About the Women's Studies Institute at UTSA

The Women's Studies Institute we are developing at UTSA is unique in multiple ways. Unlike most Women and Gender Studies programs or Women’s Studies research centers across the nation, we currently function as a research center and as the home for the WGS minor.  In the 16 months since the establishment of WSI, we have sought grant opportunities and have written proposals to fund the establishment of a major track and MA program in Women’s Studies. While traditionally, program development is accomplished through the relatively unrewarded service component of faculty duties, my hope was to develop the major track during a funded faculty curriculum development seminar. The reality of acquiring external funding for curriculum development in WS, however, is much more daunting than I initially imagined. In the spirit of the long history of women’s triumphs in the face of struggle, we will nonetheless proceed with the project.

This past year, we crafted a document that will serve as the blueprint for the major track proposal that the Women’s Studies Advisory Committee (WSAC) will write. Ultimately, the WSAC will author three proposals: a B.A. major, an M.A. certificate, and an M.A. degree.  In order to ensure the success of all three proposals, we designed a workshop for the WSAC curriculum committee that will be charged with writing the proposals. UTSA is one of the top five Hispanic-serving institutions in the US—and we at WSI are committed to establishing a program that recognizes our location in South Texas. By developing a major track in Women’s Studies, we seek to strengthen the curriculum at UTSA, improve student enrollment and retention rates among the campus’ large population of minority and nontraditional students, and nurture leadership among female students. We also seek to forge working relationships with the larger San Antonio community, particularly on issues relating to the development of female leadership in the 21st Century. The WSI will explore collaborative partnerships with community organizations to disseminate information and foster dialogue on issues of concern to working class women. We foresee including a service learning component in the B.A. proposal, offering students a chance to work with women’s organizations throughout the community of South Texas. 

Once we complete these proposals, each proposal will be forwarded to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for final review and approval by the UT system.  The proposals will emphasize the expertise of faculty already employed at UTSA who are willing and eager to contribute to this program, and students’ demands for UTSA to offer more courses in Women’s Studies.  Presently no UT system schools offer a major in Women’s Studies—UTSA will be a model for institutional transformation that capitalizes on existing sources to diversify course offerings and fields of study.We will continue to sponsor lectures and conferences, host WHM celebrations, and develop a research agenda that provides an intellectual and social climate for faculty, graduate and undergraduate researchers and scholars in Women’s Studies that is likely to expand substantially in years to come.