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Women's Studies





HISTORY

Women's studies was first conceived as an academic rubric apart from other departments in the late 1960s, as the was the student co-founder along with Dr. Joyce Nower, a literature instructor. A second program followed within weeks at Richmond College of the City University Of New York (now the College Of Staten Island ). In the 1970s many universities and colleges created departments and programs in women's studies, and professorships became available in the field which did not require the sponsorship of other departments.


CURRENT COURSES IN WOMEN'S STUDIES


Women's studies courses are available at many universities and colleges around the world. Many universities that offer degrees in Women’s Studies offer classes in Gender Issues, Women and Religion, Female Sexuality, and Sex Crimes. Many also include with their program an option for gay/lesbian studies. In 2006, the Artemis Guide to Women's Studies Artemis Guide to Women's Studies in the U.S. provides a listing of 395 programs in the United States , but may be out of date. Courses in the United Kingdom can be found through the Universities And Colleges Admissions Service Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, United Kingdom .


CRITICISM


A number of authors have criticized scholarship standards within women's studies programs. These authors include feminists like Camille Paglia , Christina Hoff-Sommers and Phyllis Chesler ; and journalists and social commentators like Karen Lerhman. Researchers Daphne Patai and Koertge note that the type of feminism espoused in the vast majority of women's studies departments in the United States 'espouses a totalizing world view.'


FURTHER READING

  • ''Disciplining feminism : from social activism to academic discourse'', Ellen Messer-Davidow, Durham, NC etc. : Duke University Press, 2002

  • ''Exploring Women's Studies: Looking Forward, Looking Back'', Carol R. Berkin, Judith L. Pinch, Carol Appel, 2005, ISBN 0-13-185088-1

  • ''An Introduction to Women's Studies: Gender in a Transnational World'', Inderpal Grewal, Caren Kaplan, ISBN 0-07-109380-X

  • ''Issues In Feminism: An Introduction to Women's Studies'', Sheila Ruth, 2000, ISBN 0-7674-1644-9

  • ''The Politics of Women's Studies: Testimony from Thirty Founding Mothers'', Paperback edition, New York: Feminist Press 2001

  • ''Professing Feminism: Cautionary Tales from the Strange World of Women's Studies''; Daphne Patai and Noretta Koertge, 1995, ISBN 0-465-09827-4

  • ''Thinking differently : a reader in European women's studies'', Gabriele Griffin and Rosi Braidotti (eds.), London etc. : Zed Books, 2002

  • ''Women's Studies on Its Own'', Duke University Press, 2002.



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