Women and Global Change:
Achieving Peace through Empowering Women, Part II
The 29th Annual Conference on the
Advancement of Women
TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY—April 4-5, 2013
Follow us on Facebook “Texas Tech University Women’s Studies Program”
&
Twitter @TTUWSP
Box 42009 | Lubbock, TX. 79409-2009 | T (806) 742.4335 |
http://www.depts.ttu.edu/wstudies
❖
1
❖
Table of Contents
Directors Welcome
3
About the Women’s Studies program
4
About the Conference
5
Acknowledgements & Committees
6
Student Union Building Map
7
Conference Keynote Speakers
8
Schedule of Events
9
Conference Chronological Program Description
10-20
❖
2
❖
Directors Welcome
Dr. Charlotte Dunham, Associate Professor, Sociology
Dear Conference Guests,
It is my pleasure to extend my warmest welcome to each of you to our 29th Annual All-University
Conference. I am excited about our event and honored to have you with us today.
This year’s conference theme, "Women and Global Change: Achieving Peace Through Empowering
Women, Part II" will explore the peace-building work of women that endure and set in motion an
empowering movement for social, political and economic change. This year’s conference is sure to
inspire, educate, and transform how global movements are local movements.
As we celebrate our 32nd year, as an academic program, we are proud to host 27 research presentations by
46 presenters from our nationwide call for proposals. Presenters come from members of Texas Tech
University and faculty and students across Texas and as far away as Nigeria. There are a total of five
academic concurrent sessions, two keynote presentations, a continental breakfast and a luncheon, where
we will recognize our 2013-2014 scholarship recipients, scheduled throughout the day.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the members of our conference committee for their support
in planning this year’s conference. A special thank you goes to our two keynote speakers, Yifat Susskind
and Yanar Mohammed for their tireless efforts in leading the way for the movement of global women’s
empowerment.
Charlotte Dunham
Director, Women’s Studies
❖
3
❖
About the Women’s Studies Program
Since 1981, the Women's Studies Program is an interdisciplinary academic program that examines the
cultural and social construction of gender, explores the history, experiences and contributions of women
to society, and studies the influences of gender on the lives of women and men. The program
emphasizes critical thinking across disciplines vital to success during and following formal education.
The University offers a minor in Women's Studies. Goals of the minor include helping student's interpret
concepts of gender and gendered identities in different social, cultural and political contexts. We also
participate in the Graduate Certificate Program. Graduate certificates are intended to meet the
supplemental post-baccalaureate education needs of professionals. A graduate certificate program is a set
of courses that provides in-depth knowledge in a subject matter. The set of courses provides a coherent
knowledge base. Contact the Women's Studies Coordinator to make an appointment to be advised.
Women's Studies is also home to The Edna Maynard Gott Memorial Library founded in 1995 honoring
Dr. Edna Gott, first woman awarded tenure in the Department of Economics. Materials provided by the
College of Human Science and Preston F. Gott (1919-2002), Professor Emeritus of Physics.
Mission Statement
The Mission of the Women's Studies Program is to provide feminist-centered as well as gender- and
identity-aware education, to support and expand research in Women's Studies and related fields of
scholarship, to promote networking, advocacy, and support for women faculty, staff, and students and all
interested members of the University and surrounding communities, and to serve as a source of
information on and support for women's and gender-related scholarship, activities, and issues.
Vision Statement
The Program's vision is to ensure that the expansion of gender-aware educational opportunities and the
active support of feminist and related fields of research are essential parts of the Texas Tech University
academic agenda, and to promote all forms of gender equity in ways that reflect the needs and aspirations
of women's and minority communities at Texas Tech University and beyond.
❖
4
❖
About the Conference
In 1984, The First All-University Conference on the Advancement of Women in Academia was held on
the campus of Texas Tech University. This conference occurs each spring with a local, state and national
call for papers to help promote academic research. Over the year's the theme of the conference has
merged with present day discourse of examining the cultural and social construction of gender, exploring
the history, experiences and contributions of women to society, and studying the influences of gender on
the lives of women and men.
This year’s theme, "Women and Global Change: Achieving Peace Through Empowering Women,
Part II" will explore the peace-building work of women that endure and set in motion an empowering
movement for social, political and economic change. This year’s conference is sure to inspire, educate,
and transform how global movements are local movements. This year’s conference is sure to inspire,
educate, and transform how global movements are local movements.
