Perspectives Magazine - USU Center for Women & Gender 2016-2017 by Center for Women & Gender

perspectives ACADEMIC YEAR

2016-2017

“Paid With Respect” Women’s March, January 21, 2017

2016-2017 Issue

“Capitol Building” Christy Glass The March was a reminder of our right to organize politically to make our voices heard. The backdrop of the Capitol Building was appropriate as a reminder of what our country stands for.

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In This Issue 2 A Toast To Us! 3 Meet The Center 5 Behind This Issue 7 From The President 9 From The Provost

21 Women’s Leadership Initiative

23 Student Perspectives 25 Perspectives Club 27 Dress & Humanity 29 Early Career & Lifetime Achievement Awards

11 New York Times Columnist

31 Inaugural WLI Graduation Address

13 CWG Gender Grant Program

32 Center For Women & Gender Interviews Dr. Amy Odum

15 Brown Bag Lunches

33 Calendar Of Upcoming Events

17 Women’s March

34 Angela Davis - 2018 Featured Speaker

1 •Table of Contents

“Now is the time to reflect on who we are and to remind ourselves what we are here to do... as friends and supporters of women.”

MARCH ON

10 Helping Hands Fund Visits Utah State

11 This issue’s theme is The Women’s March. Featured story on Pg. 17

A Toast To Us! THE START OF EACH ACADEMIC year marks the end of the period of rest and recuperation. It carries with it renewed energy and a promise of new beginnings, new ideas, new goals and new possibilities. Now is the time to reflect on who we are and to remind ourselves what we are here to do as teachers, mentors, knowledge producers and distributors, as trouble makers or peace keepers, as carriers of social conscience, as silent or vocal advocates for those who need our

help, as friends and supporters of women. I raise a glass to old friends and extend a heartfelt welcome to new colleagues, in the hope they will join our circle and become old friends soon. I toast the diversity and the collective strength and wisdom we represent. May this year be a good one for all of you. May you pursue the questions that intrigue you. May you be the spark that ignites

passion in others. May you find the strength to get yourself and others through difficult times; May you have the confidence to shine and take credit for your success! A toast to us! A toast to diversity!

– Dr. Helga Van Miegroet PROFESSOR, Quinney College of Natural Resources GRADUATE STUDENT, Dept. of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology

A Toast To Us •2

Meet The Center What have you found to be the most successful way you build your confidence? MY CONFIDENCE IS ALWAYS BUILT when I think of my parents, grandparents, and great grandparents – all they overcame and accomplished. For many years I have displayed in my home a composite picture of four generations of my grandmothers. When things get rough I look at their photos and draw strength from their examples. Each one accomplished so much. One came to America all by herself when she was barely twenty. Her daughter, Annie, was a beautiful woman who worked hard to raise five children, among

3 • Meet The Center

them my grandmother Mary a suffragette and a stunning musician. Mary, gave birth to Oreta, my mother, who was a brilliant and determined woman and an outspoken supporter of the civil rights movement. Then there is my father, a feisty little Dutchman who didn’t speak English until first grade. He graduated from college, received a master’s degree in metallurgical engineering, and was an unapologetic feminist all of his life. They all give me confidence, strength, and courage, and I’ve worked hard all of my life not to let them down.

3 1

4 6

1 Reni McBride Staff Assistant

I surround myself with strong, independent, happy, people. People that build not only me up, but also themselves. I smile and find one positive thing each day and it increases my confidence.

– Dr. Ann Austin

Professor & Center Director

2 Michelle Hixson

Women’s Leadership Initiative Coordinator & Perspectives Editor

I visualize myself being confident and making connections with people. I make sure to anticipate potentially difficult conversations and have ideas in advance of how I will respond.

Stephanie Bagnell Program Coordinator

5 Alex Johnson Office Aid

I have recently learned to look inward for my confidence. I try to stop self-defeating thoughts before they take control and I look toward the strong, confident women in my life and find the traits they exude within myself. It’s not always easy, but finding confidence in myself has been worth every moment.

4 Justin Wheeler Office Aid

Since I was a little boy my parents were confident in my strengths and my weaknesses. To have an awesome support group like my parents made me confident in myself, my decisions, and my ability to lead that as long as I stay true to myself and my values.

6 Jerra Fowers

The best way I have found to build my confidence is to only look inwards for validation. Loving all of my quirks and being honest with myself about my strengths, as well as my weaknesses, helps me feel confident which allows me to positively interact with all types of people and situations.

Office Aid

One of the best ways I have built my own confidence is by not letting anything define me. I was taught at a young age to never let anything hold me back from my goals and aspirations. You especially should never have to lower your capability because you’re a woman. Meet The Center • 4

Contributors

Behind This Issue

“Antarctica” Melissa Haeffner

FEATURED ART & ARTICLE CONTRIBUTORS

Dec 2-21, 2016 Shandrea Hickok

Ace Beorchia

Shandrea Hickok

NYT Columnist Visits USU Pg.25

Alyssa Martinsen Perfect Escape Pg.16, Fear Pg.26

Alyssa is a USU freshman majoring in art education. She is from Maryland, has three younger siblings, and loves to be out in nature.

Shandrea is an Honors student studying journalism: public relations with a minor in Hospitality-Tourism management. She grew up in New Jersey and loves to travel, watch foreign films, listen to music, study languages, and read in her spare time. She is a strong advocate of human rights and environmental justice. Her undergraduate research focuses on mass media effects, psychology and cross-cultural perceptions of news coverage cultures. This spring, Shandrea won the Hubbard Family Scholarship for her commitment to the environment and her interest in creative writing.

Ace Beorchia Resist Pg.25

Alison Berg

The Women’s March Pg.19 Alison is a sophomore at USU studying journalism and communication. She is a strong advocate for rape survivors and hopes to work for the Washington Post someday.

