Newsletter, Events, and Contact Information

Dear WGSS Alumni and Friends: 

I hope the transition into the new year has been kind to you. 2025 was beset by uncertainty due to the passage of Ohio’s Senate Bill 1 and federal proclamations that unsettled research faculty and many international graduate students. Despite all this, WGSS faculty, students, and staff have created deep queer feminist bonds that align with our intellectual and community-focused vision.

As a department, we are committed to creating an intellectually robust and socially engaged feminist community. One area in which this commitment is made manifest is in our monthly faculty brown bag presentations, feminist fora, and annual keynote lecture. This past year, we welcomed Dr. Therí Pickens, Charles A. Dana Professor of English and Africana at Bates College to give the Distinguished Lecture. Dr. Pickens’ talk was well attended by students, faculty, and community members in the Elliston Poetry Room, where she read from her newly released poetry collection. The subsequent discussion highlighted the power of poetry as social analysis, creative outlet, and tool for transformation. The annual lecture is one example of how, through our events, we build community, co-create knowledge, and offer opportunities for sharing feminist queer possibilities.

Our students’ work also reflect WGSS’ commitments. Students are engaged in exciting projects in the classroom and beyond. A couple projects that stand out include: an undergraduate student whose proposed capstone project explores generative AI through a feminist lens. In this work, the student considers how algorithmic bias, racist and colonial forms of knowledge production, environmental impact, and issues of accessibility and inclusivity could be considered when developing and using AI; a graduate student’s MA project, an internship at the Ohio Lesbian Archives, provides much needed support to the archives and critically examines the need for queer preservation in politically fraught times. These students’ projects reflect the broad reach of feminist queer studies and how the WGSS department enables and supports this work.

A primary source of funding for our department’s work comes from the Friends of WGSS. This fund facilitates student internships, independent projects including Capstones, conference attendance, among other things. Please consider donating by visiting Please consider donating by visiting UC Foundation and searching for fund "Friends of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies Fund" to support our department's work.

Wishing you the best in the new year. You can follow our Instagram @ucincy_wgss or return to this page for information about upcoming events and other news. 

In solidarity,  

Anima Adjepong, Ph.D. (he/they) 
Associate Professor and Head of Department 
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies  

We are so proud of second-year MA student Loïc Filipe-Hémery, who has been awarded the 2024-25 Excellence in Teaching Award for Graduate Assistants. Loïc is pursuing dual MA degrees in WGSS and French and he has taught undergraduate courses in both departments. His skillful lesson planning, the friendly professional dynamic created with students, and use of diverse pedagogical tools reflect the department’s commitment to feminist instruction. In his own words, Loïc explained, “This teaching award means a lot to me. I care deeply about the classes I teach, but also about how I teach them. It inspires me to continue working toward creating inclusive and dynamic learning environments where students are centered. It's also a reminder to continually improve my teaching and remain committed to making students' experiences a central part of both my pedagogy and research.” Congratulations to Loïc on this well-earned award!

Dr. Chandra Frank is the newest addition to the WGSS department and the current (2024 – 2027) Taft Professor of Public Humanities. Her research focuses on feminist and queer of color movement work, possibilities of dissent, and how race and the environment work as terrains of power. Dr. Frank is the faculty advisor for Feminist Forum, the WGSS student-led discussion group, which offers an opportunity for students, faculty, and staff in the department and beyond to engage in interdisciplinary dialogue, explore global struggles for justice, and build transnational feminist solidarity. As the Taft Professor of Public Humanities, Dr. Frank is developing opportunities to share feminist scholarship and practice across art, ecology, and public history spaces.