Undergraduate Course Offerings

Same as HIST 1004. A survey of women's history from the colonial era to the present.

GS 2020 History of Women and Social Movements: 3 semester hours

Same as HIST 2020. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or consent of the instructor. This course explores the history of women and social movements in the nineteenth and twentieth century United States. It considers social and political movements such as abolitionism, women's suffrage, progressivism, the labor movement, the civil rights movement, and second wave feminism.

GS 2102 Introduction To Gender Studies: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC WK 2102, HIST 2102, and SOC 2102. This core class is required for all Women's and Gender Studies Certificate earners. This class introduces students to cultural, political and historical issues that shape gender. Through a variety of disciplinary perspectives in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, the course familiarizes students with diverse female and male experiences and gendered power relationships.

GS 2130 Gender and the Military: 3 semester hours

Same as MVS 2130. This course examines the treatment of gender difference in the military and focuses on the complex intersection between military culture and social constructs of gender in the civilian world.

GS 2150 Special Topics In Gender Studies: 3 semester hours

An introduction to a particular topic area in women's and gender studies (topics will be announced prior to registration) drawing on the theories and methods of such disciplines as sociology, psychology, political science, history, philosophy, art history, and others to examine particular aspects of gender in social and cultural life. Course may satisfy the distribution requirement for humanities or social sciences depending on the topic.

GS 2224 Marriage And The Family: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 2224. The study of patterns of close relationships, and how these relationships are influenced by larger social forces. Topics include love, dating, mate selection, cohabitation, alternative lifestyles, working families, parenting, single mothers, families in crisis, domestic violence, and divorce. Universal and variable aspects of family organization, family role systems, and changes in family social structure are considered.

GS 2230 Psychology Of Gender: 3 semester hours

Same as PSYCH 2230. Prerequisites: PSYCH 1003. Evaluation of psychological theories and research regarding physiological, cognitive, and personality gender differences and similarities, gender related problems in adjustment, and gender specific clinical interventions.

GS 2232 Psychology Of Trauma: 3 semester hours

Same as PSYCH 2232. Prerequisites: PSYCH 1003. This course is designed to review the psychological effects of crime, violence, war, natural disasters, and other traumas. Particular attention is paid to the development of specific psychopathology and other negative consequences of traumatic events. The process of recovery from distress following psychological events is further emphasized. The role of gender and its relationship to victimization and the development of psychopathology and recovery are considered throughout the course.

GS 2253 Philosophy And Feminism: 3 semester hours

Same as PHIL 2253. A critical examination of what various philosophers have said about issues of concern to women. Sample topics include oppression, racism, women's nature, feminity, marriage, motherhood, sexuality, pornography, the ethics of care.

GS 2290 Gender And The Law: 3 semester hours

Same as POL SCI 2290. This course examines the ways in which laws and interpretations of laws affect gender equality in the United States. Emphasizing how traditional roles impact both women and men historically and currently, the course highlights major pieces of legislation and court rulings related to employment, economics, education, sexual harassment, pornography, rape, reproductive rights, and domestic relations. The course stresses the impact of federal and state institutions and non-governmental influences on equality. It also addresses gender representation in the legal profession admits effect on judicial decisions. This course satisfies State requirements in American History and Government.

GS 2380 Politics of Gender in the United States: 3 semester hours

Same as POL SCI 2380. Prerequisites: POL SCI 1100 or consent of instructor. This course examines the role of gender in political institutions, practices and policy in the United States, past and present. It focuses on various movements for political equality, the relationship between gender and political participation, vote choice, and public opinion, and how legislative, executive, and judicial offices are gendered at the national, state, and local levels. (This course satisfies the State requirements in American History and Government).

GS 2410 Work, Families, And Public Policy: 3 semester hours

Same as ECON 2410. Prerequisites: ECON 1000 or ECON 1001. This course compares the economic behavior of women and men in both the labor market and the household. Topics include: the family as an economic (production) unit, gender differences in labor force participation, occupations and earnings; the effectiveness of human capital theory and labor market discrimination in explaining the male-female wage gap; remedies for reducing the wage gap; family structure and economic well-being; and alternative policies to alleviate poverty. Students who have completed ECON 3400 may not take 2410 for credit.

