WOMEN'S STUDIES
BULLETIN

October/November 2003

Table of Contents:
ASSOCIATE OF THE MONTH
ATTENTION STUDENTS
FACULTY ASSOCIATES FALL SERIES
LGBT CURRICULUM WORKSHOP
ADVISOR NEEDED FOR WOMEN’S ALLIANCE
SPRING COURSES REMINDER
THE YOUNG WOMEN’S CONFERENCE
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH THEME
MOTHER’S MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
GLCA WOMEN'S STUDIES CONFERENCE
CAREER DEVELOPMENT GRANT
NIU LGBT HISTORY MONTH
T-SHIRTS ON SALE

ASSOCIATE OF THE MONTH

Catherine “Kay” Harned is our associate of the month. Harned is a Senior Research Associate at the Center for Governmental Studies, which is now housed under University Outreach. Harned earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Illinois. Harned has served as the principal investigator on a variety of research projects related to social welfare policy, poor women, and the intersections of race, class, and gender. She is primarily a qualitative researcher who commonly conducts intensive interviews and focus groups with poor women, sometimes spending years with the same group of women.

Even after spending only a short time with Harned, it becomes obvious how passionate she is about her research. Currently, Harned is working on several projects, including serving as a third party evaluator for a $3,000,000 grant (stemming from the College of Education and Counseling, Adult and Health Education). The grant is for developing a web-based career information system for low-income workers. Another project that she developed and that requires time and dedication—“the culmination of her research ideas”—is a $600,000 Community Outreach Partnership Center (COPC) grant that spans 3 years. This grant was funded by NIU, HUD, and by the Rockford Housing Authority. Harned developed the question, “How do socially, economically, and geographically marginalized people develop a sense of community,” and spent a couple of years with women in the Concord Commons neighborhood. The COPC grant includes such programs as a Rockford Public School early childhood development program within the housing development, mental health services, computer classes, a small business center for cottage industries, and political consciousness raising. Harned explained that the COPC project ultimately gives these women the resources they wanted. In fact, the project indirectly started when Anne Kaplan, Vice President for Administration and University Outreach, placed six computers in the housing development after Harned asked for them.

