College of Arts and Sciences
Curriculum
The women’s and gender studies major integrates theory and practice with the aim of transforming social relations, representations, knowledges, institutions and policies. Through interdisciplinary and comparative approaches, students study gender intersectionally and transnationally as a means of understanding the complex ways that ideas and practices about gender, past and present, shape the world around us. Issues of justice and power among women and gender-nonconforming populations are central at each level of study. The curriculum emphasizes race, ethnicity, nationality, class, age, sexuality and different abilities as categories of analysis.
- Apply interdisciplinary multiracial, intersectional and transnational feminist theories and methods to investigate how gender relations and practices are embedded in and shaped by diverse social, political, material and cultural realities.
- Recognize, interpret and analyze issues of power, oppression and injustice, and social, economic and epistemic violence.
- Identify histories and contemporary forms of feminist agency and resistance, social movements and collective action.
- Integrate feminist theory and practice to challenge social relations, representations, knowledge, institutions and policies.
- Engage and employ multiple modes of knowledge, including conventional texts as well as creative work, activism and popular culture.
- Model feminist competencies for collaborative learning and teamwork.
- Women, Gender and Violence in a Transnational Context
- Feminisms, Sexualities, and Human Rights in Middle Eastern Societies
- Trans Genders and Sexualities
- Women, Rap and Hip-Hop Feminism
- Indigenous and Feminist Thought and Theory
Extracurricular Opportunities
London Summer Session
Students in WGS often participate in this London summer session, British Masculinity on Screen: James Bond and Sherlock Holmes. It investigates what on-screen adaptations of Sherlock Holmes and James Bond have to say about the construction of British masculinity. It also explores issues of gender and sexuality, class, race, ethnicity and nationhood in the construction of hegemonic and “other” British masculinity.
The OutCrowd
The OutCrowd Magazine is the only student-run LGBTQIA+ publication at Syracuse University. It aims to provide queer students and allies a platform to express their otherwise overlooked opinions and perspectives. The publication regularly provides a sexually fluid approach to politics, art, sex and social commentary on hot-button issues pertaining to college life by challenging the social norm of what is deemed as acceptable.
Qolor Collective
Dedicated to supporting Asian, Black, Latinx, Indigenous and multiracial students who also identify as queer, trans, bisexual, lesbian or gay, the Qolor Collective provides a comfortable environment, academic support and social events that empower marginalized genders and students to embrace their identities.
SASSE: Students Advocating Sexual Safety and Empowerment
SASSE strives to create a safer space for the University community while also empowering students through the use of creative demonstrations and discussions. We advocate for sexual safety through activist efforts, education and other events so that students can express themselves, meet people and feel comfortable in a supportive environment.
Learn more about this program