GS 3031 History Of Women In The United States: 3 semester hours

Same as HIST 3031. Prerequisites: Junior standing or consent of the instructor. Development of women's economic, political, and social role in the United States with special emphasis on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; women and work; women and the family; women and reform movements; women and education; feminist theories and activists; images of women.

GS 3032 History Of Women In Comparative Cultures: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Junior standing or consent of the instructor. An introduction to the historical development of women's status in a variety of cultures and periods within the areas of Africa, Europe, the Far East, Latin America, and the Middle East. The course analyzes women's political, economic, familial, and sexual roles and the economic, demographic, ideological, and political forces which promoted change and continuity in those roles.

GS 3033 Sexuality And Gender Theory: 3 semester hours

Same as HIST 3033. Prerequisites: Junior standing or consent of instructor. Course examines the ways in which contemporary sexuality and gender theory has challenged and changed the study of culture and history. The course introduces students to sexuality and gender theory in late twentieth and early twenty-first century contexts.

GS 3034 History Of Sexuality: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Junior standing or consent of instructor. This course locates sexuality at the center of history and examines its impact over time on politics, society, culture, and economics. In particular, the course focuses on changing definitions of sexual deviance, the historical evolution of formal and informal regulations of sexual practices and on the manner in which sex has been deployed in broader historical struggles involving gender, race, class, migration and state building.

GS 3224 Families in Global Perspective: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 3224. Prerequisites: SOC 1010 or consent of instructor. This course presents research from the fields of demography, sociology, economics, and public policy in order to develop a broader understanding of the causes and consequences of population aging, one of the major demographic changes faced by social institutions worldwide. Attention to the global diversity of human experiences by age, gender, socioeconomic status,.

GS 3250 Sociology Of Victimization: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 3250. Prerequisite: SOC 1010. This course examines the role of social factors in a wide rang of kinds of victimization--crime, violence, natural disasters, accidents, disease, etc. The topic of social reactions to various kinds of victimization is also covered. Sociological theories of victimization are emphasized.

GS 3350 Special Topics In Gender Studies: 3 semester hours

Prerequisite: GS 2102 or consent of instructor Special topics in women's and Gender Studies. topics vary by semester.

GS 3352 Independent Studies In Gender Studies: 1-3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Junior standing; two courses in Women's and Gender Studies, including GS 2102; and consent of the instructor and the Institute. Directed independent work in selected women's and gender studies topics through readings, research, reports and/or conferences. Course may satisfy the distribution requirement for the humanities, social sciences, or math/science depending on topic.

GS 3376 Gender In The Visual Arts: 3 semester hours

Same as ART HS 3376. Prerequisites: Minimum of one 2000-level course in ART HIST and ENGL 3100, or consent of instructor. Selected topics in the role of gender difference in the production and reception of works of visual art and culture. This course will consider examples of historical and contemporary works through gender theories and the analysis of cultural and social factors that contribute to the construction of sexualities and genders.

GS 3590 Women and Leadership World-Wide: Breaking the Glass Ceiling: 3 semester hours

Same as POL SCI 3590. Prerequisites: POL SCI 1500 or consent of instructor. Compares women's day-to-day leadership and participation patterns across a wide variety of political-economic contexts, emphasizing their performance as elective and executive office holders. It examines the experiences of individual female leaders, the effect of country- specific nomination and recruitment strategies, party dynamics, and the larger political opportunity structure hindering or promoting the balanced participation of women and men in national leadership. Understanding how gender (the socially constructed meanings related to biological sex) operates within these specific contexts is a major concern.

GS 3700 Diversity And Social Justice: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC WK 3700. Prerequisites: PSYCH 2160 or SOC 2160; and SOC WK 3100 taken prior or concurrently. Analyzes the structure, dynamics, and consequences of social and economic injustice, and the impact on diverse groups in American society. Examines theoretical models and practice principles for work with diverse groups.

