored by the History Department.)

5 Mar. - Dr. Lisa Mountain (U of U Alcohol and Drug Education Center) will speak on alcohol
and substance abuse in women; Swenson Gym 104, 11:00 AM.

8 Mar. – International Women’s Day. Join us for short videos at the Diversity Center from
9 AM to 12:30 PM

10 Mar. - SWS WOW, "Successful Women in Nontraditional Roles," Jennifer Peterson, Fed.
Aviation Administration; UB Lair, noon.

- "Recipes, Reading and Eating" recipe potluck supper; University Village, 6:00 PM.
Submit memories and recipes and RSVP by March 4 to Women's Studies.
12 Mar. - Dr. Linda Protzman, McKay-Dee Behavioral Health Institute, will speak on adult
sexual abuse survivors; Swenson Gym 104, 11 AM.

22 Mar. - Readings from Women's Studies "Your Other Sweethearts" poetry contest winners;
Lib. Special Collections, 1 PM.

24 Mar. - SWS WOW, "Women's Roles in Religion," Catholic, LDS, United Church of Christ,
and Jewish panelists; UB Lair, noon.

31 Mar. – "The Time of the Butterflies;" University Village, 5 PM. Join us for snacks and a
movie to celebrate Women's History Month. Co-Sponsored by Hispanic Area Council,
Services for Multi-Cultural Students, and MEChA.