As we celebrate our 32nd year, as an academic program, we are proud to host 28 research presentations by
47 presenters from our nationwide call for proposals.. Presenters come from members of Texas Tech
University and faculty and students across Texas and as far away as Nigeria.
❖
5
❖
Acknowledgements & Committees
Thank you for your generous support
Conference Committee Members
•
•
•
•
•
Tricia Earl, MFA, Unit Coordinator, Women’s Studies Program
Lahib Jaddo, MFA, Associate Professor, Architecture
Mukaddes Darwish, Ph.D., Construction Engineering and ET
Charlotte Dunham, Ph.D., Director, Women’s Studies Program
Brenda Rodgers, Ph.D., Biological Sciences
Women’s Studies Advisory Council Members
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Allison Boye, Unit Coordinator, Teaching Learning & Professional Development
Donell Callender, Associate Librarian
Charlotte Dunham, Director, Women’s Studies Program
Tricia Earl, Coordinator, Women’s Studies Program
Lauren Gollahon, Associate Professor, Biology
Aretha Marbley, Professor, Educational Psychology
Frances Martin, Undergraduate Student, Major: History, Minor: Women’s Studies
Luis Ramirez, Assistant Professor, Sociology
Marjean Purinton, Professor and Associate Dean, Honors College
Elizabeth Sharp, Associate Professor, Human Development & Family Studies
Brian Steele, Associate Professor in Art History and Associate Dean of the College of
Visual and Performing Arts
Women’s Studies Staff
•
•
•
Charlotte Dunham, Director
Tricia Earl, Unit Coordinator
Benita Dix, Administrative Student Assistant
Volunteers
We would like to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance, without whom this
conference would not have been possible:
•
•
Conference Volunteer Coordinator
Conference Volunteers (Session Monitors, Registration Monitors, Technical Monitors,
Greeters/Guides, and Ushers/Ticket Takers)
❖
6
second floor
Ombudsman
Student
Union
Office
N
Second Floor
Elevator
Restrooms
Retail
Meeting Rooms
Offices
Food Service
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
45.
46.
47.
49.
51.
53.
Student Union Administration
Student Union Operations
Center for Campus Life
Lone Star
Toreador
Bell Tower
Arroyo
Caprock
Canyon
Double T
Masked Rider
Playa
Brazos
Mesa
38a-Matador; 38b-Faculty Lounge
Traditions
Soapsuds
Ombudsman
Food Service Offices
Student Organization Cubicles
Scarlet and Black
Reflection Rooms
Gathering Pavilion
Organization Resource Center
Allen Theatre Office
7
❖
Morning Keynote Speaker
Yifat Susskind
Executive Director MADRE
“Peace Building and Women's Rights: Iraq and Beyond”
Yifat Susskind is the executive director of MADRE, an international
women's human rights organization. She works with women’s human rights
activists from Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa to create
programs in their communities to address women's health, violence against
women, economic and environmental justice, and peace building. She has also
written extensively on US foreign policy and women’s human rights and her
critical analysis has appeared in online and print publications such as The New
York Times, The Washington Post, Foreign Policy in Focus and The W Effect:
Bush’s War on Women, published by the Feminist Press. Ms. Susskind has
been featured as a commentator on CNN, National Public Radio, and BBC
Radio.
❖
Afternoon Keynote Speaker
Yanar Mohammed
Co-founder and President of the
Organization Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI)
"Iraqi Mothers and Children: Right to Heal"
Yanar Mohammed is the co-founder and President of the Organization of Women’s Freedom in Iraq
(OWFI). Since its inception in 2003, the organization has campaigned for women’s political, civic and
human rights in Iraq. One of its main operations is running secret women’s shelters in Baghdad and
Samarra. These safehouses provide accommodation and support to women who have been forced to flee
dangerous living situations, including domestic abuse, honor killings, and an epidemic sex-trafficking
industry, which jeopardizes 2 million orphaned teenage females. Yanar is one of the foremost activists
for women’s rights in Iraq. Her work, like many other human rights activists in the country, has been
undertaken at great personal risk. Yanar’s courageous work merited her the Gruber Foundation’s
Women’s Rights Prize in 2008. She is the editor of the newspaper "Al-Mousawat" (Equality) in addition
to being one of the executive directors of Radio "Al Mousawat" airing in Baghdad. OWFI nurtured tens
of female violence victims and trained them for feminist political activism, and they were the frontline protesters in the Arab Spring in the Tahrir square of Baghdad in 2011.