GS 4100 Introduction to Feminist and Gender Theory: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 4100. Prerequisites: GS 2102. This class serves as an initial intellectual investigation into gendered ideologies (such as the effects of race, ethnicity, nationality, socioeconomic class, sexuality, and religion) and functions as a bridge to later advanced gender theory and methods courses. Topics include interdisciplinary feminist theories (with a focus on gender equality), including masculinity theory, queer theory, muted group theory, and other evolving frameworks.

GS 4150 Feminist Theory and Social Research: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 4150. Prerequisites: GS 2102 and Junior Standing or consent of instructor. This course provides an in-depth examination of feminist theoretical contributions to social science research. We begin by examining the 20th century roots of contemporary feminist theories. With this foundation in place, we then shift to an investigation of how feminist theory has informed sociological research by examining current feminist understandings of gender, race, and sexual inequalities across a range of contemporary social problems. Fulfills WGS feminist theory requirement.

GS 4300 The Female Gaze: Women And The Media: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Junior Standing or consent of instructor. This course challenges how women's issues and performances of feminity are represented in global media, particularly popular Western media which perpetuate cultural stereotypes of gender norms. Specific topics will vary.

GS 4325 Gender, Crime And Justice: 3 semester hours

Same as CRIMIN 4325 and SOC 4325. Prerequisites: CRIMIN 1110, CRIMIN 1120, CRIMIN 2130, CRIMIN 2210, CRIMIN 2220, ENGL 3100 or consent of instructor. Analysis of the role of gender in crime and in the justice system. Emphasis on gender differences in crime commission, criminal processing, and the employment of women in criminal justice agencies. Fulfills criminology diversity requirement.

GS 4330 Violence Against Women: 3 semester hours

Same as CRIMIN 4330. Prerequisites: Junior Standing, CRIMIN 1110, CRIMIN 1120, CRIMIN 2130, CRIMIN 2210, CRIMIN 2220, and ENGL 3100, or consent of instructor. This course examines the nature, extent, causes and consequences of various types of violence against women, including rape, sexual assault, stalking, and intimate partner violence. Criminal justice policy and practice regarding violence against women are also examined.

GS 4335 Gender and Body Image in Media and Culture: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: GS 2102, GS 4100, and six additional hours of GS courses. Through the lens of feminist and gender theory, this course engages students in conversations pertaining to gender, media, body image, and culture. Students will read and analyze fiction and non-fiction texts in order to realize the multidisciplinary of gender and body image as themes and motifs. Students are required to participate in Service-Learning in order to deepen their understanding of how these issues affect day-to-day lives within their communities.

GS 4350 Special Topics In Gender Studies: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: GS 2102 or consent of instructor. Special topics examined from a gender perspective in the fields of anthropology, art history, criminology, economics, English, foreign language, history, philosophy, political science, psychology, social work, sociology, business, or others. Topics and departments vary by semester. Course may be repeated by permission of Director of the Center.

GS 4352 Independent Study In Gender Studies: 1-3 semester hours

Prerequisites: GS 2102 or consent of instructor. Independent, directed readings and research in a women's gender related topic, to be determined in consultation with instructor.

GS 4360 Sociology Of Minority Groups: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 4360. Prerequisites: SOC 1010 and junior standing or consent of instructor. The study of dominant-subordinate group relations. Religion, ethnicity, race, and gender as factors in the unequal distribution of power.

GS 4452 Feminism And Science: 3 semester hours

Same as GS 4452. Prerequisites: Six hours of philosophy, graduate standing, or consent of instructor. This course will explore major themes and issues in feminist science scholarship, a body of research that focuses on the relationship between science and gender. Feminist research in the philosophy and history of science, and in the biological sciences, are emphasized. Issues include: the nature of objectivity, evidence, and truth; the factors that contribute to the acceptance or rejection of research hypothesis and theories; the nature and consequences of science's cognitive authority; and the relationship between science and values.

GS 4600 Masculinities: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 4600. Prerequisites: GS 2102 or consent of instructor. This course examines men and masculinities through a critical lens, looking carefully at an institutionalized system of gender relations and practices that is assumed to be a natural phenomenon that is culturally universal. The course explores various masculine behaviors, myths, ideologies, and experiences so that students can consider the relationship between masculine practice and social power and delineate choices for future directions. The course is necessarily interdisciplinary and may utilize tools and methods from the social sciences and the humanities. Satisfies GS gender theory requirement.

