WGSS Will be at the Majors/Minors Fair Today!
Come meet the faculty of WGSS, have your questions answered and learn about our upcoming courses at the Majors/Minors Fair in BCC Oak Room from 11am to 3pm. We hope to see you there!!
ISSUES 2012 – Part of the 2012 Election Series – this Wednesday!
Issues 2012 will con
sist of a dinner and a faculty panel discussion about this current election and issues relating to gender and sexuality.
The dinner is open to all students living in the Residential Colleges; Creative Life, Ignation and Service for Justice and will be held at 6PM on Wednesday, October 24 in the Kelley Center Presentation Room. The panel discussion will follow at 7PM. These events count for FYE Credit!
Sponsored by Service for Justice, Creative Life, and Ignatian Residential College, and the Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Commons
Breast Cancer Awareness Week on Campus
National Breast Cancer Awa
reness Month is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities every October to increase awareness and to raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure. The campaign also offers information and support to those affected by breast cancer.
The Elegant Ladies Club has designated this week as “Breast Cancer Awareness Week” on campus and are hosting 2 events. The first is a fundraiser stationed in BCC where individuals can honor someone they know who has been affected by Breast Cancer. The second is the Breast Cancer Awareness Social with Colleges Against Cancer on Thursday at 7pm. The social will have 2 guest speakers discussing how Breast Cancer has affected their lives. It is an FYE Magis event.
Boston Globe reports “LGBT workplace policies a draw for MBA students”
This week, some of America’s biggest and best known corporations, including Walt Disney Co., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., and consumer products giant Unilever, will descend on Boston to recruit students from the nation’s top business schools.
The companies will promote industry trends and career opportunities. And they will also highlight policies that make their workplaces friendly, comfortable, and inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees.
On Thursday, more than 1,000 MBA candidates, corporate executives, and recruiters will gather at the Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center for the annual Reaching Out LGBT MBA Conference, which aims to connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, or LGBT, business school students with some of the nation’s leading companies. Now in its 14th year, the conference has grown from 150 students networking over boxed lunches at Harvard Business School to a three-day event with high-profile sponsors, a sign that corporate America is more progressive than the public sector when it comes to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights.
The first major public company to offer health benefits to gay and lesbian couples, in 1991, was Lotus Development Corp., a Cambridge software company — more than a decade before Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage. Nearly all of the 636 major companies surveyed this year by the Human Rights Campaign — 99 percent — prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation; 80 percent forbid discrimination based on gender identity. Yet there are no federal laws, and only a handful of state laws, that do the same.
“There’s really no question that corporate America is leading the charge in the area of workplace fairness,” said Paul Guequierre, spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT civil rights organization in Washington. “In 29 states you can be fired from a job for being gay, and in 34 states for being transgender. That sad fact makes corporate nondiscrimination policies vital for LGBT workers.”
Executives say their companies haven’t put these policies in place for altruistic reasons. They are hungry for talent and want to attract the best and the brightest. In addition, labor specialists say, a diverse workforce contributes to a company’s profitability. A variety of experiences and opinions leads to a more well-rounded, creative process, and can appeal to a wider array of consumers.
Like many people in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, Hannah Yankelevich, who will graduate with an MBA from Dartmouth College next year, said she’ll consider how companies treat LGBT workers when she weighs offers. She’s thinking about returning to General Mills in Minneapolis, where she interned over the summer, because the chief executive announced that the company opposed an amendment recognizing marriage only as the union between a man and a woman.
“I wouldn’t work for a company that didn’t offer a supportive environment for the LGBT community, ” said Yankelevich, 27, one of the organizers of the conference.
State Street Corp. is attending the Reaching Out conference for the first time this year as it seeks to further expand its recruiting into minority and underrepresented communities. The Boston financial services giant attends conferences held by the National Black MBA Association and the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting for the same reason.
“Were not going to advance State Street unless we have access to the best talent, and that’s by offering an environment where employees can bring their whole selves to the workplace,” said Mike Scannell, head of talent acquisition and global inclusion. “For us to not be open to individuals regardless of their background is really prohibiting us from getting access to the best resources and talent that are out there.”
Along with policies prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, State Street has an employee group for LGBT workers and offers domestic partner health insurance, including transgender benefits for prescriptions and laboratory tests. The company is considering covering sex change surgery.
Mike Harrington, vice president and senior counsel at State Street, said he probably wouldn’t have come to State Street from a Boston law firm in 1998 if the company wasn’t welcoming to gay employees. In fact, Harrington told a headhunter that he wouldn’t apply for an opening at one New England company because it didn’t offer health insurance for same-sex partners. But it’s more than the benefits that have kept him at State Street. He feels comfortable plastering his office with pictures of his two sons and partner of 12 years.
