Information about the Department of Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies

Office

Engineering and Technology A405
Phone: (323) 343-4100
Website: Department of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies
Instagram: @wgssla

Chair

Alejandra Marchevsky
email: amarche@calstatela.edu
Phone: (323) 343-4100

The Faculty

Professors: Dionne Espinoza, Alejandra Marchevsky (Chair)
Assistant Professors: Pau Abustan; David B. Green

Overview

Women’s Gender & Sexuality Studies (WGSS) engages students in the interdisciplinary study of gender and sexuality as interwoven with race, ethnicity, colonization, class, nation, and ability. We employ intersectional feminist and LGBTSTGNC frameworks to explore hidden histories, understand complex social structures, confront injustice and oppression, and imagine more liberatory futures.

WGSS is grounded in humanistic approaches that emphasize the importance of language, storytelling, cultural representation, history, and creative arts in understanding and transforming the world. Our classes invite passionate dialogue and hands-on learning, where students build exceptional skills in verbal, written, and visual communication, critical thinking, rigorous research, and team-based problem-solving. WGSS students connect their research and classroom learning to diverse publics through the creation of social media, podcasts, zines, public art, and performance, curriculum for K-12 education, and public archives.

Programs

• Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies, B.A.

• Minor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

• Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Courses

• WGSS 1010 - Gender and Sexuality in College
• WGSS 2000 - Introduction to Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• WGSS 2030 - Intersectionality and U.S. Women of Color
• WGSS 2200 - Chicanas & Latinas In US Contemporary US Society (also listed as CLS 2200)
• WGSS 2300 - Gender, Sexuality, and American Indian Communities
• WGSS 3000 - Theories in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• WGSS 3050 - Black Feminism and Womanism (also listed as PAS 3050)
• WGSS 3100 - Critical Masculinities
• WGSS 3150 - Gender, Sexuality, and U. S. Law
• WGSS 3200 - Disability Studies (also listed as LBS 3200)
• WGSS 3400 - LGBT Political History in the US (also listed as HIST 3405)
• WGSS 3500 - Intersectionality and Feminist Movements
• WGSS 3570 - Gender and Sex in History (also listed as HIST 3570)
• WGSS 3600 - Comparative Analysis of Indigenous Women Experiences in the Americas (also listed as AIIS 3600, CLS 3600)
• WGSS 3650 - LGBTQ Cultural Production
• WGSS 3665 - Gender and Sexuality in Science Fiction (also listed as LBS 3665)
• WGSS 3715 - Rethinking the ‘Welfare Queen:’ Race, Gender, and Poverty in the US (also listed as PAS 3715)
• WGSS 3720 - Reproductive Justice
• WGSS 3725 - Gender Violence
• WGSS 3860 - Gender in Science (also listed as LBS 3860)
• WGSS 4000 - Knowledge, Power, and Research Justice in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• WGSS 4050 - Queer Theory
• WGSS 4100 - Chicana and Mexican Women Writers (also listed as ML 4100)
• WGSS 4130 - Issues in Feminist Philosophy (also listed as PHIL 4130)
• WGSS 4160 - Feminist Theories and Contemporary Society (also listed as SOC 4160)
• WGSS 4290 - Chicana Feminism: History, Theory, Praxis (also listed as CLS 4290)
• WGSS 4400 - Joteria Expressions in Las Americas (also listed as CLS 4400)
• WGSS 4480 - Sexualities and Gender Diversity in Global Perspective (also listed as ANTH 4480)
• WGSS 4500 - Community Engagement and Internship in WGSS
• WGSS 4540 - Special Topics in Women’s Studies
• WGSS 4650 - Gender, Sexuality, and Transnational Migration (also listed as LAS 4650)
• WGSS 4710 - Global Feminisms
• WGSS 4722 - Women, Gender, and Sexuality in Asian American Communities (also listed as AAAS 4722)
• WGSS 4820 - Latin American Women’s Movements (also listed as LAS 4820)
• WGSS 4830 - Native Feminist Theories and Practices
• WGSS 4840 - Chicana/Latina Narratives and Community History
• WGSS 4860 - Gender-Based Violence from a Transnational Perspective (also listed as SOC 4860)
• WGSS 4990 - Undergraduate Directed Study

• WGSS 5000 - Integrative Seminar in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• WGSS 5090 - Queer Studies in Education (also listed as EDFN 5090)
• WGSS 5980 - Graduate Directed Study