5 • Contributors

Ace is a graduate student majoring in sociology with a certificate in women & gender studies. He states, “Together, we must resist the belittlement and devaluation of the women in our society. We must resist discrimination and inequity in all forms. Now is the time to stand up in solidarity with those who are marginalized and excluded. Let us echo the declaration of Christy Glass, a sociologist at Utah State University, who exclaims: ‘The challenges of closing the ‘privilege gap’ have never been more pressing, and the stakes have never been higher.’ ”

Christy Glass

Melissa Haeffner

Melissa Haeffner, Ph.D.

Antarctica Pg.12, Paid With Respect, cover

Melissa is a National Science Foundation Post-doctoral research scientist with iUTAH (Innovative Urban Transitions and Aridregion Hydro-sustainability) in the Department of Sociology at USU. She teaches courses in environmental sociology, political ecology, and global cities. Her work focuses on bridging the social and natural sciences to advance scholarship in urban water sustainability, water justice, and climate-related hazards. To this end, she has worked on a number of transdisciplinary collaborations including “Living with Extreme Weather (LWEW)”, and “Studies of Precipitation, Flooding, and Rainfall Extremes Across Disciplines (SPREAD)”. In 2016 she traveled to Antarctica with Women in Science, Homeward Bound.

Jessyka Barton

Christy Glass Ph.D.

Capitol Building, Pg. 2, Family Pg. 14, Jess Representing her Daughters Pg. 32 Christy is a professor of sociology at USU. Her teaching and research focus on gender inequality in paid work. On our way to the Women’s March we didn’t know what to expect but the event exceeded all of our expectations. It was lively, colorful, creative and full of energy. Women and men from all walks of life joined together in solidarity with a single message: women matter. I was honored to participate with my family, including my friend Dr. Jessica Lucero, my mother, and my in laws. Jess wanted to represent her three daughters, Avi, Nora and Romi, at the march so she brought hand made signs that each daughter had written or drawn on. It was a reminder that we were there fighting for ourselves and the next generation of girls and women.

Bottom of the planet, top of their fields. Photos were taken on the largest, all-women Antarctica expedition to elevate women in science. Postcards from the edge, the portraits are also from the cutting edge of science - women from different countries, disciplines, and at different stages of their career work to build a social movement of equity within science and for women’s access to science.

homewardboundprojects.com.au/

The Hurt Inside Pg.22 Jessyka is a local artist who specializes in large sculptures .She graduated in May, 2017 from USU with a bachelor’s in fine art. Jessyka really cares about advocating for mental health, women’s issues, and water resources. She hopes to be able to communicate that through her art in the future.

Contributors • 6

Perspectives on Leadership

From the President

Dr. Noelle Cockett, Utah State University’s first female president, is one of the biggest supporters of the Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI). As Provost, she was active in its creation, and now as President she continues to give advice and encouragement. She made time to share her views on leadership, as well as her future vision of what the WLI can offer current and future students at USU. 7 • Perspectives on Leadership

PRESIDENT COCKETT recognizes she is viewed as a role model by some and hopes that students will be encouraged by the confidence she feels as a leader. “I want students to live up to their ability,” President Cockett says, “I want them to reflect on what they’re good at, know it, embrace it, accept it, and promote it.” She emphasizes that students should focus on strengths and “not doubt them.” She sees WLI as a way to help women recognize their emerging leadership skills and build confidence. In fact, the confidence-building focus of WLI was one of the main reasons she chose to support the initiative. According to President Cockett, there are many programs on university campuses for those students who already view themselves as leaders, but WLI is unique because it is for young women who think they could be leaders but have not yet been able to develop and test those skills. She views WLI as an opportunity to offer personal development resources to students. She said, “I think it comes back to the confidence aspect. I want to see [this program] take the people who hav-

“The graduating group of women will be ready to go out and become civically active, politically involved, becoming the program mentors and providing wisdom.”

en’t yet come into their confidence, who haven’t come quite to seeing themselves as leaders, use the skills learned in WLI to transform themselves from saying, ‘Oh gosh, I wish I could do that’ into students who can say, ‘I will do that.’” “There are so many people who have great opinions and great value and great input, but it takes confidence to share that. Through our leadership program, we can create a safe environment, [providing] tips and opportunities to bring them forward with more and more confidence.” In November 2016, President Cockett participated on the WLI speaker panel, answering questions posed by WLI participants. In February, she visited the Center for Women & Gender Development Board meeting where several WLI participants made recommendations and suggestions for next year’s WLI program. President

Cockett shared her enthusiasm for the transformation she observed. “What is so striking is that those students realized that they had things of value to add instead of just wishing they had said something, wishing they had made their opinion known. It was that change from ‘I wish I did it’, to ‘I will do it.’” Asked to visualize how she would like the WLI to look in five years, she said, “the graduating group of women will be ready to go out and become civically active, politically involved, becoming the program mentors and providing the wisdom to the incoming sophomore and junior WLI class. It’s a continuum, a pipeline. These confident, polished, ‘ready to go’ women graduates leading those on the other end.” President Cockett hopes the WLI participants remain active within the program while at USU and become ‘dynamos’ when they graduate.

Perspectives on Leadership • 8

From the Provost Leadership is not about the right answer, but about asking the right questions and creating a formula for problem solving.

Interim Provost Larry Smith

9 • Perspectives on Leadership

INTERIM PROVOST LARRY SMITH HAS BEEN A STRONG ADVOCATE FOR WOMEN all of his professional life, an attitude he attributes to his close relationship with his mother and sisters. Invited to take part in the April speaker panel for the Women’s Leadership Initiative, he stated, “Leadership is not about the right answer, but about asking the right questions and creating a formula for problem solving.” He said he has learned through his many leadership roles to have “bigger ears, a bigger heart and to have empathy,” skills that have made him more patient in his positions. Provost Smith said he tried to be “aware of the circumstances that can be barriers to women moving into leadership roles.”