“My family is the same as everyone else’s,” he said. “For me, it’s more about being in a place where I talk about Dave in the same way that the woman who sits next to me talks about her husband.”
Antonio Gomez-Lopez, a second-year student at the MIT Sloan School of Management, feels the same way. Gomez-Lopez, who helped organize the Reaching Out conference, said a company’s LGBT policies play a crucial role in deciding where he will work.
“I don’t want to hold a double life,” he said.
Out at The Workplace: An LGBT Alumni Group Panel – This Wednesday!
Out in the Workplace: an LGBT Alumni Group Panel will happen this Wednesday, Oct. 17, at 7PM in BCC 200.
In an interactive panel, Fairfield University alumni will address students about being openly gay in the workplace and offer strategies for career success while embracing diversity.
Fairfield University will be celebrating National Coming Out Day and LGBTQ History Month this October with an aggressive and engaging series of events that focus on the experiences of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ) community. In a continued partnership between the Academic and Student Affairs divisions, the slate of programming is intended to bring together students, faculty, staff, and alumni to reflect on the history, culture, and future of the LGBTQ community. The events include an exciting mix of films, speakers, panels, and socials. All events are free and open to the public.
LGBTQ History month events are sponsored by The Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, The Humanities Institute, Dolan School of Business, Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions, Office of Student Diversity Programs, Office of New Student Programs, Office of Residence Life, The Department of Communication, The Women’s Studies Program, Campus Ministry, The English Department, Alliance student group and Fairfield University LGBT Alumni.
Related web site: www.fairfield.edu/student/sd_lgbt.html
Fairfield University Celebrates LGBTQ History Month
Once again, Fairfield University is participating in the nationall LGBTQ History Month with a series of events featuring art, speakers, and films. View the events here on campus at http://www.fairfield.edu/documents/student/sd_lgbt_poster12.pdf
LGBTQ History Month got its start in 1994 when Rodney Wilson, a high school teacher, suggested there should be a month dedicated to the celebration and teaching of gay and lesbian history. Gay and Lesbian History Month was endorsed by GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Education Association, and other national organizations. In 2006, Equality Forum assumed responsibility for providing content, promotion and resources for LGBTQ History Month. LGBTQ History Month provides role models, builds community and makes the civil rights statement of our extraordinary national and international contributions.
LGBT History Month celebrates the achievements of 31 lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender Icons. Each day in October, a new LGBT Icon is featured with a video, bio, bibliography, downloadable images and other resources. Check it out at http://www.lgbthistorymonth.com/
The Sound of Silence and the Resurrection of the Hottentot Venus: Abdellatif Kechiche’s “La Vénus Noire”
Next Wednesday, October 3 at 5:15pm, Dr. Eloise Brière, Professor at SUNY-Albany, Specialist of African & Caribbean Studies will present “The Sound of Silence and the Resurrection of the Hottentot Venus” at the DiMenna-Nyselius Library. This will be a fascinating lecture and of interest to the WGS faculty and students!
“In our postcolonial age, the story of the Hottentot Venus has special relevance for those from former colonies whose peoples were subjected to Europe’s pathologizing gaze. Caught between the pre-Darwinian drive to determine the place of humans on the evolutionary scale and the European public’s insatiable appetite for the exotic and strange, Sara Baartman, a subaltern black woman was brought from South Africa to Europe in 1810 to be displayed in freak shows as well as in genteel drawing-rooms for Europeans to view her disproportionate buttocks and genitalia. Silenced by the voices of her keepers as well as by that of France’s most authoritative scientist, Georges Cuvier, Sara became the site of scientific speculation as the missing link between lower primates and homo sapiens. The Tunisian filmmaker, Abdellatif Kechiche, born four years after his country’s independence from France, could not fail to hear Saartje Bartman’s silence. The presentation will discuss how Kechiche fills in the blanks of history to resurrect Saartje Baartman, whose European odyssey ended in 2002 when the French government allowed her remains to be returned to South Africa.”
City of Westminster Archive Center, London/Bridgeman Art Library
“Sartjee, the Hottentot Venus, Now Exhibiting in London, Drawn From Life,” read the caption on this engraving, circa 1810.
R.A.D. Training Available to Students and Staff at Fairfield University
With the seriousness and unfortunate frequency of campus rape in the United States, we encourage individuals to check out R.A.D. training available on campus in October.
R.A.D. is the largest women’s self defense training network in the United States and Canada, and is the only self defense program endorsed by the IACLEA (International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators). This is a 16-hour “hands-on” course which meets or exceeds all National Coalition Against Sexual Assault guidelines. Its objective is to “develop and enhance the options of self defense so they may become viable considerations to the woman who is attacked.”
