Women's and gender studies might become separate major

The department currently offers interdisciplinary studies degrees.

By Angela Case

Published March 12, 2009

Students and staff members of the women's and gender studies department are working on a proposal to make it a separate major from interdisciplinary studies.

Women's and gender studies is a concentration within the interdisciplinary studies major in the College of Arts and Science.

Women's and gender studies adviser Jessica Jennrich said the main result of such a change would be different wording on graduates' diplomas. Graduates' diplomas list their majors as interdisciplinary studies, and their transcripts say interdisciplinary studies-women's and gender studies.

Jennrich, along with other students and faculty members, would like to change that.

"Most of the courses I have taken have related to gender, women or feminism in some way, and so as an interdisciplinary studies major, I haven't really taken any classes in any area that doesn't relate to those topics," junior Ashley Crimaldi said. "Women's and gender studies is specific enough that it should be acknowledged."

A forum discussion about the topic was held Tuesday night in order to gather student input and support for the change.

"I'd like to incorporate as much student feedback in the proposal process as possible, because that's one of the strengths of the major, that the students are so involved," Jennrich said.

Senior Josh Barton, who attended the forum, also said the department's courses are unique and important enough to warrant their own major.

"Even though I'm a journalism major, I feel like women's and gender studies courses have been some of the best courses I've taken," Barton said. "This is one of the very few departments where you are really challenged to question the perceptions you've grown up with your entire life. Taking these courses really does open your eyes to things you never thought about."

The UM system Board of Curators is more likely to accept a proposal that is heavily backed up by students, she said.

Jackie Litt, women's and gender studies department chairwoman, said new proposals such as this must undergo a multi-step process that begins with approval by the College of Arts and Science Dean Michael O'Brien, Provost Brian Foster and Chancellor Brady Deaton.

The proposal is then sent to the UM system office, where it is reviewed and sent back to the original writers for revision. After the document is revised, it is sent back to the UM system office, then approved by the Board of Curators.

Finally, the proposal must be approved by the Missouri Department of Higher Education.

Jennrich said the approval process is longer than most people would prefer.

"I would like it to be done fast, but realistically, it will probably take a calendar year to get it done," she said.

Many attendees of the meeting said adding women's and gender studies as a major would help attract freshman students interested in a degree in the field.

"Freshmen will see women's and gender studies on the list of majors with everything else, and in their minds, it will become more legitimate," Jennrich said. "We've done a lot of work with outreach, but it's a constant battle. Anything that we can do to become more legitimate in peoples' minds is going to help us."

Jennrich said making women's and gender studies its own major will assist greatly in establishing the department's credibility.

"We've taken some steps to situate ourselves as a strong department, and this is just one of the final steps we need to do," she said.