Women's and Gender Studies Course Offerings
Fall 2026 Women’s and Gender Studies Courses
WGS 101 Introduction to Women’s & Gender Studies, 4u, Professor Longo, TTH 8:00-9:40 This course is designed as a forum on gender. The discussion revolves around questions such as, how does our culture represent femininities and masculinities? How do race, class, sexuality and other identities shape our ideas about gender? Our aim is to consider and discuss as many points of view about gender and its intersections as possible.
See Course Descriptions in Course Catalog
Fall 2026 Interdisciplinary Courses That Satisfy the WaGS Major/Minor
COMM 316 Communication: Advertising & Civic Engagement, 4u, Professor Joyce, MWF 10:40-11:45 This course gives students an understanding of theory and practice of advertising through civic engagement projects. In the first half of the course students will study the theories of the practice of advertising; in the second half, students will have the opportunity to apply these theories as they generate and criticize advertising campaigns with a critical gender, race, class and ethnicity focus.
DANCE 309 Dance History: Antiracist/Decolonial Approach, 3u, Professor Wu, TTH 3:20-4:35 The course focuses on the history of 20th and 21st century dance, prioritizing and centering BIPOC artists and voices. The class intends to create a learning community where we question our own histories. We will use critical thinking and creative skills to construct the history that defines and shapes us today as dance artists carrying unique intersectionalities. By embodying the urgent need to re-create our history, one that deconstructs colonial dogma based on the superiority and privilege of Western approaches, we shift the focus to a radically inclusive and anti-racist view.
ENG 322 James Baldwin: The Icon and the Writer, 4u, Professor Koo, MWF 12:05-1:10 James Baldwin (1924-1987) is a towering figure in the American cultural imagination. In this course, we will read the works that established him as one of the nation’s indispensable voices, examine his influence on other writers and artists, and investigate the meaning and relevance of his works in the twenty-first century.
ENG 352 Adapting Shakespeare (Topics in Drama), 4u, Professor Ma, TTH 1:30-3:10 What happens when Shakespeare’s plays are reimagined across time, cultures, and media? In this course, we will discuss selected plays alongside bold adaptations for film and stage, exploring how directors and performers reshape Shakespeare through new language, settings, and casting choices, including modern retellings, cross-cultural interpretations, and all-female ensembles. As we compare original texts with their adaptations, we will discover how Shakespeare’s work continues to evolve and remain meaningful for new audiences.
HIST 441 Research Seminar on Latin American Environmental History: Disasters, 3u, Professor Santiago, MW, 2:45-4:00 Students will focus on researching and writing a term paper on a disaster in Latin America: earthquakes, floods, volcanic explosions, fires, or hurricanes. The class will read texts sampling the above and then find the primary sources that will provide the evidence for their paper. The questions we ask include: how “natural” was this disaster? How did those affected see nature? How did gender affect the impact of the disaster? This course can count as the WaGS capstone. This course fulfills the Global Issues and Perspectives core curriculum requirement.
JCL 363 Disability, Justice, Movement for Equity, 4u, Professor Robillard, MWF 12:05-1:10 This course introduces key concepts about disability, special education, and diversity, focusing on disability justice movements. We will explore how disability is shaped by varying systems—not just individual differences—and how they intersect with race, class, and other identities. Additionally, we will examine how disability has been represented, understood, and challenged in the United States.
POL 346 EL Food Politics, 3+1 units, Professor Longo, TTH 11:40-12:55 We all connect with food: it is a catalyst, a starting point for exploring issues from agricultural practices to consumption. We not only grow, make and buy food; it also shapes us–physically, personally, and culturally. We examine why something as innocuous as choosing foods can be a political act with global consequences. We will cover global food history, food security, food democracy and food justice, world hunger, and the environment. (Must be taken concurrently with POL 346EL, for a total of 4 units).
POL 365 Theories of Justice, 4u, Professor Longo, TTH 9:50-11:30 Philosophers have debated the meaning of justice since at least the fifth century B.C. We enter into the conversation through some classic texts in the history of political theory, plus recent writings. We discuss theories of justice and their implications for public policy on environmental, gender, race, and global issues using case studies to help us understand the application of theory to real life. PSYCH 332 Psychology of Gender, 3u, Professor Feito, MW 9:15-10:30 A critical view of the theory and research on gender from biological, psychological, and sociological perspectives. The course explores the social construction of gender and its impact on human development and social behavior, including interactions between gender and race, culture, and sexual orientation.
SOC 316 Global Migration, 4u, Professor Atalay, TTH 1:30-3:10 This course examines contemporary migration and its effects on nations, societies, politics, and personal identities. We explore forces behind migration, its nature and ties to capitalism, and the influence of state policies on immigration politics. We ask: what motivates individuals to migrate despite adversity and detention? Who are the migrants, and how do they select their destinations? We also examine the functionality of borders, the fluctuating stance of states on migration, and the repercussions of migration on origin and host nations.
SOC 320 Social Movements, 4u, Professor Brown, MWF 8:00-9:05 This course exposes students to social movement theories and perspectives. Emphasis will be placed on the history, processes and methods used to explain the collective behavior of African- American women as they engage such movements via protest. By focusing on African-American women, students will interrogate social movement and collective behavior literature to critically explore questions about who and what is left out of sociological theorizing of social movements.
SOC 330 Sociology of Film, 4u, Professor Bulman, TTH 9:50-11:30 Hollywood movies are contemporary folktales. They are the stories we collectively tell ourselves about who we think we are as a culture. Films emerge out of the imaginations of artists and the offices of businesspeople and find their way into our neighborhoods and living rooms. But films are more than individual expressions of an artistic vision or a business investment. This class will study films as cultural artifacts that reflect something about the larger society in which they are produced and consumed. Students will complete an ambitious original research project that uses a sample of films as social scientific data.
TRS 371 Gender and Religion, 3u, Professor Pagliarini, MW 10:40-11:55 This course focuses on the relationship between gender and religion in North American history and culture and the ways religions construct and deconstruct gender norms. We will use historical and contemporary case studies to examine the way that notions of femininity and masculinity have played a role in the religious lives of Americans.