Leslie Smith, Director of WGS
Leslie.Smith@Avila.edu

Avila University
11901 Wornall Road
Kansas City, MO 64145
 

Courses

The minor requires eighteen hours in Women's and Gender Studies courses including WS/IS 310. Students choose the remaining 15 hours of WS courses with the advisor's approval. No more than six hours may be earned from the same discipline.

WS/RS 111. Introduction to Religious Studies. (3)
A critical examination of religion as a human endeavor through examinations of different religious perspectives from historical, anthropological and/or sociological standpoints. Through the academic study of religion, students will become conversant with major themes, issues, figures, and phenomena. CORE-II.

WS/SW 205. Social Problems/Social Change. (3)
Students will study social problems such as sexism, racism and classism in the United States and around the world. Individual and institutional responses to social problems will be examined with a focus on human rights and the pursuit of social justice for populations-at-risk. Students will be encouraged to explore the concept of "civic responsibility" and discover what they can do to promote social change on local, national, and international levels. Core II. FA, SP.

WS/MU 221. Divas, Ingénues and Vixens. (3)
A study of folk, popular, and refined music from the Western tradition specifically analyzing the compositions, performances, and role of women in music and applying feminist perspectives. Comparative elements such as ethnomusicology and male musicians will be utilized to provide a framework for the music of women. No prerequisite. CORE-II. SP.

WS/RS 225. Catholicism. (3)
This course explores the history and fundamental beliefs of Catholics on God, Christ, the Spirit, scripture, liturgy, the Sacraments, and the Church. We will also examine contemporary trends and issues such as peace and justice, women, and ecumenism within the Catholic tradition. CORE-II.

WS/PL 226. Feminist Theory. (3)
This course provides an introduction to feminist theoretical methods through an examination of some of the basic categories of feminist analysis, including identities, bodies, rights, politics, sexuality, and reproduction, among others. We will consider what role these categories and their construction play in creating gendered experiences within culture. CORE-II

WS/EN 265. Literature and Culture. (3)
This course provides an introduction to literature as a significant form of culture. It investigates how literature both shapes and is shaped by the historical period and social conditions out of which it is produced and the role of women in literary movements and theories. Students read and interpret poetry, short stories, drama, and novels by a diverse range of writers from a variety of historical periods and gain knowledge of literary terminology and literary practices. This is a Communication Intensive Course. Prerequisite: EN 111. Core-II. FA, SP.

WS/EN 275. Women and Literature. (3)
An introduction to a wide range of women's experiences as represented in World Literature. In discussing women as authors, literary characters, and social and political subjects, students examine reading practices and analyze how gender differences interact with differences of race, class, sexual orientation, and nation. This is a Communication Intensive course. CORE II. FA.

WS/IS 310. Images and Realities of Gender. (3)
This course will examine the social construction and significance of gender in society from feminist, interdisciplinary and multicultural perspectives. Students will analyze the ways that gender, (in combination with race, sexual identity and social class) affects access to opportunity, power, and resources. CORE-III.

WS/HI 311. American Women in the Twentieth-Century. (3)
An investigation of women's experiences as workers, family members, and citizens in twentieth-century America, this course explores changing cultural images of women, examines the role of gender in structuring American society, and compares the experiences of American women from a variety of class, race, and ethnic groups. This course also considers ways in which women's status and concerns in the United States differ from those of women in the non-Western world.

WS/PY/ 314. Psychology of Gender. (3)
An exploration of various perspectives on the role of gender in the formation of individual identity, as well as the interrelationship between gender identity and society. FA, odd years.

WS/AN 318. Women in Other Cultures. (3)
A cross-cultural study of women's status and roles in selected ethnic or cultural groups in differing stages of development, including forager, agrarian, industrial, and post-industrial societies. FA, even years.

WS/IS/RS 319. Women, Religion and Community in the U.S. (3)
This course will examine women and religion and how the interaction of religious and gender ideology helped shape experiences and create women's communities within a variety of religious traditions in the U.S. We will view religious experience through a multicultural lens which includes the perspectives of African-American, Native American, Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant women and some women founders of American and international religious groups. COREIII.

WS/IS 331. Women and Science. (3)
This course introduces students to the complex relationship between women and science, beginning with representations of female biology in Greek texts. Students examine both general nineteenth and twentieth-century patterns and trends and the achievements of individual women scientists. Students analyze persistent barriers to women's participation and advancement and the methods employed to overcome such barriers. The course includes an analysis of sexist content in the sciences and the impact of feminist critiques. CORE-III.

WS/IS 333. Gender Communications. (3)
A critical analysis of the interrelationship between gender, culture, and communication. Gender differences and sex-role stereotypes and their influence on communication and relationships will be explored so that strategies for bridging these differences can be developed. Core- III. SP.

WS 335. Legal Rights of Women. (3)
This course is designed to introduce students to feminist jurisprudence and the role of women in the law through an examination of feminist legal and political theory. We explore the ways in which traditional gender roles and expectations have come to shape women's rights in both criminal and civil law. Students will come to understand and appreciate the history of women's unequal treatment in law, as well as contemporary issues regarding women and the law. Topics include reproductive rights, statutory rape, domestic violence, pornography and issues involving work outside the home. Attention is paid to the ways in which traditional norms involving race, class, and gender are reinforced in popular culture, which often serves as a barrier to meaningful change. SP, even years.

WS/HI 365. Kaiser and Kultur: Nineteenth Century Germany. (3)
Using gender as the central category of historical analysis, this course explores the transformation of the German-speaking lands from an ambiguous cultural patchwork of feudal lands to a unified, industrial, cultural, and culturally-advanced empire in the period from 1780 to 1914.

WS/HI 366. The Spectre of Nazism: Twentieth Century Germany. (3)
Using gender as the central category of historical analysis, this course explores the history of Germany from 1914 to the present, a troubled odyssey of defeat in World War I, revolution, Nazism and the Holocaust, Cold War division, and reunification.

WS 380. Topics in Women's Studies. (1-3)
Special topics in women's studies are explored from a variety of academic disciplines. Course topics are determined based on faculty/student interest and program needs. Prerequisite: Permission of Instructor

WS/CO 383. Gender and the Media. (3)
A critical/cultural approach will provide a framework for understanding how gender, class, and race influence the production, construction, and consumption of the media.