Women and Leadership |
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Course Number: LIT/PS 131 |
CRN Number: 92480 |
Class cap: 20 |
Credits: 2 |
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Professor: |
Deirdre d’Albertis, Erin Cannan and Michelle Murray |
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Schedule/Location: |
Fri 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM Chapel |
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Distributional Area: |
D+J Difference and Justice |
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Crosslists |
Gender
and Sexuality Studies |
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It is 2023. Why aren't there
more women in leadership positions? According to a 2018 Pew Research Center
report, the majority of American men and women acknowledge the capacity of
women to lead. Yet in certain domains--most notably politics and
business-- continue to be under-represented at the top and the
American public remains skeptical that gender parity can be
achieved. Recent elections have galvanized the electorate around
constructions of gender in particularly dramatic ways. If we are
living in a post-feminist society (as some claim), why do these questions and
conflicts continue to arise? Identity is an urgent conversation in 21st-century
politics and everyday life, and this includes awareness of how
intersectionality shapes gendered experiences. What are the stories that we
tell ourselves and each other about equality, representation, privilege,
freedom, authority, and success? How do these inflect real-world outcomes for
individuals and societies? In this two-credit course we will explore
some of the stories that circulate in our culture around women and power, both
from an academic and from a practical, real-world perspective. What does it
mean to lead? How do we use a language of empowerment? Why has the United
States embraced certain narratives of gender equity and success as opposed to
those being created in other countries and cultures? We will focus on learning
from women who are committed to making a difference in the world through their
personal and professional choices, hearing their stories, and reading texts
that have been particularly important to them in their lives and work. So too,
we will engage with stories from the past (archival
research), from across disciplines (government, politics, the
military, higher education, STEM, the arts, tech, media) and from a wide range
of perspectives. As an Engaged Liberal Arts and Sciences course,
this seminar will provide students with the unique opportunity to bring theory
and practice together in a very immediate sense: by the end of the term you
will have identified a story only you can tell, whether it is based in
political activism, community engagement, or work experience. Drawing on the
rich resources here in Annandale as well as through Bard's other campuses we
will reach out to groups and organizations with a shared focus on gender.
Network building is something we will explicitly address. This
course is open to all first-year students. Upper College students may also
participate if selected to serve as course fellows.