Faculty

Chair

Carole McCann

Professor

Carole McCann
B.A., Temple University, 1978; Ph.D., University of California, Santa Cruz, 1987

Assistant Professor

Maria Celleri
B.A., Binghamton University, 2009; M.A., Stony Brook University, 2011; M.A., The Ohio State University, 2013; Ph.D., University of California, San Diego, 2019

Mejdulene Shomali
B.A., University of Michigan-Flint, 2005; M.A., Ohio State University, 2007; Ph.D. University of Michigan, 2015

Principal Lecturer

Kathryn Drabinski
B.A., Barnard College, 1997; M.A., University of California, Berkeley, 2000; Ph.D., 2006

Affiliate Professor

Rebecca Adelman
B.A., Oberlin College, 2001; M.A., Ohio State University, 2005; Ph.D., 2009

Marina Adler
B.A., University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1981; M.A., 1984; Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park, 1990

Jessica Berman
A.B., Princeton University, 1983; M.A., The University of Chicago, 1986; Ph.D., 1993

Gloria I. Chuku
B.A., University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 1986; Ph.D., 1995; M.A., University of Port Harcourt (Nigeria), 1989

Amy Froide
B.A., University of San Diego, 1988; M.A.T., 1990; M.A., Duke University, 1992; Ph.D., 1996

Christine Mallinson
B.A., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2000; M.A., North Carolina State University, 2002; Ph.D., 2006

Kathryn McKinley
B.Phil., Pennsylvania State University, 1980; M.A., University of Toronto, 1984; Ph.D., University of Delaware, 1992

James Smalls
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1981; M.A., 1986; Ph.D., 1991

Affiliate Associate Professor

Dawn Biehler
B.A., Williams College, 1997; M.S., 2003; Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, 2007

Brandy Harris-Wallace
B.S., University of Alabama, 1998; M.A., 2001; M.S., Florida State University, 2003; Ph.D., 2006

Loren Henderson
B.A., Northeastern Illinois University, 2006; M.A., University of Illinois at Chicago, 2008; Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2014

Marjoleine Kars
B.A., Duke University, 1982; Ph.D., 1994

Susan McDonough
A.B., Princeton University, 1996; M.A., Yale University, 2001; Ph.D., 2005

Elizabeth Patton
B.A., New York University, 1998; Ph.D., 2013; M.A., Drexel University, 2005

Michelle Scott
B.A., Stanford University, 1996; M.A., Cornell University, 2000, Ph.D., 2002

Orianne Smith
B.A., Bennington College, 1986; M.A., Loyola University Chicago, 1999; Ph.D., 2005

Lisa Pace Vetter
B.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1991; M.A., Fordham University, 1994; Ph.D., 2000

Affiliate Assistant Professor

Keegan Finberg
B.A., Sarah Lawrence College, 2006; M.A., University of California, Santa Cruz, 2012; Ph.D., 2015 

Aubrey L. Jackson
B.A., Rice University, 2005; M.A., Ohio State University, 2008; Ph.D., 2013

Tania Lizarazo
B.A., Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Colombia), 2005; M.A., 2009; Ph.D., University of California, Davis, 2015

Susan McCully
B.A., Allentown College of St. Francis de Sales, 1985; M.F.A., The Catholic University of America, 1989; Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1997

Thania Muñoz Davaslioglu
B.A., California State University, Los Angeles, 2007; M.A., University of California, Irvine, 2011; Ph.D., 2015

Jules Rosskam
B.A., Bennington College, 2001; M.F.A., School of the Art Institute of Chicago, 2008

Sharon Tran
B.A., Queens College, 2010; M.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 2013; Ph.D., 2017

Yolanda Valencia
B.A., Eastern Washington University, 2002; M.A., University of Washington, 2014; PhD, University of Washington, 2019

Affiliate Professor of the Practice

Deborah Rudacille
B.A., Loyola College, 1980; M.A., Johns Hopkins University, 1998

Affiliate Clinical Associate Professor

Beverly Bickel
B.A., Duke University, 1976; M.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1994; Ph.D., 2005