He continued, “I try to be proactive in promoting women in leadership.” When a participant asked if he thought women in Utah tended to self-silence, Provost Smith replied with a resounding “Yes!” “Value your ideas, honor your opinions,” he said urgently. “I have seen so many women reluctant to speak up in a group, yet when I ask them to share their points of view, they are usually spot-on!” “I have always been worried about women’s treatment in the workplace, and I am grateful for this opportunity to get these concerns off my chest,” Provost Smith said. He looks forward to continuing his involvement in the Women’s Leadership Initiative.

Helping Hands Fund By Jim Evans, Professor of Geology AMONG THE AMAZING students we help in the Center for Women and Gender are true heroes -– parents at USU earning a degree, often in the face of obstacles to finishing their degrees. We are privileged and humbled to work with parents who have emerged from abusive relationships; families who have adopted special needs children, children from abusive or addiction-plagued families, and single parent families with few financial resources. These parents juggle coursework, daycare, and schoolwork for their children, and jobs to achieve a college degree that will help them provide a stable, safe, and happy

life for their families. To help mothers and fathers in situations that can stop progress to a degree, the Center for Women and Gender has created the Helping Hands Fund. The Fund provides money to help families get through a financial crisis - to keep parents in school, their children fed and healthy, keep the electricity on, or to provide a roof over their heads. Every gift matters. In the past 3 years, we have provided 5 grants to help pay for shoes for children, to keep the electricity on, and to pay rent; but we can do more. We have turned away requests from parents struggling to pay rent, tuition,

utilities, and books. When one ‘minor’ medical bill, an auto repair, or a clothing expense arises, a family that is hanging on reaches a tipping point, and parents have to decide between medicine and rent; paying the heating bill or replacing worn out shoes; tuition or food. The Helping Hands Fund may provide the narrow bridge between extreme hardship and a college degree. We ask for your help in building the Helping Hands Fund. Gifts of any size help. For more information on the fund, please see: https://cwg.usu.edu/financial-aid/helping_hands Jim Evans is a professor of Geology at USU, a development board member of the Center for Women & Gender, and a mentor in the Women’s Leadership Initiative. He grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and benefitted from dedicated parents, public school teachers, and public universities to earn degrees in engineering and geology. Helping Hands • 10

Featured Speaker

New York Times Columnist Visits Utah State By Shandrea Hickok

LOGAN, UT Over a decade ago, Pulitzer Prize-Winning New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof did something most journalists wouldn’t imagine while reporting in Cambodia: he purchased two girls. “When you get a written receipt for buying a human being in the 21st century, something is truly, profoundly wrong,” Kristof said. On February 16, 2017, Kristof shared his experiences in a lecture titled “Sex, Gender, Politics” at Utah State University. He explained that he bought these young girls from a brothel for $150 and $200 so he could return them to their families and spare them a life of rape and kidnapping. Sam Reeder, a USU alumnus with a master’s degree in political science, related to Kristof’s lecture. While working for the US Embassy in Rome, Reeder regularly saw sex workers on 11 • Featured Speaker

the street and was appalled by what he learned during his first intelligence briefing. “An intelligence agent informed us that many of these women were forcibly taken from their home countries for the purpose of sex slavery,” Reeder said. In his speech, Kristof emphasized that “Disproportionately bad and unfair things happen to girls and women in many places around the world.” Advocating for increased reproductive rights, especially contraception and women’s health screenings, he said reproductive health includes more than just abortion. Women’s health needs are often underfunded in other countries, with tragic results. Kristof shared a story of an impoverished 13-year-old girl from Ethiopia who was denied health care during her pregnancy. She had an obstructive birth, suffered severe complications, and her baby passed away. The villagers thought she was cursed by God and left her outside to die. She escaped to a nearby village, was taken to the hospital and eventually became a nurse at the hospital where she was saved. It’s a powerful reminder that when empowered, these women and girls can contribute in important ways to society, Kristof said. “We shouldn’t think of them as just victims,” but their struggles can be transformed

into opportunities that eventually benefit others. During his speech, Kristof said that he felt the central moral challenge of this century is gender inequity around the globe and violence against women and girls. Kristof was surprised when the audience began applauding. “You’re clearly a very well-trained, enlightened audience, because usually I say that and people, you know, sort of roll their eyes a little bit, and they think it’s meant in some hyperbolic way, and it really isn’t,” Kristof said. “I really think it is the central moral challenge.” Reeder agreed with Kristof’s statement, but also thought it was concerning. “Of all the privileged and educated people he speaks to, those like us who were actually concerned and emotionally invested, are in the minority,” Reeder said. “That doesn’t bode well for our fight against this challenge.” USU has a long-standing commitment to raising awareness of gender inequality. The Center for Women & Gender (CWG), who invited Kristof to speak, has a strong mission for social justice. They invite a variety of speakers to educate about gender, culture, and bias. “We at the CWG don’t shy around the awkward or tough, we face it head on,” CWG explains on their website.

“Fear”

Alyssa Martin

This piece reflects the pressure women feel to maintain a calm and graceful outward appearance while handling life’s trials.

Mothers in particular put on a brave face for their children. But showing fear doesn’t make a woman less strong.

Featured Speaker • 12

Perspectives On

CWG Gender Grant Program Dr. Sojung Lim, an Assistant Professor of Sociology in the Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology was one of the 2016 recipients of the Center for Women & Gender Research Grants. According to Dr. Lim, “I heard about the grant and thought about it. But it was my colleague who approached me and said ‘your research is very relevant.’ ” This encouragement helped her in applying for the grant. “My main interest is in family equality. I am disturbed that the family is often a place where inequality is introduced and reproduced. Your family background may determine your later life outcomes. For example, we have known for a long time that parent education and children’s educational progress and attainment are correlated.

