DEPARTMENT OF WOMEN'S AND GENDER STUDIES

The mission of the Women’s and Gender Studies department is to encourage and support student, staff, and faculty learning, teaching, research and outreach activities that address the historical and persistent realities of multiple enmeshed oppressions based on gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, socio-economic class, sexuality, ability status and so on. As an interdisciplinary and global field informed by the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, Women’s and Gender Studies faculty bring expert knowledges to a wide range of social problems, situations and contexts. The Women’s and Gender Studies department works to support diversity efforts on campus, increase diversity awareness, and transform social and institutional practices well beyond its contributions to its own academic programs.

History of the Department

At the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Women’s and Gender Studies began as just one course in 1971: “Women in American Culture” taught by Agate Nesaule. After shepherding this course through the curriculum committee and teaching it for a few years, Dr. Nesuale attended a national conference to discuss the inclusion of women and feminism in university curriculum. Upon her return to UW-Whitewater, she found a ready group of colleagues, including department cofounder Ruth Schauer, excited about the possibility of women’s and gender studies at UW-Whitewater. They started meeting once a month for feminist picnics, building a community and plan for a new women’s and gender studies department. Dr. Nesuale and Dr. Schauer divided the labor of founding the department, creating new courses and carefully proposing them to the university curriculum committee. Dr. Schauer noted that “every course was hard fought.” Obtaining funding was always a challenge for the program, resulting in some humorous anecdotes including the time an earlier Chancellor of UWW joked about funding the department through vending machine change. Over more than 40 years, UWW Women’s and Gender Studies has grown from one course to a dynamic department with a major, minor, and several certificates.  We celebrate the tenacity of our founding mothers with every new student who passes through our courses, gaining transformative insights, skills, and perspectives afforded by an intersectional feminist education.

1971   Our first class, Women in American Culture, was taught for the first time.

1974   The Women’s Studies minor was added.

1977   The Women’s Studies program received our first budget of $475.

1978   Our first students graduated with a minor in Women’s Studies.

1983   Women’s Studies gained department status.

1990   The Women’s Studies major was approved.

2013   The department expanded its reach to become “Women’s and Gender Studies."

2020   The LGBTQ Studies Certificate became available.

Student testimonials on career paths:

• “Everything I learned from WGS I took with me to grad school at Texas A&M University. Being familiar with reading, analyzing, and applying theory gave me a leg up when it came to diving into graduate level coursework.” Shelby Fosco, 2017 graduate 
• “The WGS department has not only shaped who I am as a scholar, but also as a citizen on this earth, and that​'s something I'll forever be grateful for.” - Nicole Chernohorsky, 2020 graduate
•  “If not for this department, I would not have discovered my passion for social justice. As a proud minor of WGS, we are important.” --Becca Stolp, 2020 graduate 
• “Earning my degree in WGS felt like a rebirthing process. I learned about the ideas and systems that contributed to my trauma and pain and was able to heal and grow with new understandings about myself and others. My physical being changed too, I began to hold my head up high, look people in the eyes when I engaged with them, and speak clearly with conviction. I learned to question everything and determine what my views and beliefs were instead of doubtlessly accepting what I was being taught. I learned how to advocate for myself and found validity in my existence. WGS was life-altering. It has been paramount to my overall success and I will forever be looking forward to how it applies to my future and the world around me.”--Savannah Mulrooney, 2018 graduate