Affiliate Principal Lecturer

Eileen O’Brien
B.S., University of Pittsburgh, 1973; M.S., The Catholic University of America, 1977; M.A., 1984; Ph.D., 1987

Affiliate Senior Lecturers

Kathy Bryan
B.A., Drake University, 1979; M.A., University of Maryland, College Park, 1981; Ph.D., 1991

Timothy Phin
B.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 2004; M.A., The Johns Hopkins University, 2009; Ph.D., 2014

Affiliate Lecturer

Tammy Henderson
B.A., Johnson C. Smith University, 1994; M.A., Bowling Green State University, 1996; Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park, 2009

Lindsay Johnson
B.A., Salem College, 2005; M.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 2008; Ph.D., 2013)

Courses in this program are listed under GWST.

Gender, women’s, and sexuality studies is an interdisciplinary field of inquiry that investigates how gender and sexuality operate as organizing axes of social, cultural, economic and political institutions, as well as in the everyday lives and cultural products of people who must live within them. Emphasizing the importance of historical and cross-cultural and transnational perspectives, Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies at UMBC critically examines the intersections of gender and sexuality with other differences, including, class, race, ethnicity, nationality, age, and ability to make visible structures of power that otherwise remain hidden. Students are empowered to imagine a more just future and equipped with the tools to collectively enact it. 

The Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies Department offers a major, undergraduate certificate, and two minors, Gender and Women’s Studies and Critical Sexuality Studies.

Career and Academic Paths

Each of the Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies Department options - the undergraduate major, the certificate, and the minors - reflects a deep commitment to the interdependence of theory and practice. In this way, the program equips students with the substantive knowledge and critical skills required to respond to rapidly changing environments in areas such as government, business, education, public service, the health professions, social justice, social services and the law, at local, national and global levels.

Academic Advising

Each student is assigned an academic advisor from one of the program’s faculty upon declaring a major, certificate or one of the minors. Students may also request to be assigned to a particular faculty member. Advisees are urged to consult regularly with faculty advisors, utilize information on the Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies Department Web site (gwst.umbc.edu), and to take part in Department activities.

Special Opportunities

Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL+).

All students academically connected to the Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies Department through a declared major, certificate, or minor are encouraged to participate in the WILL+ program, a learning community that promotes academic excellence, leadership development, and civic engagement. Through WILL+, students have the opportunity to develop their leadership skills by planning and executing projects on campus and in the community, meeting with powerful activists and leaders from around the region, and attending co-curricular cultural events, all with other students similarly committed to diverse gender and social justice issues. In conjunction with WILL+, the Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies Department sponsors a living-learning floor in the residence halls for interested members.

In addition, students have the opportunity to apply their Gender, Women’s, + Sexuality Studies course work in a wide variety of internship options available in the Baltimore Washington region, including such organizations as the Feminist Majority Foundation, the National Organization for Women, and Planned Parenthood. More information about Gender and Women’s Studies at UMBC and elsewhere can be found at: gwst.umbc.edu.

Programs

• Gender and Women’s Studies, B.A.

