WST 200
Reading Women's Lives; Introduction to Women's Studies (3.00 cr.)
(Fall, Offered Every Year)
This course begins with our asking the seemingly simple question, what is a woman? and a corollary question, what is feminism? Women's studies scholars and activists in women's issues have made it their work to examine the historical and social constructions of gender from cross-cultural and interdisciplinary perspectives. Throughout the course, you will be invited to think, speak, create, act and write critically about women's ideas and experience. We will work toward understanding how various aspects of women's identities, including age, race, class and sexual orientation interconnect, and how these differences help women position themselves in relation to various forms of feminism. This course fulfills a cultural perspectives or social and behavioral science elective for general education requirements.

WST 204

Women in Science (3.00 cr.)
(Fall, Course Offered Odd-Numbered Years)
A course that delves into the role of women in science throughout
history. Students will examine the relationships of women to society in
general and to science as it evolved through changing societies. The
lives of an assortment of women who contributed to scientific advance
will be examined. Three lecture hours per week. Prerequisite: any
Laboratory science.

WST 299
Research in Women's Studies (1.00-3.00 cr.)
(Fall and Spring, Course Offered Every Year)
Open to freshmen and sophomore majors and minors or others with permission. In conjunction with a faculty mentor, the student will formulate and execute an original research project that will culminate in a paper and a presentation. A research proposal form completed by the student and faculty mentor is required. Signature of instructor is required for registration. This course may be repeated for a total of six credits.

WST 300
Contemporary Feminist Theories (3.00 cr.)
(Spring, Course Offered Odd Years)
This course is designed to provide students with a broad overview of the key feminist theoretical debates of the 20th and 21st century. Using some early works to provide a critical and historical foundation, the course will trace the roots of contemporary American feminism and identify recurrent themes in feminist thought and theory. Using a variety of texts and selected readings, this course will encourage students to sharpen their critical skills, understand and appreciate the diversity of approaches taken by feminist theorists, and apply feminists' theories/approaches to a number of issues in their chosen disciplines.
Prerequisites: WST 200

WST 320

Our Bodies-Our Lives; Shaping Female Identity (3.00 cr.)
(Varies, Contact Program Director)
This course will focus on the way in which individuals develop their identities
through the body’s experiences in American culture. Drawing upon
an interdisciplinary range of research and ideas, the course will explore
how the body is influenced and shaped by society; how individuals are affected
by myths about the ideal or “normal” body; and the way the body
has been objectified in areas of fitness, health and beauty. We will look
at the effects of media, popular culture, educational, and other areas of
socialization to gain self-awareness as to the ways students’ lives reflect
the process of how they embody cultural values and social attitudes.

WST 472
Women's Studies Service Project (1.00-3.00 cr.)
(Fall and Spring, Course Offered Every Year)
This course, recommended for the major in Women's Studies, presents an opportunity for students to contribute knowledge and skills to a project related to social change and focused on women, feminism or gender. Legislative, community, educational or non-profit settings provide the context. The service project is developed between student and faculty sponsor with approval of Women's Studies director. The connections between scholarship, social action and ethical responsibility are emphasized. A weekly seminar with other students and/or meeting with the faculty director of the project provides a structured setting in which to analyze these experiences and share works in-progress. A thorough report is submitted at the end of the semester.

Prerequisites: WST 200

WST 490
Selected Topics in Women's Studies (3.00 cr.)
(Spring, Course Offered Even Years)
This is an open enrollment course that draws broadly upon historical, contemporary and/or controversial topics in the field of Women's Studies. No prior experience in Women's Studies assumed. Each topic provides students with a place to consider issues, engage in dialogue and make meaningful connections to their own lives and the larger world. The course offers a variety of formats, foci and processes that will change with the instructor.

Prerequisites: Context of Culture and Junior Status.

WST 495
Crossing Borders; Women Making Change in a Global Society (3.0 cr.)
(Spring, Course Offered Every Year)

Globalization has spurred the way in which changes on one continent or country impact the lives of women everywhere. This course will introduce students to the problems, experiences and activism of women in diverse situations and contexts, and examine the effects and influence of identity (as mothers, consumers, citizens, workers) and organizing for change (economic, political, cultural, and legal). As we explore activism and the obstacles to change within a global context, we will reflect on how the local is increasingly shaped by complex and distant cultures.
Prerequisite: 75 hours.

WST 498
Honors Thesis in Women's Studies (3.00 cr.)
(Fall and Spring, Course Offered Every Year)
Open to seniors in the Honors and/or Teaching Fellows Program who, in conjunction with a faculty mentor, will formulate and execute an original and advanced level research project investigating an aspect of women's studies of interest to her. A research proposal form completed by the student and faculty mentor is required. Signature of instructor is required for registration. The maximum credit is three semester hours.
Prerequisite: WST 200.

WST 499
Research in Women's Studies (1.00-3.00 cr.)
(Fall and Spring, Course Offered Every Year)
Open to junior and senior majors and minors or others with permission. In conjunction with a faculty mentor, the student will formulate and execute an original research project that will culminate in a paper and a presentation. A research proposal form completed by the student and faculty mentor is required. Signature of instructor is required for registration. This course may be repeated for a total of six credits.
Prerequisites: WST 200 and WST 300.

Cross-Listed Courses
ART 324   Women in the Visual Arts
COM 375  Gender Communication
ECO 335  Gender and the Economy
ENG 359  Seminar in American Women Writers
FCS 355   Family Resource Management

FRE 309   French Women Writers
HED 320  Our Bodies- Our Lives; Shaping Female Identity
PSY 212   Psychology of Gender Roles
REL 268   Women in the Bible
REL 283   Women in the Christian Tradition
REL 497   Global Christian Feminist Theory
SOC 231  Social Problems
SOC 332  Human Sexuality
SOC 338  Sociology of the Family
SOC 360  Media, Self and Society
SOC 420  Gender and Society

SOC 430  Population Dynamics
SWK 240 Populations at Risk and Social Justice

WST 299  Research in Women's Studies
WST 472  Women's Studies Service Project
WST 495  Crossing Borders; Women Making Change in a Global Society
WST 498  Honor Thesis in Women's Studies
WST 499  Research in Women's Studies