Women's Studies celebrates 25th anniversary with symposium

On Friday, the Institute for Women's and Gender Studies held a symposium to celebrate its 25th anniversary in the Student Government Chambers of the MSC from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Around 30 people were present at the event, mostly women. Guest panels of many different generations were the focus of the event. The panels were divided into generations, and each panel had about an hour to speak. Kicking off the event was Joyce Mushaben, professor of political science and director of the IWGS. She spoke some about UM-St. Louis' IWGS and its founding. "We do need to sit back and reflect a little bit on the major transformations that we've seen," Mushaben said. Mark Burkholder, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said a few words before the panel began. Mushaben said that he has been very supportive of the program. He commented on the large, diverse group of people present. "The changes are enormous," Burkholder said. "Women's studies have been here longer than a great deal of things on campus. I am committed to expanding women's studies." Burkholder also commented that 60 percent of the campus population is female. Some of the founders of the program were able to come back and speak about how the program, as well as themselves, have evolved since then. There are nearly 200 certificate runners, with about 10 a year. Some of the first programs were approved in 1976. The first honorary professor of women's studies was appointed this year, as well as the organization receiving their own space in Clark Hall. "We also have a new chancellor who has committed himself to gender equity," Mushaben said. From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., the first generation, called the "Pioneer Voices," each told their story about getting into women's and gender studies. Included in the panel were Eloise Burker, director of women's studies at St. Louis University; Barbara Harbach, visiting professor of music and honorary professor in women's studies at UM-St. Louis; Susan Hartmann, professor of history and women's studies at Ohio State University and Mushaben. Each woman spoke about her personal story and how she got into women's studies. Mushaben gave each of the panel members a list of questions to answer throughout her time; however, the members were allowed to speak about what they chose. What moved them to start addressing women's issues, how was their road to get there and some of the obstacles that each had to overcome, were just some of the topics addressed by the panel members. Panel members told the story of their travels through gender equity. For example, one of the founding members of the program at UM-St. Louis, Hartmann, talked about how she helped the program begin. She said that an informal "underground meeting" was part of the basis for the beginning of the program. Females of all races, ethnicities and sexual orientation were in this group. The second generation, entitled "Voices of Diversity," all had their own stories to tell as well. Members of this panel included Leslie Brown, assistant professor of history and African and African-American studies at Washington University; Fatemeh Keshavarz of Washington University; Kathleen Nigro, graduate teaching assistant for the IWGS and Deborah Henry, lecturer at the Pierre Laclede Honors College. From about 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., the third generation, "Voices, Echoes and Missing Verses," spoke. All of these panelists were students. Students included Angie Postal, senior, political science; Deionza Shelton, senior, English and sociology; Emily Trevathan, graduate student of economics and Allison Edgehill, women's studies at Washington University. Also on the panel were Julie O'Heir, sophomore, women's studies and theology, at St. Louis University and Kendall Purcell, senior, English and biology, at St. Louis University. Questions and comments were welcomed and encouraged after each panel spoke. A brief break occurred after each session concluded. The event ended around 5 p.m. with closing remarks.