Women's Studies Commons^™

Somerville Commission For Women: 2012 Women’S Needs Survey, Heather Macindoe, Valerie Berger

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Somerville Commission for Women was created in March 1988 by City ordinance. It focuses on programming aimed at anti-violence, financial literacy, empowerment, coalition building, and legislation relating to women. It was recognized by Massachusetts House of Representatives on its 10th anniversary for outstanding service in advocacy for women, opposition to domestic violence, and working for social justice.

Participatory Action Research Fellowship For Women Of Color Leaders Project, Christa Kelleher, Ileana Cintrón, Center For Women In Politics And Public Policy, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

This project is a partnership with the Women’s Pipeline for Change which aims to build a sustainable infrastructure to support women of color as they enter public life. Five community leaders from all regions of the Commonwealth are CWPPP Research Fellows conducting research rooted in their experiences. Findings from their individual projects and the broader innovative fellowship project serve as the foundation for web-based resources designed to provide inspiration, insights, and guidance to women of color in Massachusetts and beyond.

Sexuality And Body Image, Ryan Sallans

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Center

Ryan Sallans discusses the relationship between body image and sexuality; Sallans breaks down sexuality into five main categories: sensuality, intimacy, sexualization, sexual health and reproduction and sexual identity. His talk looks at how the mass media idealizes the hourglass shape for women’s bodies, only 8 percent of women actually have that body type; GLBT Center; LGBTQ Center; Ryan Sallans; 171717ththth Annual LGBTIQQ Symposium; Connected CommunitiesConnected Communities

Hearing Women’S Voices: Understanding Women's Stories Of Violence From The Perspective Of Strength, Kayla M. Janes

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this study was to understand women's experiences of violence from the perspective of strength. Women who had experienced woman abuse participated, identifying common themes that emerged relating to their strengths and resilience that helped them survive their traumatic experiences, as well as their posttraumatic growth. Interviews were conducted with women who were involved in an adult education program for women who had experienced woman abuse. All of the women in this study were suffering distress and mental health concerns related to their experiences of violence; however all of them showed resilience and posttraumatic growth in areas of …

Dawnbreaker Vol 59 No 3 (Spring 2012), Dawnbreaker Staff

Maine Women's Publications - All

No abstract provided.

Gender And The Boundaries Of National Identity: U.S. Women As A Citizen Class In The Long 1960s, Sara Bijani

Masters Theses

This text analyzes the public ideologies and institutions that underpinned women's unequal status within the national collective of United States citizens during the long 1960s, paying particular attention to the executive office of Lyndon Johnson, Congress, and the national security establishment. Women were frequently framed within these institutions as a separate special class of citizen, with rights and responsibilities not akin to those of the elite—male bodied—members of the national collective. Allowing for the imaginative construction of "women" as a subject class in U.S. society, this text argues that even with the guarantee of formal political rights in place, women …

Engaging Students In Information Literacy: The First Year And Beyond, Diane M. Fulkerson

Diane M. Fulkerson

No abstract provided.

Women's, Gender, And Sexuality Studies Newsletter Spring 2012, Susana Peña

Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Brazen (Spring 2012), Hollins University

Brazen - Gender & Women's Studies Department Newsletters

No abstract provided.

University College Connection Spring 2012, Dennis K. George, Dean, Wendi Kelley

UC Publications

No abstract provided.

Goals, Challenges, And Successes Of A Girls Development Organization In Kenya : A Case Study Of Moving The Goal Post (Kilifi, Kenya), Madeline Boston

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Girls and Women in Kilifi District, Kenya are some of the world’s poorest and most disadvantaged people. Low retention rates in school, early and unintended pregnancies, and vulnerability to HIV/AIDS trap them in a cycle of intense poverty. Moving the Goalpost (MTG) in Kilifi uses football to empower girls and young women, helping them to fulfill their potential by engaging them in sport and educational development projects. This report analyzes the goals, challenges, and successes of MTG through understanding its organization capacity, and offers recommendations for improvement.

Gender Performativity In The Community College: A Case Study Of Female Backline Classified Staff, Samantha Rose Powers

Educational Foundations & Leadership Theses & Dissertations

This case study explored the gendered performances of five female backline classified staff members who work in non-traditional fields within a community college. More specifically, this study defined gendered behaviors at a community college, and explored how these behaviors have affected the identities of women working in non-traditional fields at the community college. This study indicated through documents, observations, and interviews that there was mixed evidence of the degree to which gendered behavior is cultivated at a community college in Washington. Document review, interview, and observation findings showed that women at the community college reported expectations of gendered behavior, gender …

The Social And Economic Impact Of Mpesa On The Lives Of Women In The Fishing Industry On Lake Victoria, Danielle White

