College Bulletin 2016-2017

Apr 20, 2024

College Bulletin 2016-2017 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Gender and Sexuality Studies

Coordinator:

PATRICIA WHITE (Film and Media Studies)
Anna Everetts (Administrative Assistant)

Committee:

Farid Azfar (History)
Ute Bettray (German Studies, Gender and Sexuality Studies)
James Blasina (Music)
Sibelan Forrester (Modern Languages and Literatures, Russian)
Farha Ghannam (Sociology and Anthropology)
Amy L. Graves (Physics)
Tamsin Lorraine (Philosophy)

Affiliated Faculty:

Tariq al-Jamil (Religion)
Sa’ed Atshan (Peace and Conflict Studies)
Giovanna DiChiro (Environmental Studies)
Bruce Dorsey (History)³
Gwynn Kessler (Religion)³
Alexandra Gueydan-Turek (Modern Languages and Literatures, French)¹
Bakirathi Mani (English Literature)
Maya Nadkarni (Sociology and Anthropology)

¹Absent on leave, fall 2016
³Absent on leave, 2016-2017

The Gender and Sexuality Studies Program (GSST) foregrounds the study of social relations of power in a variety of cultural, historical and national contexts. The objective of gender and sexuality studies is to bring feminist and queer theory in conversation with research in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. The program emphasizes the interrelationship not only between gender and sexuality but also between race and class and connects these to local and global politics.

Students may design a special major in gender and sexuality studies in consultation with the program’s coordinator and by following the guidelines below. Students in any major, whether as course majors or in the Honors Program, may elect a minor in gender and sexuality studies by fulfilling the requirements below. Students who intend to pursue gender and sexuality studies should consult with to the coordinator as they prepare their sophomore applications. All proposals to minor or major in gender and sexuality studies must be approved by the GSST Committee.

The Jean Brosius Walton ‘35 Fund and the Wendy S. Cheek Memorial Fund generously contribute toward activities sponsored by Gender and Sexuality Studies.

The Academic Program

Course Minor

Course minors must complete 5 courses and/or seminars which must be selected from at least two different divisions. Seminars count as one course toward program requirements.
Only one course counted for GSST may overlap with the student’s major or other minor.
GSST minors are required to complete GSST 001: Introduction to Gender and Sexuality Studies. During the senior year, minors are required to complete GSST 091: Seminar in GSST.
With the approval of the GSST Coordinator, students may include courses offered by the Gender and Sexuality Studies program at Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges, and by the Gender, Sexuaity, and Women’s Studies program at UPenn in their program.
Only one relevant course taken abroad may count toward fulfillment of the minor.
With the approval of the GSST Coordinator, students may elect to write a 1-credit thesis (GSST 092) or pursue an independent study as a substitute for regular coursework. The thesis cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the student’s major or other minor. Students must have adequate disciplinary background in gender and sexuality studies to carry out independent study and/or write a thesis.

Honors Minor

Students must have a “B” average in GSST coursework at the College in order to be accepted into Honors.
Honors minors must complete 6 credits and complete the written and oral external examinations at the end of the senior year.
Honors minors must successfully complete the program requirements (GSST 001, 020, and 091).
Honors minors must consult with the GSST Coordinator in spring of their junior year regarding their Honors preparations.
The examination preparation for the Honors minor will consist of GSST 091: Seminar in GSST, and GSST 091A. In consultation with the seminar instructor, Honors minors will be required to assemble a Senior Honors Study Portfolio which may include materials such as independent essays, seminar papers, additional reading lists, research projects, etc.
Honors minors may apply one GSST-related study abroad credit toward their minor.
With the approval of the GSST Coordinator, minors may elect to write a one-credit thesis (GSST 092) or pursue an independent study as a substitute for regular coursework. The thesis cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the student’s major or other minor. Students must have adequate disciplinary background in GSST to carry out independent study and/or write a thesis.

Special Major

Students have the option of completing a Gender and Sexuality Studies special major.

Special majors must successfully complete the program requirements (GSST 001 and GSST 091).
Special majors must complete at least 10 credits and normally no more than 12 credits for a special major in GSST.
Special majors work must span at least two divisions.
Special majors must have a “B” average in GSST coursework.
Only two credits may overlap with a second major or other minor.
Special majors may apply up to two GSST-related study abroad credits to their program.
With approval of the GSST Coordinator, special majors may elect to write a one-credit thesis (GSST 092), or pursue an independent study as a substitute for regular coursework. Students must have an adequate GSST disciplinary background to carry out independent study and/or write a thesis.

Individualized special Gender and Sexuality Studies majors are approved on a case-by-case basis. Interested students must meet with the program coordinator.

Special Honors Major

In exceptional cases, students may have a special majors in GSST in the Honors Program. Interested students should consult with the GSST Program coordinator.

Application Process Notes

Students interested in pursuing a special major or minor in GSST are required to complete the applicable GSST application form and submit it to the Programs Office, Trotter 107, in conjunction with their online sophomore application.

Transfer Credit

To receive academic credit for women’s studies or gender and sexuality studies courses taken at other colleges and universities in the U.S., students must apply to the Gender and Sexuality Studies Program to have the course included in their program. If the institution offering the course has a Women’s Studies, Gender and Sexuality Studies Program, or a similar program, the course in question must be part of that program in order to be approved as a gender and sexuality studies course at Swarthmore.

Off-Campus Study

The Gender and Sexuality Studies Program grants academic credit for course work relevant to the academic program taken while studying abroad. Minors may apply for no more than one credit of work done abroad to meet their GSST requirements. GSST special majors may apply up to two GSST-related study abroad credits to their program.

In order to receive credit toward their program, the GSST Coordinator must preapprove the course(s).

When the student returns to campus, the GSST Coordinator will evaluate the work (syllabus, exams, papers, and class notes) and assign the appropriate amount of credit.

Internship Support

The Summer Social Action Awards (S2A2) support students in the current sophomore and junior classes to spend ten weeks, full time (35 hours per week) performing advocacy and/or service through a host non-profit organization. Financial support includes a weekly stipend to offset modest living expenses, and the provision of the summer earnings requirement.

The Richard Sager Internship, administered through the S2A2 program, supports one student interested in working with a non-profit organizational host whose mission focuses on LGBTQ issues. While the Sager Internship funds can only provide support for one student per summer, please note that applications are evaluated on their own merits. Therefore, more than one student who has been offered a full-time placement with an LGBTQ organization may serve through a “general” S2A2 grant. Students applying as a result of their academic involvement in the GSST program may also be funded through a Nason grant.