Women’s Studies is an academic discipline that grew out of the 1970’s feminist movement. Today it is a multidisciplinary and trans-disciplinary approach to the historical, structural, cultural, and political conditions and experiences of women’s lives. This introductory course places women and gender at the center of inquiry, and uses feminist/womanist concepts such as the social construction of gender, intersectionality, privilege, and difference to analyze, critique, and deconstruct social institutions, gender, and the creation of knowledge. The course emphasizes analysis of the way that sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, nation, ability and age intersect with gender systematically to affect all areas of life.
This is a section of WGS 201 that is intended specifically for women who belong to sororities, both Panhellenic and NPHC organizations. In addition to developing a global framework for understanding women’s gendered experiences, this section of WGS 201 will focus on sororities as social systems, the situations encountered by women as members of sororities, and applications of feminist theories of power and leadership to solving problems and transforming situations encountered in students’ daily lives. The specific goals of this course are as follows:
- To gain a sense of how Women’s Studies, as an approach to seeing the world, can be applied to many different fields of study.
- To learn about feminist/womanist movements and activism, including the accomplishment of influential women in transforming disciplined knowledge about the experiences of women and men. Also, to examine how and why women and other oppressed groups have often been missing from dominant narratives.
- To learn key words and concepts of feminist/womanist theories and activism and the current debates therein.
- To understand the intersections of social identities such as gender, age, race, sexual orientation, class, and region, and the impact of those intersections on the diversity of human experiences.
- To become more self-conscious of our own social positioning; that is, to help understand both how we are shaped by our contexts and how we may claim the power to reshape those contexts.
- To become more actively involved in our education through thinking critically and analytically about our own and others’ positions within patriarchy and to consider how the production of knowledge is gendered and exclusionary.
- To build skills relevant to the success of feminist leadership such as power sharing, inclusive and productive collaboration, dialogue and listening, and conflict resolution through civil disagreement and mediation.
- To understand how sororities and Greek life on college campuses are social systems where the many “-isms” (e.g., heterosexism, sexism, racism, classism) are uniquely enhanced, discouraged, or played out.
Early on in the semester we will be covering the history of women’s movements and feminism in the United States. For this assignment you will turn in a 5-6 page paper the addresses the following: Brief summary of the circumstances the precipitated the founding of the sorority you are affiliated with (i.e., Where? Why? How? By whom?). Presentation of some of the key historical events in US history that occurred during the early decades of your sorority’s founding. Discussion of the historical context of women’s movements and feminism were occurring during the early decades of your sorority’s founding. Critical reflection about the relationship between your sorority’s founding and items 2 and 3 above.
We will use the research and reflection you do for this paper during our discussions of Historical Perspectives. The Historical Context Paper is due on January 29th by 5pm via Blackboard. Your work will be evaluated on care and thoughtfulness, the extent to which you integrate course materials, and the extent to which you are able to offer critical reflection on the historical context of your sorority’s founding as it relates to emerging themes of the course You will turn in 4-5 page paper that describes a specific problematic event or situation you have encountered related to your membership and/or leadership in your sorority. The description should explore power dynamics that operate in the situation, and systems of gendered and identity-related interactions among people that influence the situation.
You should include at least 5 scholarly references specific to women or sororities (ones that are NOT included on the syllabus) that help you develop an informed, reflective, analytical perspective on situations that affect women in organizations. We will use the topics you raise in your paper for our discussions of Pledged starting on March 7th as well as a catalyst for your Group Project. Your work will be evaluated on care and thoughtfulness, the extent to which you are able to critically reflect on themes of the course, and the extent to which you cite and are informed by readings from class and additional readings. The Sorority Dynamics Paper is due on March 7th by 5pm via Blackboard
Most weeks I will post an assignment for the following week on the course Blackboard site and via email. These assignments, which I am calling Critical Reflections (CRs), will vary in type throughout the semester depending on the readings, topics, and other activities for the week. All of these CRs will involve careful reading/attention to assigned readings and a written response. All CRs, unless otherwise indicated, must be posted on the Blackboard discussion page prior to the start of class on the day they are due. Because I have designed these assignments in such a way that they are often linked with classroom activities, it is essential that you thoughtfully complete the assignments before coming to class. Therefore, no late CRs (i.e., CRs posted after 8:30am on the day in which they are due) will be accepted. You should also bring one copy of your CR to class the day it is due as well as throughout the week (electronic on a laptop, iPad, etc is fine) so that you may refer to it during class time. Students must complete 7 of the 12 CRs throughout the semester (i.e., you can skip 5 CRs without penalty). Each CR is worth 10 points. All CRs will be graded on a scale of:
- Outstanding (e.g., you went beyond the call of duty, you took your thinking further or deeper then was expected, you showed integration of course materials, you brought in outside materials from other classes or other sources) = 10 points
- Very Good (e.g., you did what was asked in the assignment and made an effort to go beyond what was minimally expected) 9
- Good (e.g., you did the bare minimum of what was asked in the assignment) = 8 points
- Unacceptable (e.g., you didn’t do what the assignment asked) = 6 points
For this assignment all students in the class will work as one group (possibly with subgroups/committees) to create a Panhellenic philanthropy and/or awareness-raising event for the North Dakota State community. The purpose of this assignment/activity is to engage class members together, across sorority affiliations, on a feminist praxis activity aimed at highlighting college women’s leadership and transnational feminist awareness/activism. The event will be held on April 5th (there will be no class meeting that day). Students will be graded both as a group and individually based on the quality of the event, individual participation and effort, and critical reflection on the event.
For this assignment you will create a group plan of action that fits with the goals of the engagement module of the syllabus. For this you will reflect on how, after having considered gender and feminism and how the relate to various aspects of our lives, you have been affected and in what ways you can/will engage in feminist praxis. You will present you Plan of Action to the class and other invited guests as well as complete a write-up of your Plan of Action that will include critical reflection using both outside sources as well as course reading. The group presentation portion of the Group Plan of Action Project is due on Wednesday, May 15th during our schedule final exam time (12:45-2:45pm). The written portion of the Group Plan of Action Project is due on Wednesday, May 14th at 5pm via Blackboard
Your Course Engagement includes your regular attendance in class, class related activities (e.g., in class activities), participation in on-line discussions about Critical Reflections, and an individual meeting with me. Attendance will be taken weekly throughout the term. If you are in attendance and are in active participant in discussion and activities, you will receive full credit for your attendance that day. As the format of this course relies on in-class activities, preparation for class discussions/activities, and active participation in class discussions/activities, it is essential to your success in this course to maintain regular attendance. During the first half of the semester, each student will briefly meet with me