“Stop, think if there’s a factor about gender anywhere in your research. Gender cannot be ignored. Think about it twice.” We live in a period of increasing inequality in both the United States and East Asia. There are labor market inequalities such as deteriorating job quality, or increasing ‘bad jobs’ as well as decreasing

13 • Perspectives On

‘good jobs,’ those jobs with insurance.” Family inequality is clear in at least two different fields of research, “labor market inequality is increasing, while sociologically speaking, family inequality is increasing. These two ideas are actually one, both closely related and affect each other. Labor market inequality has been leading to the dissolution of the married family.” Dr. Lim created a survey to study labor market inequality by using ‘big data’ of wages, health insurance, family structure quality and income. She has completed preliminary research, has already submitted one paper and is close to submitting another. Familiar with other grants that required a great deal of work and do not always provide a benefit at the end, she appreciated the CWG Research Grant because “the grant is reasonable, doable and feasible.” “This grant does not support salary for a professor, so I was able to hire a Ph.D. student [with the grant] with a great skill set [to produce] the literature review and [to perform] large data analysis. It freed my time, which was a major benefit.” Her suggestions to other new tenure track faculty members include, “Stop, think if there’s a factor about gender anywhere in your research. Gender cannot be ignored. Think about it twice.”

“Family” Christy Glass

On our way to the DC Women’s March we didn’t know what to expect but the event exceeded all of our expectations. It was lively, colorful, creative and full of energy. Women and men from all walks of life joined together in solidarity with a single message: women matter. I was honored to participate with my family, including my friend Dr. Jessica Lucero, my mother, and my in-laws. Perspectives On • 14

Brown Bag Lunches

Brown Bag Lunches The Center for Women & Gender Brown Bag lunches give professors and other researchers the opportunity to discuss their ideas with an interdisciplinary audience. Brown Bag lectures are recorded and can be viewed by accessing the Events tab of the Center’s website. Brown Bag lunches began many years ago with the Women and Gender Research Institute (WGRI, now part of CWG) to provide a forum for women to share their research and become acquainted with women researchers in other disciplines.

Dr. E. Helen Berry

Dr. Patricia Gantt

OCTOBER 12 Wednesday Tips for Preparing Your Research Proposal - Dr. E. Helen Berry and Dr. Patricia Gantt provided recommendations and ‘best practices’ to faculty considering applying for the Center for Women & Gender Research Proposals.

31 Monday Dr. Lisa Gabbert, USU Associate Professor of English, presented her work, “Evil Nuns, Hounds of Hell, and Ghostly Water Babies: Remaking History with Tales of Terror at St. Ann’s Retreat.” She detailed the initial building of the summer estate for the Hatch family and the transfer of ownership to a Catholic Diocese to create St. Anne’s Retreat, primarily used for nursing students. Dr. Gabbert introduced the concept of ‘legend tripping’ where many Logan locals shared strange stories about their trespassing onto the property and

15 •Brown Bag Lunches

Dr. Lisa Gabbert

their terrifying ‘experiences.’ She provided historical artifacts that these same themes are in folklore from the 15th and 16th centuries in Europe.

NOVEMBER 16 Wednesday Dr. Madeline Caviness, Mary Richardson Professor Emeritus at Tufts University, presented her thoughts on Women and Gender studies in her conversation “Women in the Academy: A Perspective from the Humanities”. Caviness shared how the movement of bringing women’s achievements in history led to the redefinition of the research of women and provided opportunities for interdisciplinary edited volumes for publishing. She shared that gender theory in practice means continuing to identify communities of oppression and to position yourself as a researcher wherever you need to be.

Dr. Madeline Caviness

Erin Jemison

JANUARY

MARCH

18 Wednesday

22 Wednesday

Erin Jemison, the YWCA Director of Public Policy, presented research on the Utah Women’s Well-Being Initiative. Jemison focused on the 2017 legislative priorities for Women and Girls including economic empowerment, racial justice and civil rights, and health and safety. She highlighted the status of Utah women compared to those in other states, noting that for women’s leadership, gender-wage gap, and national measures of early childhood education, Utah typically ranks in the bottom tenth.

30 Monday Perspectives from the Women’s Marches - A panel made up of USU Faculty and Students shared their personal experiences of the January 20th women’s marches in Washington DC, Provo and the January 23rd march in Salt Lake City.

Dr. Rachel Lumsden

Dr. Rachel Lumsden, associate professor of music theory at Florida State University, introduced and discussed the inaccurate, longstanding myth that ‘women have no humor.’ She discussed Doris Humphrey’s and Vivian Fine’s modern dance composition, “The Race of Life” (1937),showing how humor was used ‘strategically’ to combat the humor stereotype. Inspired by some of James Thurber’s cartoons, Lumsden described how tools of music theory, choreography and costuming changed audiences’ perspectives in subtle and not-so-subtle ways on women’s humor. CWG co-sponsored the event with the Caine College of the Arts.

31 Friday

Jessica Cox

ence by telling them to, “challenge yourself with something new.” She shared how, although born with no arms, she learned to use her feet to accomplish everyday tasks. Cox earned a college degree, has a driver’s license and pilot’s license, and regularly flies an airplane. Learning to tie her shoes with her feet as a kindergartener, she said this taught her to “think outside of the shoe” to solve problems and find new tools to foster independence. CWG co-sponsored this event with USU’s Aviation Technology program, and the Center for Persons with Disabilities.

Dr. Susan Shaw

APRIL 19 Wednesday Dr. Susan Shaw, a noted scholar on women and gender studies at Oregon State University and an ordained Southern Baptist minister, presented a lecture and discussion titled “Sweet Little Lies: the Fragile Religious Right.” Shaw highlighted the ways some seek to curtail women’s progress and then demonstrated how the dicta contradict the bible.