❖
8
❖
Schedule of Events
All sessions occur on the upper level meeting rooms of the
Student Union Building, Texas Tech University
· 8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Check In & Continental Breakfast
· 9:00 a.m. – 9:50 a.m.
Morning Speaker (Matador Room)
“Peace Building and Women's Rights: Iraq and Beyond”
Yifat Susskind - Executive Director MADRE
· 10:00 a.m. - 10:55 a.m.
Session I - (SUB Upper Level, Meeting Rooms)
· 11:00 a.m. - 11:55 a.m.
Session II - (SUB Upper Level, Meeting Rooms)
· 12: 00 p.m. – 12:50 p.m. Conference Luncheon (Matador Room)
Pre-pay, ticketed event
· 1:00 p.m. - 1:55 p.m.
Afternoon Keynote Speaker (Matador Room)
"Iraqi Mothers and Children: Right to Heal"
Yanar Mohammed - Co-founder and President of
the Organization Women’s Freedom in Iraq
(OWFI)
· 2:00 p.m. - 2:55 p.m.
Session III - (SUB Upper Level, Meeting Rooms)
· 3:00 p.m. - 3:55 p.m.
Session IV- (SUB Upper Level, Meeting Rooms)
· 4:00 p.m. – 4:55 p.m.
Session V - (SUB Upper Level, Meeting Rooms)
❖
9
❖
Conference Program
:: MORNING KEYNOTE SPEAKER ::
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
9:00 AM – 9:50 AM
MORNING KEYNOTE SPEAKER
MATADOR ROOM
Yifat Susskind, Executive Director MADRE
SESSION I
SESSION I - .01
10:00 AM – 10:55 AM
CANYON ROOM
(Individual Paper)
How Social and Cultural Practices Influence Written Responses by Anita Nigam
Research Assistant, Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, Texas Tech
University
The Study sought to understand how participants from different cultures constructed their identities, what
role did culture and social practices within and outside school play in this context? Four participants
from Argentina, Africa, Uzbekistan and South Korea were selected by convenient sampling. A response
to a poem and survey were used for data collection. The Study showed that “Learner generated inquiries”
strongly entrenched within social and cultural contexts (Ching, Kitt-Hinrichs & Nguyen, 2006) led to
better-planned literacy events which fostered students’ development as readers and writers.
(Individual Paper)
“Inverting Gender to Demonstrate a Woman’s Power and Manipulation of the Class
System” by Nicole Stevens, Senior Graduate Student, Angelo State University
Louisa May Alcott breaks free from the traditional characteristics of the sentimental novel by creating
female characters, like Jean Muir of Behind a Mask: or, a Woman’s Power, who oppose the conventional
sentimental female character’s traits: The heroine is the dominant figure in Alcott’s feminist work.
According to Christine Butterworth-McDermott, Alcott borrows themes from fairy-tales in order to
“force the reader to question nineteenth-century British and American ideals of womanhood” (2). Alcott
pushes the boundaries of gender discrimination for the nineteenth-century female bound by classism by
portraying Muir as an educated, classless, gender-inverted female, who infiltrates the class echelon.
(Individual Paper)
Applying Systems Theories to Works by Virginia Woolf and Other Women Authors by
Natalie Tarenko, Staff, Texas Tech School of Law
This presentation conveys continued research about what happens when narratologies and systems
theories are applied to literary works by/about women, especially works by Virginia Woolf. It builds
upon previous presentations that compared and contrasted narratologies and systems theories. In-depth
application of these theories to works by Virginia Woolf, the most-discussed author in the field of
literature by women, is the next step in this research project. What are the most-used terms within
narratologies, systems theories, feminist literary criticism, and Virginia Woolf studies? What moves do
critics make with these terms, and what moves should they be making?
10
SESSION I - .02
10:00 AM – 10:55 AM
PLAYA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Women’s advancement in the Information Technology Filed: A Qualitative Case
Study by Mohja Jerbi, Doctoral Student, Department of Educational Psychology and
Leadership, College of Education, Texas Tech University
What obstacles can women face when they are taking online course that require technology skills? Do
female students registered in technology online classes receive enough mentoring? This presentation will
examine the challenges faced by 8 College of Education doctoral students and how that affects their
academic performance.