Dates of instruction are Tuesday and Thursday, October 16 and October 18, and Tuesday and Wednesday, October 23 and October 24, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Barone Campus Center Oak Room. Participants must attend all four sessions. Seats are limited; you can reserve your space by contacting Frank Ficko at fficko@fairfield.edu or Sergeant Rob Didato at rdidato@fairfield.edu. This course is being offered at no charge.
For more information on campus rape, check out http://drkathleenyoung.wordpress.com/2010/04/05/national-statistics-about-sexual-violence-on-college-campuses/
Quick Center Presents Lesley Stahl “Inside 60 Minutes”
The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts opens its 2012-2013 signature lecture series, Open VISIONS Forum, with legendary broadcast journalist and co-editor of 60 Minutes Lesley Stahl at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, September 19, 2012. Lesley Stahl was one of the first female television reporters. Ms. Stahl was first hired at CBS News in 1972, the same day that affirmative action was passed. She entered an industry that was male-dominated, but strove to make a name for herself.
The award-wining journalist’s lecture is entitled “Inside 60 Minutes.” Following Lesley Stahl’s presentation, there will be an informal conversation and discussion with Professor Philip Eliasoph, OVF moderator, and Dr. James Simon, a former Associated Press reporter who created the journalism program at Fairfield University. Single tickets are $45.
With humorous and poignant anecdotes, Stahl relives her two decades of covering the White House during the Carter, Reagan, and George H.W. Bush presidencies, and then viewing government as an “outsider” as co-editor of 60 Minutes. She details how news is gathered, and offers her insights on the major news stories she covered, including Watergate, the Iranian hostage crisis, and Iran-Contra. She also warns that now more than ever, the media controls what is news and how the industry is and is not handling that responsibility.
Gender, Sex and Sexuality Commons plans for a busy academic year!
Today we met with Fairfield University juniors, Rachel Lang and Astrid Quinones to talk to them about the Gender, Sex and Sexuality Commons (GSSC).
Last year, Lang, Quinones and others found it necessary to claim a space to create and foster and all-inclusive community for students of various genders, sexes, and sexualities, and thus established the Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Commons (GSSC). In the process of creating this space, they collaborated with the Diversity Office, Women’s Studies Department, and clubs such as Alliance and Sisters Inspiring Sisters to build bridges across student groups with common interests and between students and academic department. Physically, the space acts as a central location for clubs to have meetings, discussions, and to network for events both inside and beyond Fairfield University to combat injustice. The GSSC is located at 70 McCormick, room 123 and is open to students around the clock.
The GSSC will be busy this semester organizing events in connection with LGBTQ Month in October and a film screening and discussion in November about sexual assault in the military. Last spring, the GSSC was active in organizing Women’s History Month through V-Day events, Take Back the Night and a Women’s Day Celebration, along with Fairfield’s own Gender Bender Ball. 2012’s theme for Women’s Day was empowerment, and raised awareness of the various issues we face and the things both men and women can do to empower others. Bringing together more student groups than ever, GSSC had student clubs, initiatives, and programs come to Women’s Day to present their passion in conjunction with the theme of empowerment.
Interested in becoming involved in the planning of this academic year’s events? Come to 70 McCormick, room 123 to share your ideas on Tuesday, September 18 at 7pm. If you can’t make it but have some ideas, please email Rachel.lang@student.fairfield.edu or astrid.quinones@student.fairfield.edu
JANE DOE NO MORE
Breaking the Stigmas and Silence:
A Conversation About Sexual Assault
The goal of this lecture and panel discussion is to create heightened awareness about the crime of sexual assault and to provide useful information to college-age women and men.
Thursday, September 13, 2012 at 7 pm
Gonzaga Auditorium
Featured Presenters
Donna Palomba: Jane Doe No More Founder
Kristen Baumer, Tracy Digiovancarlo, Kate Costabile: Sexual Assault Survivors
Gary MacNamara: Chief of Police, Fairfield P.D.
Kerry Dalling: Detective, Fairfield P.D.
Rachel Lang: Fairfield University Student; Gender, Sex & Sexuality Commons
Julia Duffy: Director of Fairfield University Student Health Center
Welcome back students, faculty and staff!
The campus is buzzing with activity as we kick off a new semester here at Fairfield University. Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies will be sponsoring a number of great events this fall so stay tuned! Whether this is your first or fifth semester on campus, check out our list of student resources and groups at http://www.fairfield.edu/cas/ws_services.html .
Meet Eve: The Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies Graduate Assistant
Name: Eve Liptak
Q. What are you studying at Fairfield?
A. I am completing my final semester in the Communication MA program. Something that attracted me to this program was how versatile the course options are so that I could approach the subject from a variety of angles.
