Message from the Director

‌Welcome to the website for the Drake University Women’s and Gender Studies program. 

As the current director of Women’s and Gender Studies (WGS), I’d like to share with you some of the program’s distinctive features.

WGS is an interdisciplinary program that offers an 18-credit concentration. With courses taught by 34 faculty members from 15 different departments and programs, we are one of the most academically diverse programs at Drake.

All of our courses, though, have a set of common goals: to help students better understand the social construction of gender identity and gender relations; to explore the intersection of gender with other social systems, including race, class, and sexuality; to engage students with feminist discourses and practices; and to examine representations and realities of gender in multicultural and global contexts.

Students who choose to earn a concentration in Women’s and Gender Studies often do so to complement their majors, and recent WGS concentrators have used what they’ve learned in WGS courses to support their studies in economics, English, history, international relations, LPS, philosophy, politics, rhetoric, and sociology.

All students who complete the WGS concentration engage in either an independent study or an internship, depending on their interests and needs. This practical experience provides students with professional preparation and opportunities to explore their specific interests in greater depth.

On our website, you'll find additional information about the concentration, WGS courses, and organizations and events associated with the program. To learn more about the program, please contact any of our affiliated faculty and staff, or get in touch with me directly at jeanette.tran@drake.edu.

Jeanette Tran
Associate Professor of English
Director, Women’s & Gender Studies