Women’s History Month started on March 1, and the Women’s and Gender Studies Program has lined up several events to celebrate women all month long.
Women’s First Project
Exhibit: Friday, February 28 through Thursday, April 30
Reception:
Tuesday, March 3, 2020
4:00 – 6:00 pm
John C. Hitt Library room 223
The exhibit team who worked on this project envisioned documenting the legacy of women who attained a rank, position or graduation as first in their field. The goal is to create awareness of the impact and work of hundreds of women in UCF’s history. This project is a collaboration between Dr. M. C. Santana, Dr. Robert Cassanell, Mary Rubin, Eli Jimenez, and Christopher Saclolo.
Film: Filthy Dreamers
Wednesday, March 4, 2020
2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
John C. Hitt Library room 223
A screening of the student-produced College Television Emmy award-winning documentary, Filthy Dreamers, will be hosted on March 4. The film is about how in the late 1920s, Florida State College for Women was the only public university that allowed women to enroll. The outcome of expanding these options depended on the college president, professors, and students, who defended their right to academic freedom. The woman who launched the movement called them “Filthy Dreamers.” Project faculty advisors Dr. Robert Cassanello and Dr. Lisa Mills with be joined by narrator Dr. Connie Lester to lead a discussion after the screening.
WomanFest 2020
John C. Hitt Library room 223
Faculty members Dr. Linda Walters, Dr. Amelia Lyons, Dr. Nessette Falu, and Dr. RoSusan Bartee will discuss their career paths, how to find a work/life balance, and the struggles they faced and battles they won as women in higher education. The panel will be moderated by Dr. Leandra Preston-Sidler.
The Renfrew Center for Eating Disorders will provide lunch and a presentation on body image, health, and wellness. The event is limited to 50 participants, so RSVP is required.
WomanFest will include a trivia game featuring questions about interesting women in history, female firsts at UCF, and songs by well-known female musicians. This is a great opportunity to meet new people as the trivia will be played in teams.
The Women’s and Gender Studies mission is to provide the best education related to women’s and gender issues through curricular and co-curricular programming on campus and to enhance diversity and support women and their endeavors. Off-campus, they recognize the responsibility to serve the larger Orlando community by striving to build and sustain partnerships that demonstrate the pragmatic importance of the issues concerning the program.