(Individual Paper)
Given a Journalistic or a Legalistic Frame, What Career Expectations are Mass
Communications Students to Anticipate from Their Mass Communications Law
Course? by Ann H. Rodriguez, J.D., Director, Media Strategies Degree Program,
Instructor, College of Media and Communication, Texas Tech University
Many mass communications curricula include a course about the legal aspects of mass communications.
Some of these programs have such a course as a requirement, while others offer it as a suggested
elective, but most at least provide the opportunity for students to study the variety of legal issues
involved with mass communications and grasp an understanding of not only what they are, but how to
address, avoid and/or capitalize on them. For those who have taught such a course for many years, there
are certainly differences that have been observed in the manner and method of the instruction, including
particularly the content itself presented. Anecdotal observations seem to have shown that the differences
cluster around one particular issue, that of pedagogical focus or course framing. It appears that typically
mass communications law courses are either taught within a journalistic course frame or within a
legalistic course frame, which may be evidenced by a variety of indicators, including the topics covered
over the length of the course and the instructor’s educational background and experience. If, as is
suspected, the majority of undergraduates in mass communications are being taught law within a
journalistic frame, then it is possible that the students are missing a good deal of the important legal
principles that they may indeed come in contact with as they enter mass communications careers after
college. In fact, experience has shown that a majority of students enrolled in many mass
communications programs today are majoring in advertising, PR and/or electronic media, and as such
arguably need exposure to non-journalistic based legal information. Research such as that undertaken
here is necessary to further investigate the anecdotal observations and predict outcomes regarding the
students’ experiences, particularly as they might reflect the frames within which their mass
communications education has been presented, and then impact their future mass communications
careers.
(Individual Paper)
Students’ Perception of Online Classes by Dilber Celebi, Doctoral Student in
Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, Texas Tech University
With the development of technology and high demand for online courses, the enrollment in these classes
has increased dramatically in recent years. According to the Sloan Consortium Report (2010), online
learning rose by almost one million students from the previous year. Due to such an increase, research
on online learning is accelerating considerably compared to the last decade. The focus is mostly on
effectiveness of online courses and on learners’ experiences, especially on their perspective of strengths
and weaknesses of online learning (Astani, et al., 2010; Song, et al. 2004). The general purpose of this
11
in-progress qualitative study is to explore students’ perceptions of online courses they are taking in the
College of Education at TTU. My main aim is to explore especially the strengths and weaknesses of the
online learning through students’ perceptions of satisfaction and concern. To find out what students think
about the online courses is important because it provides insights for: administrators or online course
developers to keep the positive aspects of online learning and make adjustments and/or eliminate the
negative aspects through improving the course accordingly. Students’ perception of online learning will
assist educators, course designers, and educational institutions to enhance their courses.
SESSION I - .03
10:00 AM – 10:55 AM
MESA ROOM
(Panel Presentation)
Ain’t I/We Scholars: White Women and Women Faculty of Color Contesting
Hegemony in Academe
Panelist: Aretha F. Marbley, PhD, Professor and Director of Community Counseling,
College of Education, Texas Tech University * Kathleen Phelan, ABD, Doctoral
Student, Counselor Education, College of Education, Texas Tech University * Aliza S.
Wong, PhD, Associate Chair and Associate Professor, Director, European Studies,
Department of History, Texas Tech University * Wendy Ross, JD Professor, School of
Law, Texas Tech University * Lahib Jaddo, MFA, Associate Professor, Architecture,
Texas Tech University *Jasmine Wiles, Graduate Student, Counselor Education, Texas
Tech University * Shih-Han Huang, M. Ed, Doctoral Student, Counselor Education,
College of Education
Sojourner Truth’s moving speech “Ain’t I a Woman,” delivered before the assembled masses at the 1851
Women’s Rights Convention held in Akron, Ohio served as a cynosure for generations of women—
particularly African American women and other women of color—who sought to find some sense of
agency in a racist and sexist America. Just as Sojourner’s speech captured the plight of women and
African Americans in their pursuit of freedom and liberation from a hostile society, so too do her words
frame the extant experiences of faculty of color who teach in predominantly White college and university
settings.