Harned joined the Women’s Studies Program as an associate primarily because she felt that WS gave her a theoretical context to describe, analyze, and compare her social welfare policy models that was absent in her applied, practical background. She originally was introduced to the program when Diana Swanson gave a feminist theory seminar to faculty, which Harned described as “eye-opening.” Harned also met Amy Levin while they swam laps together. Overall, Harned claims that WS gives her a community of colleagues and information on grant opportunities from the newsletters that she faithfully reads. In fact, Harned is serving on the executive committee this year because she feels “it is about time for” her. For more information about Harned, please visit her website at http://www.cgsniu.org/harned.htm.
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ATTENTION STUDENTS:
We are still seeking poster designers and artists to apply for our Women’s History Month poster design contest. The winner will receive $200 commission! We are also seeking essay writers for our undergraduate and graduate student essay contests (winners also receive monetary prizes). Our application forms are available in our office, Reavis 103, and on our website at: http://www.clas.niu.edu/wstudies/whm2004.htm. The deadline for the poster contest is October 31; for the essays it is December 19. We encourage all minors and graduate students to apply and to invite their friends and colleagues to apply!
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FACULTY ASSOCIATES FALL SERIES
The format for the two fall associate events was determined at the recent associates business meeting. Each event will involve stimulating discussion about one short article available for everyone to read prior to the meeting. The first lunchtime event will be Tuesday, October 21, from 12:00-1:30 p.m. in the Hunt Room of the Pheasant Room in the Holmes Student Center. Associates should read Dale Bauer’s article, “Academic Housework: Women’s Studies and Second Shifting.” Please call the Women’s Studies office at 815.753.1038 to get the URL for the on-line article. The second meeting will be November 20, at 4:00 p.m. in Reavis 103. Associates should call the office to get the URL for Anne Donadey’s “Negotiating Tensions: Teaching About Race Issues in Graduate Feminist Classrooms.”
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LGBT CURRICULUM WORKSHOP
On Friday, October 31, the Presidential Commission on Sexual Orientation and the Faculty Development and Instructional Design Center will be hosting a free one-day curriculum development workshop in the Holmes Student Center devoted to integrating LGBT studies into the classroom. To register, call 815.753.1038.
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ADVISOR NEEDED FOR WOMEN’S ALLIANCE
Women's Alliance is seeking a new faculty advisor who would be responsible for working with the officers of the organization to help ensure compliance with Student Association regulations and deadlines, offer general advice and counsel, and attend meetings and events. The Women's Alliance motto is "educate, agitate, organize." Events and activities of Women's Alliance have included a letter-writing campaign to fashion magazines called "Images of Women in the Media," “The Vagina Monologues,” the Vagina Seminar, Take Back the Night March, and fundraisers. If you are interested, or know someone who might be, please call the Women's Studies Program at 753-1038. If you'd like to talk to the outgoing advisor, call Diana Swanson at 753-6611.
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SPRING COURSES REMINDER
If you are teaching a spring course that will count for WS credit, please let us know at 815.753.1038 as soon as possible.
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THE YOUNG WOMEN’S CONFERENCE
The Young Women’s Conference is scheduled for Wednesday, October 29, 2003. Applications and the full schedule are available at http://www.clas.niu.edu/wstudies/ywc2003.htm. The conference is open to all sophomore through senior female high school students for only $33 if they register before October 15. A number of scholarships are available thanks to the generous support of our faculty associates.
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WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH THEME
The theme for March’s Women’s History Month is Women’s Movements. This theme encompasses such diverse topics as women’s historical activism, women in sports, women in dance, women exiles and refugees, and women’s careers overseas. We encourage you to discuss women’s movements in your spring courses and to develop relevant assignment options. Ideas for programs during March can be directed to Jolene Skinner at 815.753.1044 or jskinner@niu.edu.
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MOTHER’S MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
We are closing in on our endowment goal of $10,000 for the Mother’s Memorial Scholarship Fund. The scholarship is designed to help women students as well as to celebrate women who are or act as mothers. Donating offers an exciting new option for creating a lasting memorial or recognition of the important women in our lives. Donor forms are on-line at the Women’s Studies website, http://www.clas.niu.edu/wstudies/mothersmemorialscholarship.html. Simply click on the donor form link.
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GLCA WOMEN'S STUDIES CONFERENCE:
“Acting Up, Acting Out: Living Critically within the Academy” The April 16-17 conference at Kenyon College in Ann Arbor, Michigan, will address such questions as: are Women’s Studies and activism naturally linked and what role does activism have in a Women’s Studies classroom? Faculty, staff, and students who wish to present should submit proposals by February 1, 2004. Proposals should be submitted online at http://www.glca.org. For more information, please contact Kelci Lucier, GLCA Program Officer, at lucier@glca.org or 734.761.4833.
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CAREER DEVELOPMENT GRANT
Advance your career or re-enter the work force with a Career Development Grant from the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation. Women who hold a bachelor's degree and seek additional credentials for career development are invited to apply for a grant. Special consideration is given to AAUW members, women of color, and women pursuing a first advanced degree or credentials in nontraditional fields.
Academic grants support course work toward a master's degree, second bachelor's degree, or specialized training in a technical or professional field. Funds are not available for doctoral work or distance learning. Professional Development Institute Grants support women's participation in professional institutes that are academically based and have a focused, specific program of study with identified faculty and fixed schedules of
short-term duration (for example, two to eight weeks).
Application postmark deadline is December 15, 2003.
Download information and applications online at www.aauw.org.
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NIU LGBT HISTORY MONTH
LGBT History Month at NIU is bursting with all kinds of treats for October! For more details about individual programs, visit the online calendar of events at www.niu.edu/lgbt For additional info, call 815.753.LGBT or e-mail lgbt@niu.edu.
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T-SHIRTS ON SALE
We have T-shirts for sale in our office for a mere thirteen dollars. The attractive white shirts promote women volunteers and make great gifts for important women in our lives. Visit our office or website (http://www.clas.niu.edu/wstudies/tshirts.htm) for more information on the shirts. Proceeds benefit the Women’s Studies Program.
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