WATCH THE BROWN BAG LECTURE VIDEOS cwg.usu.edu/events-calendar/lectures

“When you use the words ‘I can’t,’ you create limitations.” Jessica Cox inspired the audi-

Brown Bag Lunches • 16

Featured Story

Women’s March “To all the little girls watching this: never doubt that you are valuable, and powerful, and deserving of every chance and opportunity to achieve your own dreams.” Hillary Clinton said as she concluded her concession speech.

17 • Featured Story Photo Credit:

Wikipedia Commons

By Alison Berg Featured Story • 18

Those words resonated with me.

19 • Featured Story

Utah Capitol, we saw a plethora of signs being held by women and men from all backgrounds, all races, and all walks of life. “Putting the protest back in protestant”, “If you stand for gender equality, then you’re a feminist”, and “my body is not your battleground”, were some of my favorites. When we reached the capitol building, I was awestruck to see how many women were there with open arms. I didn’t know any of them, but I felt like we had this mutual, driving force within our hearts. A driving force for change, for equality, and for hope.

“I expected to feel inspired. To feel moved. To have fun. But I did not expect to come out a different person.” To my very pleasant surprise, Utah Representative Angela Romero and Senator James Dabakis spoke in the capital, standing united with us. They were not politicians that day. No, they were protesters and they were our friends. While the act of them speaking quite impressed me, Angela Romero’s speech

Photo Credit: iStock Editorial

I REMEMBER election day very clearly. I kept a close eye on the polls from the moment I woke up. Around 3:00 p.m., Trump was in the lead, but only the southern part of the United States had been counted, so I didn’t think much of it. And then night came. And before I knew it, I had to accept the fact that the commander-in-chief of this country bragged about sexual assault, called several women “pigs” on television, threatened to ban an entire religion from the country, and had no political experience whatsoever. I felt hopeless. Terrified. I felt like I had nowhere to turn. Nevertheless, I persisted. One woman, whom I greatly respect, extended the honorable invitation to attend the women’s march with her. Tears flooded my eyes as I joyfully accepted. I expected to feel inspired. To feel moved. To have fun. But I did not expect to come out a different person. We stood through negative degree weather, blizzardous snow, icy rain, harsh winds and sore legs. Nevertheless, we persisted. As we got off the Front Runner train in Salt Lake City, we were surrounded by women like us. Women who wanted their voices to be heard. We got off the train, and on we marched. From downtown Salt Lake City to the

specifically awed me. “Women are in the workforce and we aren’t going anywhere,” she said. As an aspiring journalist, I have a dream to be seen as equal to the men standing next to me. To be given the same opportunities as them and to be seen for my talent, rather than my gender. We chanted phrases like “Women’s rights are human rights,” and “welcome to your first day. We are here to stay.” We made our voices heard. All six thousands of us, from across the state of Utah, came together and made our voices heard. We banned together, arms linked for miles, waving signs in the air, raising voic-

es about our rights, sharing stories, and marching through Utah’s capital city We will not stand for a president who takes away healthcare from millions, a president who brags about sexual assault, a president who bans helpless, harmless people from entering into this country to build a better life. We will not stand for racism, not xenophobia. And when our rights are infringed on, we will march. We will fight for the broken families of refugees. For survivors of sexual assault. And for minorities who, in 2017, do not have equal rights. Why?

Because that is what democracy looks like. Featured Story • 20

WLI

Women’s Leadership Initiative

Eleven USU undergraduate women devoted six full Saturdays across Fall and Spring Semesters, to developing their leadership skills through the Center’s Women & Gender Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI).

Dr. Amy Odum

Read her interview on Pg.32

21 • WLI

A KEY FOCUS of WLI is to foster interdisciplinary conversation about women’s leadership, and the participants in this inaugural class included majors in music, natural resources, sociology and social work, education, humanities, agriculture and applied sciences. Managed and facilitated by Michelle Hixson, CWG’s WLI coordinator, along with Dr. Amy Odum, Dr. Susan Cogan, and Dr. Ann Austin, students engaged in small group discussions of leadership from various perspectives. Topics included the definition of leadership, values to inform goal setting, self-presentation, professional networking, effective communication, personal branding and gender communication differences. In October, WLI students participated in an Awareness Commitment Therapy workshop designed to recognize negative self-talk and build confidence. Also in October, WLI students participated in a ‘Speed Mentoring’ session where they visited with po-

tential mentors located on campus, in the community, and statewide. After the event, students suggested several mentors and mentors suggested several students with whom they wanted to work. Mentor-mentee pairs communicated electronically and in person throughout the academic year. Participants honed their self-confidence through participation in several difficult communication role-play scenarios. They developed elevator pitches highlighting professional interests and skills and practiced navigating a mock professional social event (happy hour) at the Logan Country Club. Most sessions included a speaker panel made of two to four women leaders in the community, but for the last panel of the year, four men, including the incoming USUSA president, a professor, an emeriti, and the Interim Provost, shared their perspectives on women as leaders. During the Q & A part of the panel, a WLI student asked if the men thought (Utah) women silenced themselves.

“WLI is a place where women from the university come together and learn the skills they need to succeed as a leader.” WLI Graduates, Mentors & Panelists

To the audience’s great surprise, the men leaned forward as a group and shouted (politely and in unison) “YES!” Their personal observations and concerns followed with several WLI students commenting then and afterwards, “so I didn’t make it up!” Megan Ririe, a WLI participant, shared her WLI experience, “I immediately knew that [Women’s Leadership Initiative] was something I

needed. WLI is a place where women from the university come together and learn the skills they need to succeed as a leader, and I definitely feel that it has accomplished that in my life. Through this initiative, I have learned and practiced skills that I will be able to use throughout the rest of my life, skills such as effective communication, self-discovery and development, and building

professional relationships. While learning these surface skills has been extremely helpful, I think the most positive outcome of being a part of this initiative is the positive, deeper changes I have seen in myself. I am more self-confident, and I have a greater sense of who I am.”

