The department of women's, ethnicity and intersectional studies (WEIS) is the academic home for analyzing gender in relationship to economic and social class, race and ethnicity, sexuality, and national identity. Students learn to think critically about how social institutions, popular images and common ideologies shape multiple forms of identity, knowledge and reality. 

Our curriculum attempts to:

1. Examine how socially constructed identities, such as race, ethnicity, gender, social class, sexuality and age intersect with and inform each other. 
2. Analyze the ways in which intersections and systems of power impact the realities of peoples' lives.
3. Recognize the long history of women, people of color and other marginalized populations' contributions to government, politics and society. 

Program Requirements

The major in women’s, ethnicity and intersectional studies consists of 30 credit hours. Courses not in this list may be used to fulfill the program requirements with approval from the program coordinator or department.

Applied Learning

Students in the BA in women's, ethnicity and intersectional studies are required to complete an applied learning or research experience to graduate from the program. The requirement can be met by taking WOMS 599 WEIS Capstone: Women-Ethnicity-Intersectionality. This course is required for all majors. WOMS 599 encourages students to make presentations (paper, poster or skit) at the Diverse Women’s Summit (DWS), the Global Village Assembly (GVA), or at another university-based, state or national conference.  WOMS 599 requires students to produce a final research paper or research project that reflects developed knowledge and critical thinking within the major.