Curriculum Review: Proposals

Proposal from QSA (#61)

Note: Submitted on behalf of the Queer Student Alliance.

As the committee discusses possibilities for changing Furman’s curriculum and perhaps considers adopting less Western-centric approaches to education, the Queer Student Alliance would like to emphasize that national borders are not the only dividers. Instead of focusing solely on preparing students to cope with a global society, perhaps the committee should also consider preparing students to cope with society in America more fully. Ignorance manifested in racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia are the antithesis of what a liberal arts education is founded on and should be discouraged. Avoidance of queer themes and feminist issues is the embodiment of the encouragement of homophobia and patriarchy.

With that in mind, we would like to propose that Furman needs to start asking questions about the ways in which courses are configured and taught with regard to gender and sexuality issues. Why are feminist themes relegated to Women’s Studies courses? And, why do Women’s Studies Courses not focus more heavily on queer themes and the intersection of misogyny and homophobia? Why are same-sex desire and the issues attending it not made central to courses on the ancient world, including the Biblical world? Why is feminist political thought ignored in political theory classes? Why are the influences of queer persons overlooked in theatre, art, and music classes? If art students leave Furman without knowing that Michelangelo apparently had same-sex relations and the ways in which those relations affected his art, then Furman has failed its students. Why do English courses so often by-pass same-sex relations and valorize heterosexual ones? Why do history courses not address gay and lesbian history? Imagine if Furman had an American History course that ignored issues of women and racial minorities. Science courses should ask, how does a heterocentric perspective and male domination skew scientific research? These are just a few questions we should be asking.

We do not want Furman professors to proselytize any one particular viewpoint, but rather we are asking professors to challenge their students to look critically at their world in regards to gender norms and sexual stereotypes. Some professors may think that Furman students will not be able to digest or understand concepts dealing with anything queer. This is an insult to students’ capabilities and hurts them in the long run. Furman has several professors and certain women studies courses that address gender issues, queer theory, and gay and lesbian studies; however, these few professors and courses cannot be expected to take up all the angles of these vexed and complicated subjects.

Our Proposal
On a basic level, Furman professors should be aware of queer thought and gender issues and integrate these theories into their existing classes. This should be an intentional, coherent, and widespread effort on the part of Furman professors.

Furman should also expand the Women’s Studies program and install Gay and Lesbian Studies and Queer Theory courses into Furman’s curriculum. The Women’s Studies department currently offers only 12 courses, and none of them specifically focus on Gay and Lesbian Studies or Queer Theory. If Furman’s aim is to foster a diverse community, then it needs to provide courses that appeal to a diverse group of students. An outstanding number of schools that are similar to and competitive with Furman are moving toward the inclusion of gay and lesbian studies into their curriculums. We have attached a list of other programs, which are more comprehensive than that of Furman.

Larger Schools:

1. Amherst has an extensive Women’s Studies program. In 1993 the core undergraduate curriculum was revamped to emphasize an integrative analysis of gender, race, class, culture and sexuality. See http://www.umass.edu/wost/.
2. UNC offers a major and minor for Women’s Studies and a minor for Sexual Studies. Sexual Studies explores the study of sexual/gender identities – such as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and heterosexual – as well as the full range of human sexual behaviors and identities in diverse cultures and historical periods, while Women’s Studies focuses more on women. See http://www.unc.edu/sexuality/program.htm and http://www.unc.edu/depts/wmst/.
3. Duke offers a major in Women's studies with almost 75 courses offered each year, including several Queer Theory and Gay and Lesbian Studies courses. See http://www.duke.edu/womstud/ugrad/major.html.
   Duke even has a gay, lesbian, and bisexual resource center as apart of their library. See http://www.lib.duke.edu/reference/subjects/gaybib.htm.
4. Emory has an extensive Women’s studies program offering both a major and a minor. Courses include several Gay and Lesbian Studies courses. A list of offered courses can be found here: http://womensstudies.emory.edu/undergrad/courses.shtml.
5. Brown University offers a concentration in Sexuality and Society. Courses include a Queer Theory Course. See http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Sexuality_and_Society_Concentration/Description.html.

Schools of our Size:

1. Bryn Mawr has a large Feminist and Gender Studies Department. Courses in the program draw upon and speak to feminist theory and women’s studies; transnational and third-world feminisms; womanist theory and the experiences of women of color; the construction of masculinity; gay, lesbian, queer, transgender and transsexual studies; and gender as it is inflected by race, class, religion and nationality. See http://www.brynmawr.edu/femgen/.
2. Kenyon’s Women’s and Gender Studies program offers 26 courses this year, including, “Lesbian and Gay Cultures” and “Issues of Gender and Power”. See http://www.kenyon.edu/x11471.xml.
3. Swarthmore offers a major and minor in Women’s Studies with 25 Women’s Studies courses offered. Two entitled “Gender and Sexuality” and “Performance Theory, Gender and Sexuality.” See http://www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/women/Women'sStudies.html.
4. Vassar has an extensive women's studies concentration program. Over 25 courses are offered, which includes several Queer Theory and Gay and Lesbian Studies courses. See http://womensstudies.vassar.edu/program.html.
5. Wellesley has an extensive women's studies program including a major and minor in Women's studies. Courses include one called "Social Constructions of Gender”; "This course discusses the ways in which the social system and its constituent institutions create, maintain, and reproduce gender dichotomies." See http://www.wellesley.edu/WomenSt/.
6. Colgate has a Women’s Studies major. Sixteen Women’s Studies courses were offered last spring, many of which were more comprehensive than what Furman offers, such as “Gender, Sexuality and Contemporary Society.” See http://departments.colgate.edu/womens_studies/.

Associated Colleges of the South:

1. Hendrix offers a minor in Gender Studies similar to Furman's program; however, Hendrix offers an Introduction to Gender Studies, which is more comprehensive than Furman’s Women's Studies 30 class.
2. Washington and Lee has a Women’s Studies Department with at least two classes focusing on GLBT themes (Psychology 259 - Experimental Psychology: Stereotyping, Prejudice; and History 353 - Gay and Lesbian Life in 20th-Century U.S.) See http://womensstudies.wlu.edu/.
4. College of Charleston offers a minor in Women’s Studies with 23 Women’s Studies courses offered. Several classes include topics dealing with sexual orientation and Queer Theory. See http://www.cofc.edu/~wstudies/.
5. Trinity University offers a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies which investigates gender in relation to topics including: race and class, women’s history and power, men’s studies, and queer theory. Fifty-six Women’s and Gender Studies courses are offered. See http://www.trinity.edu/departments/academic_affairs/course_catalogue/pages/women_studies.htm.
6. University of Richmond’s program in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies offers 45 courses, several of which deal with the nature of gender and sexual orientation. See http://womens.richmond.edu/.

Posted by love at December 14, 2004 04:48 PM
Discuss this proposal in the forum, or leave a comment below!