WLI • 22

Student Perspectives

“Perfect Escape” Alyssa Martin

This piece promotes a sense of pride and love

Recognizing that the Center for Women & Gender could give her direction for her research...

for one's body. Women feel considerable pressure to look a certain way, which differs by century and by subculture. The girl in this piece is con-

BESPOKE, A DIGITAL Magazine and Capstone Project, is an interactive online magazine with a variety of topics pertaining to body image and body acceptance produced by Kirsten Bluth for her American Studies Capstone Project. The topics range from the inaccuracy of the body mass index to ways of encouraging body-positive children. Kirsten selected the topic of female body acceptance in America after being added to a Facebook group for a weight loss product by some friends. She had used the product and lost weight, and received many compliments, but was still not happy with herself. “Being part of this Facebook group made me feel tired of not really being a friend, but just a product user. I realized that a person is never going to feel good enough if it is just about losing the next ten pounds. It is not about the clothes, the exercise, 23 • Student Perspectives

the diet. It is all about ‘How do I feel about me?’” This question changed her way of thinking. She said, “It was as though I had been asleep all my life and then I woke up. I didn’t care how I looked anymore. I went to work and I was able to just help people. I wanted to advocate ‘being your kind of healthy.’ I am beautiful and I am worth it because I exist. My purpose here is not to lose ten pounds. My purpose here is to lift others and to make their burdens light. My purpose as a woman is not to be skinny.” Recognizing that the Center for Women & Gender could give her direction for her research, Kirsten spoke with Stephanie Bagnell, the program coordinator. Kirsten continued visiting the Center throughout the project and said that Stephanie gave her moral support by “encouraging me that my magazine will matter and it would help other people and that this topic is important.” Kirsten said, “In addition to my re-

fident, not caring what search, I wanted something emotional into my magazine instead of just dry facts.” She had read ‘The Beauty Myth’ by Naomi Wolf and learned that people of color, a certain age or body type do not exist in most beauty magazines. Her goal was to create a magazine to reach out to women and make them feel something, to teach that hating your body doesn’t have to come with being a woman or that there is no such thing as a perfect body. She selected 16 local women she felt had embraced themselves and did not let their body prevent them from living. Kirsten conducted the interviews, photographed her subjects and designed the magazine. She also had an opportunity to lead a workshop for young women on the topic of body image at a youth group event in February.

others think or say.

Kirsten earned her minor in women and gender studies. You can read Kirsten’s Bespoke Magazine at view.joomag.com/ bespoke-1/08634000014815785022

Student Perspectives • 24

Perspectives Club

“The Hurt Inside” Jessyka Barton

By Holly Robinson

Holly Robinson Co-President

Lilly Palmer Co-President

25 • Perspectives Club

THE PERSPECTIVES CLUB, sponsored by the Center for Women and Gender, focuses on issues about gender, race, religion, and feminism. Each year, the club presents films, events, and other meetings centered on these themes. The club seeks to create a dialogue within the student body and community on topics important to women and men in today’s world. Our events include films about women’s rights and issues in today’s society. In 2016’s Fall semester, we showed “The Invisible War”, a documentary about rape and sexual assault in the military. We partnered with Utah Public Radio (UPR) for a showing and discussion of the documentary “Killing Us Softly 4”, which is about the portrayal of women’s bodies in today’s media. Before the showing of “Killing Us Softly 4,” social justice organizations from northern Utah, along with the Perspectives Club and UPR, set up information booths with a carnival theme. This allowed more than 100 participants to become educated on community resources to help counteract negative body image. At both documentary events this fall semester, we had a growing turnout from the previous years as more people are wanting to get involved and learn about the issues addressed. The club had over 30 students attend some of the documentaries, and hope attendance continues to grow. The Perspectives Club held a free pancake day to give students a chance to learn about the club. In exchange for a fluffy pancake, we asked students to tell us what makes them beautiful.

We had wonderful participation for this event and finished by making a video of all the students’ responses. During the spring semester, the club showed four influential documentaries. We had a great turnout at “The Empathy Gap,” a documentary looking closely at the ways men do and don’t empathize with women. Many new members attended and gained a new perspective on feminism. The Perspectives Club partnered with SPEAK USU to put on “The Student Body,” a documentary focusing on mandated BMI testing throughout schools. The documentary was held in February, which is eating disorder awareness month. We had a great discussion about how these mandated BMI tests impact eating disorders in schools. “Mona Lisa’s Smile,” was another influential documentary screened by the club. “Mona Lisa’s Smile” is about an art professor at Wellesley College who informed the girls in her classroom about the social roles in their lives. This was another documentary with another great attendance. The Perspectives Club finished the spring semester with the documentary “The Hunting Ground,” a powerful film that looks closely at the rape culture on college campuses across the nation. Over 50 students attended this event.

There are times in the lives of women and men that their experiences hurt them to the point of crippling emotionality. This art piece shows the feeling of having the inner light dimmed. Potential is damaged by experiences of abuse.

Although men also deal with this, I wanted to highlight the female experience because women are still discriminated, which leads them to hide their important contributions to society.

To get in touch with the Perspectives Club, please email cwg@usu.edu. To see the Pancakes and Perspectives Club video, visit cwg.usu.edu and click on the Perspectives Club tab. Perspectives Club •26

Professor Profile

Dress & Humanity “Please give me an overview of your class.”

Dr. Windi Turner

Assistant Professor, School of Applied Sciences, Technology and Education, teaches one of the classes that counts for WGS credit. Michelle Hixson interviewed Dr. Turner for this edition of Perspectives.

In the course Dress & Humanity, students explore the relationship between clothing and the human condition. We discuss history as it relates to dress, dress and culture, and the influence dress has in today’s society. Among other activities, students investigate the dress practices at USU through field observations and interviews with their peers. Results are shared through articles and a symposium. The course fulfills a Depth Humanities and Creative Arts (DHA) general education requirement and also has a service learning component, titled, “Intimate Assault by Means of Implicit Bias.” A student suggested the title for the campaign should be, “My Dress Doesn’t Mean Yes.” The purpose of the project is to improve access to campus and community resources for intimate assault prevention and services.

