Department of Interdisciplinary Studies

2010

• In March, SEWSA was hosted by the University of South Carolina.
• Dr. Donna Lillian (Linguistics) became the Director of Women's Studies.

2011

• In March, Women's Studies supported the Hayes School of Music recital, "Donna Voce: A Concert of Women Composers" to celebrate the beginning of Women's History Month.

• In September, Women's Studies supported multimedia artist Jewel Castro's "Sail!" exhibit, which draws on Samoan history and identity, Samoan women's art production, and Castro's relationships with her ancestors.

2012

• On January 24, Angela Davis, author of Women, Race, and Class and many other foundational texts, spoke at "An Evening with Angela Davis," where she delineated social problems associated with incarceration and the criminalization of communities most affected by poverty and racial discrimination.
• SEWSA was hosted by George Mason University.

2013

• On March 27, Dr. Chris Cuomo spoke on "Eco-Feminism and Climate Change" as part of inaugural Global Women's Series.
• In April, SEWSA was hosted by UNC-Greensboro.
• On April 24, Dr. Birsen Bulmus, spoke on "Egyptian Women and the Paradox of the Arab Spring."
• On April 24, the Maggie McFadden Collection in Women's Studies was dedicated and exhibited in the Special Collections of Belk Library.
• In July, Women's Studies became a constituent program in the Department of Cultural, Gender, and Global Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences.
• In September, Dr. Maggie McFadden (Professor Emerita) became Interim Director of Women's Studies.
• Women's Studies numbered 70 Affiliated Faculty in 19 departments and 5 colleges.
• Women's Studies participated in the Red Flag Campaign to stop relationship violence on college campuses.
• In November, Carol Adams gave a lecture on "The Sexual Politics of Meat." 
• In November, a Women's Studies Reception was held at the Jones House, which honored faculty and students from the previous year.

2014

• On February 28, Women's Studies faculty participated in a panel titled "Women's Studies and Transformative Knowledge Building"
• Women's Studies again supported performances of The Vagina Monologues in February. 
• On March 3, Women's Studies supported a concert of music by women composers, organized by Dr. Reeves Shulstad.
• On March 24, Dr. Mary Wyer of North Carolina State University delivered a talk on "Women, Science, and Social Change," accompanied by a student poster session. 
• On March 25, Dr. Mary Wyer (NCSU) and Appalachian faculty participated in a roundtable titled "Where Would Science be Without Women?"
• On March 25, Women's Studies supported "Rosi Braidotti vs. Judith Butler: A Feminist Theory Dialogue" with Salla Peltonen of the Institute for Women's Studies at Abo Akademi University, Finland and a visiting scholar at Duke University.
• On March 27-29, SEWSA was hosted by UNC-Wilmington. Appalachian faculty presented work, including Dr. Sushmita Chatterjee, Dr. Martha McCaughey, Dr. Maggie McFadden, Dr. Elaine O'Quinn, C.C. Hendricks, Victoria Lozano, and Beth Hauser. Graduate Certificate students Meghann Murphy and Samantha Thompson also presented work.
• In April, Women's Studies participated in Feminist Coming Out Day.
• On April 25, Women's Studies organized a reception for graduates of the major, minors, and graduate certificate programs at the McKinney Alumni Center.
• In August, Dr. Kim Q. Hall became the Director of Women's Studies.
• In September, the Women's Studies program conducted a survey of all students in Women's Studies courses. As a result of that survey, a proposal was made to change the name of the program to Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies. As a result of student input, Dr. Kim Hall also assembled a task force to review the curriculum. The task force was composed of Dr. Sushmita Chatterjee, Dr. Jill Ehnenn, Dr. Sarah Greenwald, Dr. Elaine O'Quinn, Dr. David Orvis, and Dr. Alecia Youngblood Jackson. After reviewing GWS curricula in 37 peer and aspirational institutions, the task force recommends changes to the major, minors, and graduate program, including the addition of a 9-hour graduate minor in GWS.
• On September 17, Dr. Jill Ehnenn, Professor of English and affiliated faculty member in Women's Studies, presented "'Poets and Lovers Evermore': Michael Field as Female Aesthetes and Literary Co-Authors" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• On September 24, Brenda Wright, member of Appalachian's Board of Trustees, presented "Strong, Smart, and Bold Women: Extraordinary Burdens and Blessings" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• In October, Women's Studies faculty approved changing the program's name to Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies and the task force's recommendations for curricular revision.
• On October 8, Dr. Robin James, Associate Professor of Philosophy at UNC-Charlotte, presented "Post-Feminist Pop Songs: On Resilience, Gender, and Race" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• On October 22, Dr. Sarah Greenwald, Professor of Math and affiliated faculty member in Women's Studies, presented "The Association of Women in Mathematics: How and Why It Was Founded, and Why It's Still Needed" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• On October 29, Dr. Sushmita Chatterjee, Assistant Professor of Women's Studies in the Cultural, Gender and Global Studies Department, presented "Transnational Feminism and the Politics of Friendship" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• On November 5, Chancellor Sheri Everts presented "Women and Leadership" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.
• On December 3, Alison Gulley, Associate Professor of English and affiliated faculty member in Women's Studies, presented "Gender in the Middle Ages" as part of the Women's Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.

2015

• In February, the university approved changing the program's name to Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies and all curricular changes.
• In March, "Reproductive Justice" is the theme for Women's History Month events sponsored by the Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies Program.
• On March 5, Women's Studies screened Made in India: A Film about Surrogacy; Dr. Sushmita Chatterjee, Assistant Professor of Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies in the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies (formerly Cultural, Global and Gender Studies) facilitated discussion of the film.