Q. What was your undergraduate experience?
A. I attended SUNY Purchase College for my undergraduate degree. A liberal arts school located outside of New York City, this location exposed me to both a diverse curriculum as well as student population. I started as a journalism major, but felt I wanted to learn more than just how to contribute to the media but also the “behind-the-scenes”. I received my B.A in Media Studies, a mix of hands-on media training, advertising, and sociology. Through this coursework we often touched upon the areas of women, gender, and sexuality. I would say two of my most influential courses were “Media Representations & Identity” and “Introduction to Women’s Studies”.
Q. Why did you want to work as a graduate assistant in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies?
A. I wanted to work as a GA in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies because the areas have always been an interest of mine. When I was in high school I attended a class trip to see a one woman show of Eve Ensler’s “The Good Body”. I recall how I’d never really considered these subjects before and how revealing that experience was. I think it’s important that we explore the areas of women, gender, and sexuality because they are so influential and interdisciplinary.
These topics are not just areas that continuously reappear in my academic studies but are a part of our everyday lives. They are fields that are regularly influencing, changing, and expanding and I think the program name change reflects that.
I’m proud to see Fairfield University is part of the conversation on women, gender, and sexuality and to be able to contribute to this program as their graduate assistant.
Q. What is the best part of the job?
A. Sending out emails…Just kidding!
My favorite part of the job would have to be seeing all of the great work that not only the faculty and staff are completing, but also the students. I have been very impressed at what an active student community there is and the creativity and scope of these events and projects! I’m happy to be able to assist with these programs and also act as a resource to students interested in learning more about WGSS. Feel free to stop by DMH 115 to say hello!
Q. What do you do when not on campus?
A. I’m also very interested in the arts, so when I’m not on campus I’m often helping with a local gallery event. Aside from that I like to spend most of my time doing “normal” things like hanging out with friends, seeing live music or movies, visiting NYC, and walking around my neighborhood with my adorable Bichon “Orion”.
Q. What is something you would tell undergraduate students as they prepare to graduate?
A. Focus on what you’re most passionate about and it will make any task seem less like work.
And back-up all your important assignments! You don’t want to learn that lesson the hard way.
Get involved in The Collegiate Closet II
This Spring a group of students in Alliance and the Gender, Sex and Sexuality Commons are working with the WGS program and faculty and staff across campus to re-create the quantitative survey and qualitative insights first completed in 2007 about the climate on campus for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. There will be an organizational meeting on Thursday March 1 at 7PM in the WGS office (DMH115). Anyone wanting to be involved should come to this very brief meeting. And for your reading pleasure, here is a link to the original Collegiate Closet report. It will be interesting to see what (if anything!) has changed. Expect an update at the end of this semester!
Vote for the Gender, Sex and Sexuality Commons!
I stole the text from what the fine folks in Media Relations already wrote, but add my two cents that this is an awesome program run by great students (who happen to be WGS minors, natch) and you should go here and vote!
And here is what you’re voting for:
Fairfield University’s student-led initiative, has been selected from among thousands of proposals from across the nation as one of the 15 top finalists for the first ever White House Champions of Change Challenge. Selection of the top five projects will be determined by a public vote on the project that best embodies President Barack Obama’s goal to win the future. The top five vote getters will be honored at a March 15th reception at the White House. Moving is currently in progress and will continue through Saturday, March 3.
Individuals may vote on the project by visiting the following website:https://campuschallenge.uservoice.com/forums/148562-campus-champions-of-change-challenge
The Fairfield project, The Gender, Sex and Sexuality Commons, was begun by Rachel Lang, a member of the class of 2014 from Milford, Connecticut, who is majoring in International Studies and Politics. Lang worked with Marssa Tota, senior, Alex Cody, senior, Alicia Bissonnette, senior, Jesus Nunez, sophomore, and Astrid Quinones, sophomore , to create a safe space on campus to converse about LGBTQ issues as well as those pertaining to gender, sex, or sexuality. Their goal was to claim a space to create and foster an all-inclusive community for students of various genders, sexes, and sexualities. In the process of creating this physical space in a residence hall on campus, the student leaders involved collaborated with the Office of Diversity Programming, Women’s Studies Department and campus clubs including Alliance, and Sisters Inspiring Sisters. The space acts as a central location for individuals and organizations to have meetings, discussions and to network both inside and beyond Fairfield to combat injustice.
“This is a collective space for men and women to engage in an ongoing dialogue about the gender and sexuality injustices that occur on campus and beyond. Such dialogue will contribute to mutual understanding and active service focused around these issues,” Lang said. “We envisioned this environment as helping to foster growth in our community so that students of diverse genders and sexualities are distinguished as equals in academics, athletics, and social interactions,” she continued.
The White House announcement on the finalists quoted President Obama as saying, “All Across America, college and university students are helping our country out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world,” said President Obama. “I hope this challenge shines a light on their efforts, and inspires Americans of all ages to get involved in their communities.