“How did you become interested in this topic?” My interest in the link between implicit bias and intimate assault came about when the rising rates of campus assaults, including recent incidents 27 • Professor Profil

here at USU, drew national attention. Intimate assault is a learned behavior; thus, there remains a critical need to promote a campus culture of gender equity and respect. In the class I show photographs from the “Humans of New York” series and ask students to make assumptions about the subjects without the text. This is followed by a discussion of implicit bias. The idea for the service learning platform “My Dress Doesn’t Mean Yes” came about after attending a CAPSA event. I invited a CAPSA staff member as a guest speaker and continued the conversation in the class. One of the points the CAPSA speaker mentioned is that when news of sexual assault is published, one of the first questions readers ask is, ‘‘What was she wearing?’ According to Dr. Turner, “This question led me to develop a service learning program to support CAPSA and SAAVI (Sexual Assault and Anti-Violence Information/USU). As part of the service learning activity, students are given a menu of choices to engage in the campaign, including creating clothing messages in public areas of the campus. These might involve dressing a mannequin, adding to the Clothesline Project, creating a flyer or poster, or, participating in the Dressing USU social media plat-

form. The platform includes Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and a Blog. Students take turns being the platform administers, are encouraged to make posts, comments and tag the class. I see that the students’ personal friends are liking the posts, which means they’re reaching their personal audience with this campaign.”

“What do you hope students will learn from your class?” “Students have posted their personal, anonymous stories on the Dressing USU blog, but have given permission for me to share in class. Students have said they feel the class is a safe place and are glad these topics are on the table for discussion. The collective agreement of the class is that a person’s style of dress does not offer permission for intimate assault. This is the first semester of the “My Dress Doesn’t Mean Yes,” and my goal will be to measure for its impact. I’ve asked students to provide suggestions for more campaign options to add to the menu of choices. I hope when they leave the class students can say ‘I got more out of this class than I ever expected and I helped start a campaign at USU.”

“Resist”

Ace Beorchia

The word “resist”—with the accompanying raised fist—is a unifying symbol reminding all of humanity that misogyny, racism, discrimination, greed, lies, and bullying will not be tolerated in our homes, communities, states, nations, and globe. “Resist” is a unifying call not only to accept differences, but to celebrate and embrace them. Professor Profil • 28

Awards

Early Career & Lifetime Achievement Awards The Early Career Awards recognize women in the first eight years of their professional career. Awardees are selected for their professional vision, their commitment to the possibilities of women’s accomplishments, and for demonstrating innovation in her chosen field, showing exceptional potential for significant contribution, and for commitment to community service as demonstrated through leadership, dissemination of knowledge, and outreach.

THIS YEAR, the Center for Women & Gender recognized two women for achievements during their early career, and selected another for a lifetime achievement award.

Campus Award Winner - Dr. Jessica Lucero Dr. Jessica Lucero is an Assistant Professor of Sociology in the Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology and the Master of Social Work coordinator. “Dr. Lucero has found unique ways to integrate advocacy for women’s issues into her teaching and research curriculum. Dr. Lucero’s work has focused on bridging the gap between academia and community practice as she tirelessly works towards bringing social justice to 29 • Awards

marginalized communities,” said Dr. Steve Lucero, psychologist in the Campus Counseling and Psychology (CAPS) department. Dr. Shannon Brown commented on additional areas of her work, “Locally, she leads a number of committees aimed at reducing bias and increasing diversity on campus and in Cache Valley.”

Community Award Winner - Dr. Stephanie Chambers Thomas Dr. Chambers Thomas is a graduate of the University of Utah School of Medicine, a family physician at Intermountain South Cache Valley Clinic, she serves as an emergency physician at Franklin County Medical Center in Preston, Idaho and Caribou Memorial Hospital in Soda

Springs. She is an adjunct instructor in Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of Utah. Dr. Joyce Kinkead nominated Dr. Thomas for the award and said Thomas served as Kinkead’s administrative research assistant during her freshman year, helping to create “Research on Capitol Hill”, an undergraduate studies and research program highlighting student research from both Utah State University and the University of Utah. As a senior, Dr. Thomas received the prestigious Goldwater. “Stephanie is always ready and willing to give credit to others who helped her on her pathway. She is a strong advocate for women and medicine and continues to mentor young women,” said Dr. Kinkead.

Early Career & Lifetime Achievement Award Left to right - Dr. Christy Glass, Dr. Stephanie Chambers, Dr. Jessica Lucero

Lifetime Campus Achievement Award - Dr. Christy Glass Dr. Christy Glass, a sociology professor, has “spent her career focusing on efforts to document the occupational inequalities that confront women and minorities and, more importantly, to uncover the complex mechanisms that account for the occurrence and persistence of these inequalities,” said Dr. Ronda Callister in her nomination letter. Dr. Alison Cook added, “simply stated,

Dr. Christy Glass is an exceptional scholar of, and advocate for, women and minorities. Christy is a champion for the under represented and works tireless to research the mechanisms that perpetuate inequalities. Furthermore, she provides prescriptive solutions to organizations to lessen the inequalities that exist.”

