Fellow Bereans,
As we approach the close of Women’s History Month, the time seems right to celebrate past contributions and give thanks for the efforts to shape our future regarding the sixth Great Commitment. From Matilda Fee onward, Berea has been fortunate to have so many of our community committed to gender inclusion and equity, and in this blog I’d like to draw special attention to the Women’s and Gender Studies (WGS) program. That program’s formal origin came in 1991 when the faculty recognized Women’s Studies as a minor in order to promote gender awareness across the campus, and it became a major 10 years later in 2001.
While one tends to think of academic programs in terms of opportunities for students, it is important to recognize, too, how the WGS program and the values it stands for strengthen the whole community – faculty, staff as well as students. As Berea’s founders knew more than 160 years ago, a healthy community develops and draws on the perspectives, strengths and abilities of all its members, which is why Berea began as a coeducational institution committed to diversity and inclusion. And, it is why today we are committed to learning to see beyond the simple binaries of “male and female” or “masculine and feminine” or “gay or straight” and to understanding gender identity as the richer spectrum it really is. The WGS program plays an essential role in helping our community as it learns to be a welcoming and supportive environment for its transgender members as well.
From left to right: Peggy Rivage-Seul, professor and program chair of WGS; Carrie Jadud, WGS program associate; Shahwar Ali ‘16, WGS labor student; Marcella Fitisone ‘17, WGS major and labor student; Qrescent Mason, assistant professor of WGS
The practice of living out this commitment has changed over time. For most of the College’s history, it is fair to say that the male voice has been privileged. But, more recently, the WGS program has been instrumental in moving us toward a dialogue in which all voices are heard and valued. The signature program for creating this dialogue is “Peanut Butter and Gender,” a series of lunch meetings held 10-15 times per year where Bereans gather to share a simple meal, hear a presentation and then discuss a significant issue of the day. Past speakers include Dorothy Allison (author of Bastard out of Carolina), bell hooks (feminist author, social critic and distinguished professor-in-residence at Berea), Judy Chicago (artist and creator of the “Dinner Party”), Winona LaDuke (Native American activist, environmentalist, economist and writer), Lori Wallach (director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch), Vandana Shiva (author, physicist and biodiversity activist), Carol Browner (administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), Nikki Giovanni (poet) and Gustavo Esteva (journalist and advisor to indigenous groups in Mexico). It is worth pausing for a moment to consider just how remarkable this line-up of visitors to a small school in Kentucky really is!
Laurie and I have enjoyed participating in supporting some of these wonderful visits, and I have been privileged to play a part in Berea College’s Women in Public Service Project, which has connected Berea College to influential woman leaders all over the world.
For all these reasons, I want to thank the members of the WGS faculty for making Berea a stronger, more thoughtful, community. Special thanks to Barbra Wade, the first chair of the program, to Peggy Rivage-Seul, who currently guides the program and organizes “Peanut Butter and Gender,” and to Linda Strong-Leek, past program chair, division chair and now Berea’s vice president for diversity and inclusion. Please join me in actively supporting Peggy, Linda and the entire WGS program as they provide leadership in living out our sixth Great Commitment and our ongoing effort to be a community that welcomes “all peoples of the earth.”
Faithfully yours,
Lyle
You can follow me on Twitter @RoelofsLyle.
