After much input from faculty,
students and staff, Boise State University’s Women’s Studies Program has been
renamed the Gender Studies Program. The new name reflects a shifting emphasis
from studying women alone to investigating broader issues of gender and
sexuality that affect both women and men. Program director Lisa McClain, a
history professor who specializes in gender, religion and popular culture in
early modern Europe, has long been passionate about using education as a tool
for social change. Broadening the Women’s Studies Program to include a wider
range of gender issues empowers that process, she said.
“What underlies our expectations of what women and men should be — in regard to
our intellectual abilities, our bodies, our sexuality, our political, economic
and domestic roles — until we understand and question the validity of all our
attitudes, we can’t really negotiate workable, viable solutions for many of the
tensions in our society,” McClain said. “And the issues of feminism, masculinity
and sexuality are clearly interrelated. For example, the social and cultural
assumptions that justified the subjugation of women for centuries are often the
same ideals we use to construct our expectations of what men should be like and
what roles they should fill.
“The Gender Studies Program
doesn’t advocate any particular political or social position,” McClain
continued, “but as a university, it’s our responsibility to shine the spotlight
on all facets of given issues so individuals can make their own informed
decisions. Often, the attitudes we hold come from lack of information or perhaps
misinformation. The program offers a reputable, respected source of knowledge
and debate for the campus and the wider Boise community.”
In support of the program’s
redefined mission, university Provost Daryl Jones commented that “educated
people must be able to reflect on their own perspectives and values and to
compare them with the perspectives and values of others. The new focus of the
Gender Studies Program will enhance students’ self-awareness through greater
recognition of the diversity of human experience.”
McClain said Boise State’s program has served both women and men since its
inception in 1993. Men from various disciplines and walks of life — political
science, religion and business to name a few — have signed up for classes
alongside their female counterparts in an effort to better understand how
society views gender roles and identity.
Michael Blankenship, dean of
the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs which houses the Gender
Studies Program, emphasized, “These aren’t just interesting philosophical issues
the program is exploring. Everyone, male or female, confronts issues of gender
every day, in their workplace relationships, in their family dynamics, in the
media, and in their places of worship.” McClain concurred, “We want to inform
ourselves to better understand our own lives, our personal and professional
relationships, and our society at large. These issues are relevant to us all.”
The program offers about 8-10 classes per semester from a variety of
disciplines, including history, criminal justice, sociology, communication,
anthropology, English and art history. Offerings in the past have included
courses such as “Gender, Science and Technology;” “Saints and Sinners: Women in
Christianity;” “Women in Poverty: Homelessness and Welfare Reform;” and “Modern
Feminism.”
“Since gaining approval for the program change, I have already had several
faculty members come forward with ideas for new classes, such as “Gender and
Sexuality,” “Body Image in Men and Women,” and “Masculinities,” McClain noted.
“The broader focus of the Gender Studies Program should allow us to offer a
wider range of interesting courses to best address our community’s interests and
needs.”
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Contact
Lisa McClain
Director of Gender Studies
208 426-1985
Media Contact
Kathleen Craven
communications and marketing
208 426-3275
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