The mission of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Connecticut
is threefold:
- to transform scholarship in existing academic disciplines by incorporating the study, contributions, and feminist analysis of gender and sexuality;
- to create a new body of interdisciplinary feminist research and teaching that concentrates on women, gender, sexuality; and
- to build a supportive and critical scholarly community that advances our understanding of the construction, reproduction, and resistance to inequality.
These activities further three goals:
- to institutionalize the generation of feminist and queer knowledge about women, gender, and sexuality within and across disciplines and other interdisciplinary sites; and
- to develop understanding and opportunities for political activism that advances social justice; and
- to provide individuals with the means to integrate feminist and queer theory into their scholarship, professional work, and everyday lives.
Program Outcomes
Upon successful completion of a major in WGSS, students will be able to:
PLO 1: critically engage with theoretical frameworks central to the field of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, including critical race, disability, feminist, queer, trans, and transnational theories.
PLO 2: design an interdisciplinary research project using that critically engages with the production of knowledge using feminist methodologies.
PLO 3: demonstrate proficiency in communication for critical social/cultural analysis and social justice advocacy through the completion of papers, presentations, discussion, and/or creative projects aimed at feminist intervention.
PLO 4: develop empathetic and supportive relationships with individuals with different backgrounds and viewpoints as a foundation for community building and collaboration.
PLO 5: explain how key career competencies acquired through WGSS apply to diverse workplace settings and career paths.