Presentation narratives will be supported by Critical Feminist Theory (CFT) and Critical Race Theory
(Ladson-Billings, 1999; Solorzano, Ceja, & Yoso, 2000; Tate, 1997) as the theoretical foundation, and
operationalized through the use of Scholarly Personal Narrative (SPN). Initiated and advocated by
Robert Nash, SPN honors and values personal stories. SPN provides an opportunity to go beyond the
traditional boundaries of qualitative research, as it places the “self of the scholar front and center” (Nash,
2004, p. 18). Thus, in the tradition of CRT and (CFT), each faculty narrative will highlight personal
counter-narratives that depict creative interpretations of their lived experiences as women faculty
negotiating multiple and competing identities within predominantly White institutions--told through the
use of SPN. Ultimately, each presenter will situate gender and race-related encounters at the center of
their lived experience in an effort to deconstruct and challenge commonly held assumptions about life in
academe for Black faculty.
12
SESSION II
SESSION II - .04
11:00 AM – 11:55 AM
CANYON ROOM
(Panel Presentation)
Feminism and Psychology: Parallels and Problems
Panelist: * Jennifer A. Vencill, M.A., Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology
Texas Tech University * Samantha D. Christopher, B.A., Doctoral Student, Department
of Psychology Texas Tech University
In “Feminism and Psychology: Parallels and Problems,” Jennifer Vencill and Samantha Christopher will
present a reflective essay addressing the parallels and contradictions in both the field of psychology and
feminism. As doctoral students in Counseling Psychology at Texas Tech University, both authors hope to
explore the intersection of young feminist and young psychologist identities. Roundtable participants
will be encouraged to explore the parallels between feminism and psychology, as well as the strengths
and potential weaknesses of both movements. In addition, the authors pose the question – to the field of
psychology and to feminism – can we be both diverse and unified? Do we lose unity by striving to be as
diverse as possible? Are the ideas of unity and diversity bipolar notions or completely separate
constructs?
SESSION II - .05
11:00 AM – 11:55 AM
PLAYA ROOM
(Roundtable Presentation)
International Female Graduate Students’ Academic Experience at the
College of Education
Panelist: * Thanh Phan, Doctoral Student, Department of Curriculum & Instruction,
College of Education, Texas Tech University * Mohja Jerbi, Doctoral Student,
Department of Educational Psychology and Leadership, College of Education, Texas
Tech University * VanThanh Phan, Doctoral Student, Department of Educational
Psychology and Leadership, College of Education, Texas Tech University * Elizabeth
Isidro, Doctoral Student, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, College of
Education, Texas Tech University
International female students make up 1.4% of students at Texas Tech University. Though 1.4% is not a
huge number, the presence of international female students has brought to TTU a more diverse learning
environment and showed the advancement of female in higher education. However, living and studying
far away from home country may be big challenges for them in both social and academic lives. This
study explores the academic experiences of international female graduate students in the College of
Education at Texas Tech University. Coursework and research experiences will be examined using
survey questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with five female doctoral students from China,
Taiwan, Turkey, Indian, and Vietnam. Data was triangulated using different data sources. Findings will
help inform university administrators as to the possible academic challenges encountered by international
female graduate students so that timely academic support might be provided.
13
SESSION II - .06
11:00 AM – 11:55 AM
MESA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Gender Difference in Search for Financial Information by Areerat Lertchaipitak,
Doctoral Candidate, Department of Personal Financial Planning, Human Sciences College
Texas Tech University
Most individuals have to make decisions on saving and investing in their lifetimes. Since saving and
investment products are difficult to choose compared to other kinds of goods, individuals may experience
some difficulties with this process. Those who search for financial information find better saving and
investing opportunities than those who do not. This paper observes the search for financial information
as it relates to gender. Even though, literature shows that females tend to have less financial literacy than
males, the results of this study indicate that females tend to actively search for financial information than
males. Higher risk tolerance, higher education, higher wealth, and higher financial assets all positively
influence both genders toward increased in search for financial information. Understanding search
behavior of females and males can help financial advisors and educators counsel their female and male
clients appropriately.
(Individual Paper)
Human Capital Protection Among Women by Janine K. Scott, Doctoral Candidate,
Division of Personal Financial Planning, Texas Tech University
In the past, more males than females had the need for earnings protection, since there was more labor
participation among men. However, women have increased participation both in the labor market and in
more male-dominated professions (Bryant & Zick, 2006). Disability insurance protects a household’s
most vital asset, human capital. The aim of this paper is to examine disability insurance demand among
women with high human capital (characterized by education, health, and financial sophistication) across
the past decade. Using the 1998, 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010 data from the Survey of Consumer
Finances, binary logistic regression models are used to investigate the odds of demanding disability
insurance. Results demonstrate for all survey years except 1998, there is no significant difference
between males and females with similar human capital characteristics. Holding education, gender, and
other variables constant, the odds of demanding insurance is greater with a financial planner in 2004,
2007 and 2010.
