![]() Within higher education, women's studies programs pushed for more inclusion of women in the overall curriculum. They supported the Equal Rights Amendment, pushed for laws to protect women's rights, and encouraged equality at various levels of society and culture. Boxer - one of the first chairs of the women's studies department at San Diego State College.Įarly women's studies majors saw themselves as advocates for social change. "From the beginning, the goal of Women's Studies was not merely to study women's position in the world but to change it," explained historian Marilyn J. Women's studies grew out of the feminist movement. Instead of courses that focused solely on the thoughts and actions of white men, college-level classes would also critically examine the role of women and people of color in society. The changing makeup of student bodies demanded changes to higher education. Institutions that were once exclusively white and male were growing increasingly diverse. Thanks to student demand during the civil rights movement, colleges across the country established ethinic studies programs.ĭriven in large part by activists, the rise of women's studies and ethnic studies was a response to the changing demographics of higher education itself. San Francisco State College established the first Black studies department in 1968 after a student strike. However, women's studies did not emerge in a vacuum. Civil Rights Drove the Push for Women's Studies By 1980, over 300 schools offered women's studies programs. In the mid-1970s, a survey found that as many as one-third of female undergrads had enrolled in a women's studies class. These early women's studies programs were often run by professors in other departments who began offering women's studies courses. Higher education responded to the women's movement by establishing new departments that would specifically examine women's issues, often with an activist angle. It was also a rebuke to academics who scoffed at the idea of studying women's contributions. The new discipline was established as a direct result of the women's movement, which shined a light on many inequities in American society. In 1970, San Diego State College opened the first women's studies department. He responded, "That would be like teaching the history of dogs." The First Women's Studies Department One of the first female students at Yale asked a history professor if he might offer a women's history course. In 1969, Yale University announced that it would admit women for the first time. The first women admitted to exclusively male institutions often faced harsh conditions. Columbia did not admit its first female undergrads until 1983. And some states still banned women from serving on juries.įurthermore, several Ivy League institutions still refused to admit women. ![]() Women could not open a bank account without a male cosigner. Women's studies grew out of a lack of gender equality in higher education and society.Ĭonsider the situation for women in the 1960s, before the first women's studies program. Institutions that once excluded women now grant degrees that focus on women's experiences.īut why did hundreds of women's studies programs appear in the 1970s? And what impact does women's and gender studies continue to have on higher education today? The History of Women's Studies Sometimes maligned as a "useless major," WGS actually plays an important role in higher education. Today, hundreds of colleges - from small liberal arts institutions to prestigious research universities - offer women's and gender studies degrees. While disciplines like history and mathematics trace their roots back to antiquity, the first women's studies department opened in 1970. Women's and gender studies (WGS) is a relatively new field. Women's and gender studies gives colleges the opportunity to embrace diversity and inclusion.Over time, this field has become intersectional in its curriculum and practice.Women's and gender studies emerged from the civil rights and feminist movements.The Public Ivies, Little Ivies, and Other Ivy League Equivalents. ![]() Student Resources show submenu for Student Resources
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