Women and Gender Studies Certificate

WGS 200. Introduction to Gender Studies. 3 Credits.

An interdisciplinary introduction to the processes by which gender is socially constructed, in relation to sex and sexuality. This course will provide the tools to analyze the complex intersections of gender with other categories like race, ability, class, and religion and understand how they affect the circulation of power. Students will reflect on their identity and experiences, and how these concepts shape our lives and our world. This class will engage with pressing social issues and influential cultural representations, norms, practices, and institutions. F,S,SS.

WGS 225. Introduction to Women Studies. 3 Credits.

An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of Women Studies, with an emphasis on transnational feminism as a critical lens with which to assess the status and contributions of women and girls around the globe in the present day. Students will analyze and understand power structures in intranational and international contexts by evaluating the complex and intersecting forces that shape the lives of people who identify as women and girls. F,S,SS.

CJ 302. Women, Crime, and Criminal Justice. 3 Credits.

This class will explore the changing roles of women as offenders, as victims, and as professionals in the criminal justice system. Attention will be directed toward empirical findings, conflict theory insights, and the feminist perspective within the discipline. The basic goal of this course is to respectfully enhance understanding of the importance of gender equality within the field of criminal justice and to encourage self-examination of habitual modes of thinking and acting. Prerequisite: CJ 201, CJ 210, CJ 220, and CJ 270; or WGS major/minor. S.

SOC 340. Sociology of Gender. 3 Credits.

This course is a sociological exploration of how gender dynamics have changed across time and vary globally. How gender creates barriers and opportunities - for both men and women - across multiple facets of social life is emphasized. S.

HIST 333. Women in Modern America. 3 Credits.

How did women experience and shape American history and the United States as we know it today? This course explores the social, political, and economic lives of American women from diverse cultural backgrounds from the rise of the "New Woman" in the late 19th century to the present. Using gender, race, class, and culture as analytical lenses reveals the struggles and victories of women, as well as their individual and collective influence on the broader society. S, even years.