CWGS Event Calendar

Inspiring Generations: Disabled Girls Are Part of Women’s History

March 18, 2025

12:30 – 1:45 p.m. | Arts and Sciences Building (CASB) 101

Sisterhood means recognizing the voices and experiences of all girls and women, not just the nondisabled ones! Dr. Anastasia Todd, from University of Kentucky, will address the importance of including disabled girls in discussions of girlhood in her book, Crippling Girlhood.

Instead of speaking on behalf of disabled girls, Dr. Todd starts by listening to disabled girls to better understand what matters to them. From YouTube to TikTok to GoFundMe, these girls “crip” girlhood by placing themselves and their disabilities front and center in new stories about the disabled U.S. American girl.

Identity-first language is an important topic that must be kept in mind. More information about identity-first language is available for review.

Wicked  Screening: Watch It with a Friend!

March 18, 2025

6:30 – 9:15 p.m. | Campus Life Center (CLC) Ballroom

This film adaptation of the Broadway musical, Wicked, reveals the origin stories of Elphaba (the wicked witch of the east) and Glinda (the good witch) from The Wizard of Oz.

Featuring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, Wicked asks questions at the heart of Women’s and Gender Studies: How and why are certain women cast as “bad” while others are cast as “good?” How does this process of dividing women into categories of good and bad function within broader social and ecological systems, as represented in the film? 

Give these questions some thought while you watch this incredible movie for free! This event is cosponsored with the Office of Community and Student Engagement in the Division of Student Affairs.

Wicked  Discussion Panel: Is Sisterhood Blooming in Oz?

March 25, 2025

6:30 – 9:15 p.m. | Campus Life Center (CLC) Ballroom

Wicked offers many opportunities to think about cultural representations of girls and women across a variety of differences.

This panel of professors and students will unpack the imagery of sisterhood to discuss what is new, old, thrilling, and troubling about this film. What makes it so popular? What is the symbolic meaning of defying gravity? Who is the biggest villain in the story?

Come join the conversation as we explore different ways of interpreting the meaning(s) of Wicked and its phenomenal global success since its release last November. And join in the fun by enjoying themed refreshments and competing in the costume contest (awards for Best Elphaba and Best Glinda). This event is cosponsored by the Office of Community and Student Engagement in the Division of Student Affairs.

Sharing Our Stories as Women of Color Full Professors

March 26, 2024

12:30-1:30 p.m. | Health Education Complex (HEC) 2023

El Centro features Drs. Carmen V. Harris, Esther Liu Godfrey, and Araceli Hernández-Laroche, with moderator Gabrielle Drake, LLC Assistant Chair and World Language Coordinator. Light refreshments served.

Digitizing Hand-written Letters: Working with Students to Preserve Women’s – Tammy Pike

March 12, 2024

12:15-1:30 p.m. | Campus Life Center Ballroom

All are welcome to join us for a presentation and workshop on this innovative approach to teaching women’s history. Tammy Pike, an instructor of history and women’s and gender studies at USC Upstate, has developed a project that gives students hands-on experience collecting, digitizing, and preserving handwritten letters from the Margaret Payne collection at the Piedmont Historical Preservation Society (dated between 1905-1945).

Barbie Revolution – panel discussion, costume contest and photo booth!

January 30, 2024

12:15-1:30 p.m. | Health Education Complex (HEC)

As the highest-grossing movie of 2023, Barbie’s success made waves in society, relocating topics confined to Women’s and Gender Studies classrooms onto the big screen. Our panelists will discuss how the film portrays topics such as gender inequity in politics and work, motherhood, sexual harassment, femininity and masculinity, intersectional identities, and more.