Women’s Studies Minor
Women’s Studies is an interdisciplinary field that encompasses feminist theories and decolonial pedagogies, the study of gender (femininity and masculinity), and women’s contributions to culture. Attention to race/ethnicity, class, sexuality, and ability allows us to critically examine the structures of inequality and exclusion so as to foster an understanding of diverse human experiences.
Awards
Martha Welch Women’s Studies Student Award
Each year the Women’s Studies Program selects a recipient for the Martha Welch Student Award. To be eligible, a nominee must meet the following criteria:
- be an undergraduate student at SIUE
- maintain a grade point average of B or better
- have successfully completed at least one course in the field of Women’s Studies (many past recipients have been Women’s Studies minors)
- demonstrate leadership characteristics in women’s issues at a campus or community level and/or outstanding performance in research or scholarship in the field of Women’s Studies
The award is presented each Spring semester.
Past Martha Welch award recipients:
- 2020 Emma Bowens
- 2016 Sharon Whittaker
- 2015 Isabel Gonzales
- 2014 Destiny Green
- 2013 Megan Smith
- 2012 Carly Higdon
- 2011 Leslie Keil
- 2010 Christy Koester
- 2009 Sarah Wion
- 2008 Cassandra McCallister
- 2007 Jamie Larson
URCA Research Projects
Dr. Rocha’s URCA projects Spring 2020:
- The first one deals with gender and migration. Following Floya Anthias’ assertion that “gender is a relational concept as well as a central organizing principle of social relations” (15), this project explores the way in which migrant women of the Americas establish social relations that reinforce or challenge their gender. By examining first-person accounts and representations in the media, we will investigate the role played by social relations in the migrants’ new homelands.
- The second project deals with literary and visual representations of women in the US-Mexico border. In the early 2000s, a wave of feminicides in Ciudad Juárez caught the attention of national and international press. Director Lourdes Portillo shot Missing Young Woman (2001), a documentary about the deaths of hundreds of women in the border. This project will focus on updating the information provided by Portillo’s documentary. Thus, the period to be researched will comprise the 2000-2019.