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study will examine the social and economic impact of the mobile banking system, MPESA, in the lives of women in the fishing industry on Lake Victoria in Kenya. The study aims to discover what MPESA is being used for and how its use is affecting the lives of its female users. It will not only study the immediate impact on women, but also the impact on the interactions with their families and communities, as well as the fishing industry. The study aims to determine whether or not MPESA is beneficial to these women and if it is, how the …

Women In Post Revolutionary Tunisia: Political Inclusion And Prospects For The Future, Courtney Joline

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As the world turns it attention to Tunisia as the first state to undergo the democratic transition in the phenomenon known as the Arab Spring, women’s status has been a dominant theme among policy analysts, journalists, and scholars. As people debate their means of mobilization, I sought to document how women see their futures and their opinion of the democratic transition, and most importantly what this holds for women. This piece seeks to give women agency and a forum for them to share their stories, opinions, and perspectives of the future. In a time when so many thinkers are getting …

The Rhetoric Of The Modern Hijab., Mihret Woldesemait

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The goal of this research is to obtain data about the rhetoric of the modern hijab. This research wants to prove that the hijab is dynamic and not static by looking at the new styles of the hijab in Amman, Jordan. It wants to disprove the idea that the hijab is one of the many examples of the outdated practices of the hijab. The study has three hypothesis:(1) the hijab is dynamic and not static, and it has changed in style because of modernization and westernization. (2) The new styles of the hijab are not absolutely religious. (3) Lastly it …

The Current Status Of Maternal Health In Samoa: Maternal Health Perspectives According To Professionals And Women, Yesenia Pedro Vicente

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Countries that face pressure to develop at a rapid pace under the western model must adapt to social change and adopt new policies that will secure their well-being. In an attempt to guide these countries, the United Nations has established the Millennium Development Goals as a framework for national development. The United Nations recognizes the importance of improving maternal health and has established it as one of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agreed to by member states. Samoa has agreed to these Goals and is said to be “on track” for improving maternal health by the year 2015. This …

The Vacb Model In Hòa An Village And Xeo Trâm Hamlet: Comparison And Analysis Through A Gendered Lens, Alyssa Bosold

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Burning fuel-wood, a method of traditional cooking practiced by half of all homes in Vietnam (Global Alliance for Clean Cook-stoves 2012) and the majority of homes in Hòa An Village and Xeo Trâm Hamlet, has significant negative consequences in terms of environmental and personal health. In Hòa An Village and Xeo Trâm Hamlet, as is true in much of Vietnam, gender roles dictate that women should be primarily responsible for household chores like cooking (World Bank 2001, Nguyen 2012, Nguyen 2012, Vo 2012). This means that women must often deal directly with the environmental dangers and safety hazards of woodstoves. …

El Microcrédito Como Herramienta Para Promover La Autonomía Económica Y El Empoderamiento Social En Mujeres De Bajos Recursos En El Conurbano Norte: El Caso De “Mujeres 2000” / Microcredits As A Tool To Promote Economic Autonomy And Social Empowerment In Women With Few Resources In The Northern Metropolitan Area: The Case Of “Mujeres 2000”, Stephanie Allen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In recent years, Argentina has been faced with many economic downfalls, specifically the economic crisis of 2001. These economic hardships led to higher rates of poverty and unemployment throughout the country. The populations most affected but such harsh economic downturns were the already vulnerable; one of which being women. Many women in Argentina and throughout Latin America occupy a lower position in society and often bear most of the burden of poverty and unemployment.

As a response to the isolation of some groups from the formal economic system, the idea of microfinance took shape. Presently in Argentina there exist over …

Lo Personal Es Político: La Lucha Por La Legalización Del Aborto En Chile, A Través De La Organización Feminista, Católicas Por El Derecho A Decidir, Gavin Odabashian

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper investigates the work of a small collective of women—Católicas por el Derecho a Decidir—and the practice of their activism in Valparaíso, Chile. I focus on the ways in which these women are strategically mobilizing as an organization to fight for justice for women in Chile—more specifically, for gender equality, access to reproductive rights, and the legalization of abortion in all cases. I examine the history of the organization, its form and structure, the projects and campaigns they are currently working on, the individual experiences of the women working within the organization, their perspectives on their work, …

Empowered Minds And Sterilized Bodies: The Decisions And Lived Experiences Of Surgically Sterilized Women In Santo Antonio De Jesus, Leah Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During the last several decades, Brazil has experienced a rapid fertility decline from 6 births per woman in 1965 to 1.8 births per woman in 2006. Though Brazil lacks a significant and organized family planning program, this fertility decline has been caused in large part by an extremely high rate of female sterilization. Of the 81 percent of women living in union who use birth control, 29 percent are surgically sterilized, placing Brazil at the third highest rate of female sterilization in the world. This research analyzes the sterilization narratives of 10 women from the city of Santo Antonio de …