:: LUNCHEON ::
LUNCHEON
12:00 PM – 12:50 PM
MATADOR ROOM
Luncheon hosted by the Women’s Studies Program
CONFERENCE LUNCHEON
&
SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS CEREMONY
(This is a pre-paid, ticketed event)
14
:: AFTERNOON KEYNOTE SPEAKER ::
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
1:00 PM – 1:50 PM
AFTERNOON KEYNOTE SPEAKER
MATADOR ROOM
Yanar Mohammed
Co-founder and President of the
Organization Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI)
“Iraqi Mothers and Children: Right to Heal”
SESSION III
SESSION III - .07
2:00 PM – 2:55 PM
CANYON ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Gender and Media: Self-efficacy in women of color at the intersection of identity
development - race, gender and power relations from a Poststructural Feminist lens by
Lynn Taylor, PhD student, College of Education- Adult, Professional & Community
Education, Texas State University-San Marcos, TX
Postructuralist feminist thought provides an inclusive perspective and engaging dialogue on the multiple
identities and lived historical and cultural experiences of women of color. The media's negative
portrayals in news, television media and advertising perpetuates oppressive and exploits the negative
racist and sexist stereotypes of “women” gender roles and impacts self-efficacy. This framework
provides the open space to explore positionality of women of color and the intersections of class, gender,
privilege, race as they interact within the context of power relations, western culture and patriarchal
systems.
(Individual Paper)
“One Day My Prince Will Come: A Content Analysis of the Portrayal of Kate
Middleton” by Desirée Markham, Doctoral Candidate and RA/TA in College of Media
and Communication, Texas Tech University
In today’s news media, male personalities and bylines dominate the front pages of newspapers in the
United Kingdom. The only women who are regularly featured on front pages are the Duchess of
Cambridge, Kate Middleton and her sister Pippa Middleton. The influence of Kate Middleton and the
U.K. and the world is powerful. Her story and image has become iconic to women across the world and
her popularity has defied even the standard of newspapers typically featuring males on the front pages.
(Individual Paper)
Title IX & State Reform: How to Better Prepare Pregnant and parenting Teens for
Their Future by Maggie Jo Buchanan J.D. Candidate, University of Texas at Austin
American schools are leaving their pregnant and parenting teens behind. Often considered a “lost cause,”
these are the students who could benefit most from being invested in. These students are overwhelmingly
young women, and states need to prioritize giving these giving young mothers the tools to obtain an
education equal to their non-pregnant or parenting peers. Reform must happen through law, policy, and
15
creativity. This paper explains the issues pregnant and parenting teens face in American schools,
illustrates the legal protections those students have, and proposes plans of action for reform.
SESSION III - .08
2:00 PM – 2:55 PM
PLAYA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Gender Fairness in Shariah Law by Dr. Shelley Ashdown, Assistant Professor,
Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics, Dallas, TX.
This paper considers a short digital video script of gender conflict resolution in the Niger region. “The Young Woman and the Old Woodcutter” is a nonfictional account of an elderly Nigerien woodcutter accused of physically abusing his young wife. It is a case study in Islamic Cadi judicial practice negotiating gender conflict, gender relationships, and gender fairness in a local African context. (Individual Paper)
Rethinking the Harem: Eastern Perspective of Western Preconception by Lina M
Kattan, Doctoral Candidate, School of Art, Texas Tech University
The principal objective of this paper is to demonstrate the reoccurring phenomenon of the Western
preconceptions regarding the Orient Harem, which concentrated on the female body and its sexual
desires since the eighteenth century. Unfortunately, this misleading phenomenon documents everything,
but says nothing. This phenomenon is concerned about tracing women’s issues and sexual fantasies
under the rule of conservative Islamic system. The question now is: how can we afford to understand this
phenomenon while Orientalist paintings are only representing the female body and its sexual desires that
existed in a society being colonized by Europeans?