GS 4610 Intimate Partner Violence: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC WK 4610. Prerequisites: SOC WK 3510. Focuses on theoretical and empirical understanding of domestic violence in US society and social work practice with battered women and their families. Addresses direct services, community organizing, and public policy changes to help end violence against women. Relationships between violence against women and other forms of oppression (e.g., racism, economic exploitation, heterosexism and social class) are explored.

GS 4630 Gender and Social Issues: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC WK 4630. Prerequisites: SOC WK 3700, GS 2102 or graduate standing. This course will help students become more sensitive to social and welfare concerns based on gender. Topics may include work, education, family responsibilities, violence against women, and special health and mental health service needs. Emphasis will be placed on understanding how social action can be used to bring about positive change.

GS 4920 Women Writing Nature: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: GS 2102, or consent of instructor. We will read and analyze nature writing by 19th and 20th-century women in America, as well as critical studies from various cultural perspectives and academic disciplines. The course will examine how women's observations about nature create, support, and/or dispute particular cultural and social attitudes toward the environment. Students will consider debates in feminist pedagogy, ecofeminism, and social constructivism about the relationship of gender to nature.

GS 4925 Feminism and Witchcraft: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: GS 2102, or consent of instructor. This class will examine literary and historical treatments of witchcraft through a cross-cultural, feminist theoretical framework. Students will read primary historical documents as well as fictional, dramatic, and poetic representations of witches and witchcraft. The course will consider changing perspectives toward witches in contemporary gender theory, spiritualist discourse and popular media.

GS 4930 Studies In Gender And Literature: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4930. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. The course examines the role of gender in literature, including the transformation of literary genres by women writers, writings by women during a particular historical period, and gender relations in literature. Specific topics vary from semester to semester. The course may be repeated for credit with departmental approval.

GS 4931 English Women Writers, 1300-1750: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4931. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. Works will be read ranging in scope from closet drama and romance to lyrics to personal, political, and religious writing by women, such as Margery Kempe, Mary Sidney, and Amelia Lanyer who wrote during a period when reading and writing were not the female norm.

GS 4932 Female Gothic: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4932. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. The course examines the historical development of the female gothic, a genre which employs narrative strategies for expressing fears and desires associated with female experience. From the late 18th century to the present, we will trace the persistence of the Gothic vision in fiction and film.

GS 4933 Female Novel Of Development: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. The course covers the development of the female Bildungsroman from the late 18th century to the present. We will consider how temporary and current theories of female development help us read these novels within their particular cultural contexts.

GS 4934 Austen And The Brontes: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4934. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. This course covers the novels of the major 19th century British writers Jane Austen and the three Bronte sisters, Anne, Emily, and Charlotte. The course will be devoted to Austen's romantic comedies and the historical/cultural contexts that inform the novels, as well as the darker romanticism of the Brontes, along with the biographical, cultural, philosophical, and religious contexts of their work.

GS 4936 Tales Of The Islamic East: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4936. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. Adventure, gender, and power in British and post-colonial writing: Lady Montague on Turkey, Gibbon on Islam, Byron and Hemans on harems and heroes, Disraeli on the Jewish Caliph of Bagdad, T.E. Lawrence on Arabia, and el Saadawi and Rushdie on (post)modern gender and the Islamic East.

GS 4938 American Women Poets Of The 20Th/21St Centuries: 3 semester hours

Same as ENGL 4938. Prerequisites: Students must satisfy English prerequisites for 4000-level courses or obtain permission of instructor. Introduction to American women poets since 1900: anarchists, Imagists, Harlem formalists, white lyricists, modernists (Ridge, H.D., Dunbar-Nelson, Millary, Stein); mid-century giants (Rukeyser, Brooks) and Confessionals (Sexton, Plath); feminists and multiculturalists (Rich, Lorde, Giovanni, Hogan), poets of witness and the play of language and the mind (Klepfisz, Olds, Mullen, Perillo).