Studying Women’s & Gender Studies at Kenyon
Kenyon’s program in women’s and gender studies examines the social construction of gender. Drawing on courses in fields such as anthropology, English, history, political science, psychology and religious studies, students use a transnational and intersectional approach to investigating gender. Students examine such topics as the lives and works of women and the experiences of gays and lesbians — areas of inquiry that have long been underrepresented in academic studies.
Featured Courses
Introduction to Queer Studies
This course develops a critical framework for thinking and writing about intersectional issues related to sexuality, sex, gender identity and gender expression. We’ll examine how society interacts with queer and transgender identities in various spheres, including politics, healthcare, arts, sciences and more.
Transnational Feminisms
Transnational feminist theories and methodologies destabilize Western feminisms, challenging notions of subjectivity and place and their connections to experiences of race, class and gender. We’ll examine the impact of globalization on feminist discourses that describe the cross-cultural experiences of women.
Cultural Productions of the Borderlands
Chicana/o culture in the U.S. is a vast yet underrepresented field. This absence is symptomatic of a history of oppression that results in silencing the “other” America. In this course, offered in both Spanish and English, you’ll gain deep understanding of borderlands within the context of their colonial legacies.
Gender, Sexuality and the Law
After an introduction to legal rights and norms, students in this course dive into case studies tracing the history of marriage equality, reproductive rights, and laws against employment discrimination and hate crimes. Assignments include writing op-eds that integrate multiple sources into essays of under 1,000 words, which gives students the chance to engage in public discourse and share their perspectives.
Faculty Spotlight
Jessica Pruett joined the Kenyon faculty in 2023. Her areas of expertise include queer and feminist social movements, intersectional feminist theory and cultural studies. Her current focus is an analysis of the effect of political conflict on lesbian feminist communities in the 1970s.
Oden Hall
Kenyon College
Gambier, Ohio 43022