• Gender and Women’s Studies Certificate

• Critical Sexuality Studies Minor
• Gender and Women’s Studies Minor

Courses

• GWST 099 - Women’s Self-Defense (0)
• GWST 100 - Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies (3)
• GWST 100H - Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies (3)
• GWST 100Y - Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies (4)
• GWST 200 - Studies in Feminist Activism (3)
• GWST 210 - Introduction to Critical Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 210H - Introduction to Critical Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 220 - Introduction to Transgender Studies (3)
• GWST 245 - Arab and Muslim Experiences in the United States (3)
• GWST 250 - Gender Roles in Economic Life (3)
• GWST 255 - Intercultural Paris (3)
• GWST 258 - Introduction to Feminist Philosophy (3)
• GWST 290 - Issues in Gender and Women’s Studies (3)
• GWST 292 - Issues in Critical Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 300 - Methodologies in Gender, Women’s, and Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 310 - Gender and Inequality in America (3)
• GWST 310H - Gender and Inequality in America - Honors (3)
• GWST 315 - Modern Masculinities (3)
• GWST 320 - Transnational Feminist Film (3)
• GWST 321 - Queer Representation in Film and TV (3)
• GWST 322 - Gender, Race, and Media (3)
• GWST 323 - Gender and Sitcoms (3)
• GWST 325 - History of Women in America to 1870 (3)
• GWST 326 - History of Women in America Since 1870 (3)
• GWST 327 - African American Women’s History (3)
• GWST 328 - Women, Gender, Sexuality, and Political Power in the U.S. (3)
• GWST 330 - Gender and Women in the Classical World (3)
• GWST 332 - Human Sexuality in Sociological Perspectives (3)
• GWST 333 - Human Sexuality in Cross-Cultural Perspective (3)
• GWST 338 - Women, Gender, and Law (3)
• GWST 340 - Women, Gender and Globalization (3)
• GWST 342 - Gender in Modern South Asia (3)
• GWST 343 - Gender, Human Rights, and Political Violence in Latin America (3)
• GWST 344 - Transnational Femininities (3)
• GWST 345 - Unruly Bodies (3)
• GWST 348 - Black, Queer, and Feminist Film (3)
• GWST 349 - Gender, Sexuality and Theatrical Performance. (3)
• GWST 352 - Women, Gender, and Information Technology (3)
• GWST 352H - Women, Gender, and Information Technology (3)
• GWST 353 - Marriage and the Family (3)
• GWST 355 - The Sociology of Gender (3)
• GWST 356 - The Psychology of Sex and Gender (3)
• GWST 357 - The Psychology of Women and Gender (3)
• GWST 364 - Perspectives on Women in Literature (3)
• GWST 365 - Black Women Novelists (3)
• GWST 366 - Doin’ It: Case Studies in the History of Western Sexuality (3)
• GWST 367 - The Anthropology of Gender (3)
• GWST 370 - Black Women: Cross-Cultural Perspectives (3)
• GWST 371 - The Female Offender (3)
• GWST 373 - “Do Muslim Women Need Saving?” Women and Gender in Islam (3)
• GWST 374 - European Women’s History 1200-1750 (3)
• GWST 375 - European Women’s History 1750-Present (3)
• GWST 376 - European Women’s History, 1914 - Present (3)
• GWST 377 - Women and Social Policy (3)
• GWST 378 - Women, Gender and Science (3)
• GWST 379 - Intimate Partner Violence, A Social Work Perspective (3)
• GWST 380 - Women and Gender in Asia (3)
• GWST 381 - Reproductive Justice in the US (3)
• GWST 382 - Perspectives on the Family (3)
• GWST 383 - History and Politics of Sexuality (3)
• GWST 390 - Topics in Gender and Women’s Studies (3)
• GWST 391 - The Philosophy of Sex (3)
• GWST 392 - Topics in Critical Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 400 - Senior Independent Study (3)
• GWST 401 - Special Projects in Gender and Women’s Studies (1-3)
• GWST 413 - Language, Gender and Sexuality (3)
• GWST 433 - Gender, Work, and Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective (3)
• GWST 434 - Gender and the Life Course (3)
• GWST 439 - Women in Africa and the Diaspora (3)
• GWST 444 - Psychology of Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity (3)
• GWST 450 - Internship (1-3)
• GWST 452 - WILL Internship Seminar (2)
• GWST 458 - Advanced Topics in Feminist Philosophy (3)
• GWST 464 - Studies in Women and Literature (3)
• GWST 469 - Masculinity and Femininity in the Middle Ages (3)
• GWST 480 - Theories of Feminism (3)
• GWST 485 - Sexuality and Queer Theory (3)
• GWST 490 - Advanced Topics in Gender and Women’s Studies (3)
• GWST 491 - WILL Senior Seminar (2)
• GWST 492 - Advanced Topics in Critical Sexuality Studies (3)
• GWST 495 - Colloquium: Research and Activism (3)