Nominations for the 2018 Early Career and Lifetime Achievement Awards are accepted through February 9, 2018. Detailed instructions are available at https://cwg.usu.edu/events-calendar/ecla-awards

Awards • 30

Last Words

Inaugural WLI Graduation Address

“Jess Representing Her Daughters” by Christy Glass

By Dr. Helga Van Miegroet

WHEN I LOOK AT your happy but also somewhat exhausted faces, there are many feelings and thoughts that go through my mind. I will try to impart some wisdom to you, young minds, from an old broad who has been through some battles and has the scars to prove it. My first impulse is a grain of envy because the world is opening up to you, full of opportunities. There are still so many choices to make, so many paths to follow, so many interests and passions to pursue. But if I am honest, we had it easy, just because we did not have

“You are worthy of praise! You should be proud of what you have achieved.” those choices. Decisions were often made before and for us. We followed the requirements put in front of us, and all was well, we were in the right path. So I am humbled in your

31 • Last Words

presence. You had many choices, and you actively decided to avail yourself of some of those choices. Participating in the WLI represents such a choice. Be proud of it and own it! It is an investment you made in yourself and your future and you are worth it! Let me say loudly the words that I and many other women have longed to hear: You are worthy of praise! You should be proud of what you have achieved. Remember those words and say them to yourself, when bosses or peers fail to recognize the value of your accomplishments. Say it to yourself and say it to each other; “You are good, you are smart, and you are valuable.” But every time you go up another rung on the career ladder you are surrounded by other people who are smart, some of them even smarter than you, and being smart just is not enough. You have to be persistent, and confident, and wise. I would be dishonest if I told you that nothing will go wrong along the way. It is not about avoiding the unpleasant, or worrying whether your career will run smoothly. It’s not about if, but about when, and how you deal with the bumps

in the road. How resilient you are to deal with the unexpected. Continue to believe in yourself and your abilities, and have the confidence to think outside the box, and please try not to internalize the criticism of others. There is nothing wrong with you! You’re still smart! Have the strength to admit when you need help, and call up your network. Look around you and see all these wonderful young women around you. They are your posse, they are your network. I cannot stress enough how important it is to have allies and people who unconditionally have your back and who “get” what you are going through. Honor and expand this network, keep up with old mentors and acquire new ones along the way. Don’t try to re-invent the wheel or be another schmuck hitting the wall or getting stuck for lack of advice. Don’t be shy and have the confidence to ask for help and call on your network. You’ve practiced it, so you can do it! Congratulations – you are good, you are smart, and we are proud of your accomplishments! Go forth and do great things!

Center for Women & Gender

Interviews Dr. Amy Odum By Jerra Fowers

WHEN IT COMES TO women’s leadership, Utah ranks almost last among the fifty states (Center for American Progress, 2015). This statistic might discourage some, but for CWG it constitutes a challenge. We realize there is a lot of room for improvement

and encouraging women’s leadership skills has become a central focus for the Center. Dr. Amy Odum recalled noticing that most of the students speaking out in her classes to ask and answer questions were men, yet she knew that the women were equally

prepared for class and likely, just as curious. When talking with her students about goals and aspirations, she was saddened that many of the women did not hold the same high-level aspirations as men. These instances of self-silencing in class and through setting lower aspirations concerned Odum, “I have a family, and I have a career, sometimes I am not sure that women realize that those can go together. You don’t have to choose having a family or having a career.” Odum continued this conversation with Drs. Ann Austin and Susan Cogan and the three of them guided the vision of the Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI). Empowering women through leadership opportunities such as mentoring, seminars, personal interaction, activities, and much more is what drives the Women’s Leadership Initiative. Dr. Amy Odum, reflecting on this inaugural year for WLI, said, “We want to provide role models, to provide mentors, and sponsors, and opportunities for women to develop their own leadership. We definitely want to affect people who have that purpose and they want to make a difference.”

Last Words • 32

Upcoming Events

FEBRUARY 15

Fall 2017 – Spring 2018 Events

University Inn & Conference Center Auditorium

All events through CWG are free to staff, students, faculty, community and other friends.

Fall 2017 AUGUST 30 Day on the Quad

SEPTEMBER 14

Scholarship Dinner

20 Munch & Mingle 21

with NEHMA Art Truck

OCTOBER

Halloween Brown Bag Dr. Lynn McNeill

NOVEMBER 2

Brown Bag

Fall Social

27 Year of the Arts Kick-Off

Spring 2018

Rebecca McFaul

Col. Marianne Waldrop

JANUARY Brown Bag

Dr. Laura Gelfand

APRIL

Munch & Mingle

Spring Luncheon

Brown Bag

Munch & Mingle

Brown Bag

Dr. Susan Shaw

FEBRUARY

Munch & Mingle

Brown Bag

Angela Davis

30 End of Semester Social

Dr. Karen Lang Co-sponsor Religious Studies Department

16-18 Clothesline Project Co-sponsor SAAVI

26 Munch & Mingle

Dr. Li Guo

22 Munch & Mingle

MARCH 15 Munch & Mingle 20-21

Year of the Arts Event Co-sponsor Caine College of the Arts

SEE ONLINE CALENDAR *FOR UP-TO-DATE-INFORMATION

cwg.usu.edu/events-calendar/lectures 33 • Upcoming Events

Achievement Awards

USMCR (Ret.)

Brown Bag

22 Early Career & Lifetime

Dr. Eubanks Winkler Christopher Scheer Co-sponsor Music Department

26 Tenure & Promotion Celebration

Angela Davis Featured 2018 Speaker

THROUGH ACTIVISM and scholarship over many decades, Angela Davis has been deeply involved in movements for social justice around the world. Her work as an educator – both at the university level and in the larger public sphere – has always emphasized the importance of building communities of struggle for economic, racial, and gender justice. She is currently the Distinguished Professor Emerita of History of Consciousness – an interdisciplinary Ph.D. program – and of Feminist Studies at the University of California Santa Cruz. Her most recent book of essays is titled Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson,

Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement. She also has conducted extensive research on numerous issues related to race, gender and imprisonment. She draws upon her own experiences in the early seventies as a person who spent eighteen months in jail and on trial, after being placed on the FBI’s “Ten Most Wanted List.” Angela Davis is a founding member of Critical Resistance, a national organization dedicated to the dismantling of the prison industrial complex. Internationally, she is affiliated with Sisters Inside, an abolitionist organization based in Queensland, Australia that works in solidarity with women in prison. Upcoming Events • 34

0186 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322