To fully apprehend the idea of how these Eastern women lived in the Harem and to clarify their actual
role in the social sphere, I will deploy an Eastern feminist perspective (as a native Middle Eastern
woman) to the formulated Western concept of the Harem, which misleadingly read the Arabian women’s
community. The first part of the study will provide a rereading to the Orientalist painting done by
Europeans artists in a way to analyze and locate the fallacy of the colonial preconceptions of the
colonized female bodies. Through deploying the feminist school of thought, the second part of the paper
will analyze the Western preconception of the orientalist harem, which misleadingly read the Arabian
women within their own community.
SESSION III - .09
2:00 PM – 2:55 PM
MESA ROOM
(Panel Presentation)
For Practical Purposes: Women Living Like Men
Panelist: * Kanika Batra Ph.D., Associate Professor in Postcolonial Literatures,
Department of English, Texas Tech University * Emily Skidmore Ph.D. Assistant
Professor, History, Texas Tech University * Mary Frances Agnello Ph.D., Associate
Professor, College of Education, Texas Tech University
This panel focuses on the phenomenon of women posturing as men in various aspects of their personal
and public lives. Whether for ambition or survival, the viability of females achieving personal, financial,
civic, and other kinds of success in a man’s world is made possible by women’s embracing male
attributes. This discussion considers this phenomenon of women’s adaptation through literary and
16
historical lenses. Dr. Emily Skidmore will discuss excerpts from her book manuscript, which investigates
the lives of women who lived (often for decades) as men in the period between 1876 and 1936. Dr.
Kanika Batra will look at Indian documentary filmmaker Sherna Dastur’s 2003 film Manjuben
Truckdriver’s representation of a quintessentially male figure from an ethnographic perspective. Dr.
Mary Frances Agnello discusses Martha Ostenso’s character of Magdali, in O, River Remember.
SESSION IV
SESSION IV - .10
3:00 PM – 3:55 PM
PLAYA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Women Empowerment as an Economic Force in Rural Employment in Nigeria: Need
for the Empowerment Framework Approach by Tolulope Monisola OLA (PhD),
Department of Sociology, Faculty of the Social Sciences, Ekiti State University, Nigeria
The fourth item on the agenda of the International Labour Conference, 97th Session, 2008 was a general
discussion on the promotion of rural employment for poverty reduction. In order to alleviate poverty and
promote gender equality in rural employment, researchers, scholars, donors and policy makers have
recognized the importance of empowering women who are central to overcoming rural poverty because
of their role in productive activities and in the household economy. However, there are key challenges to
achieving these goals at the country and local levels which military and democratic interventions,
international expertise and financial resources have not adequately or sufficiently addressed. The paper
therefore examines the need for the Empowerment Framework Approach (EMFA) towards empowering
women in other to promote rural employment. Thus the paper spans two important interrelated themes:
• A brief overview of the current field of rural employment with a focus on The World
Development Review 2008,
• Articulating the link between gender inequalities and rural employment,
• Outline of EMFA, which involves five interrelated steps. I) welfare level analysis; ii) access level
analysis; iii) critical awareness level analysis; iv) participation level analysis level; v) control and
ownership level analysis.
This paper will argue that women’s empowerment can come in a diversity of ways such as education,
which is deeply embedded, in the African culture. The challenges of women’s empowerment are more
cultural than technological, more about people and systems than about digital tools. This paper will offer
suggestions for the future of rural employment and development.
(Individual Paper)
“Nari ( Indian women), what you do, why you do ?” Occupational choices among
educated women in rural India by Ms. Priyanka Khandelwal, Doctoral Candidate,
College of Media and Communications, Texas Tech University
This paper explores the underlying reasons behind occupational choices among highly educated women
in rural India some of which as indicated by exploratory studies are marital status, age, family structure
and values, societal pressure, child bearing and rearing. The assumption of women participation in
developing countries exhibiting a “U” shaped curve will be tested in the Indian context which means that
female participation rate declines in the early stages of industrialization but peaks later due to more
diversified structure of employment.
17
(Individual Paper)
Mother Tho: Woman, Mother, Warrior by Frances Martin, Undergraduate Student,
History Major, Women’s Studies Minor, Texas Tech University
Vietnamese Human Rights Activist Khuc Minh Tho, immigrated to the united states after the fall of
Saigon in 1975 and established the Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association (FVPPA)
which aided in helping 10,000 former political prisoners and their families leave Vietnam. This paper
discusses not only the life story this amazing woman, but also contextualizes the world, which she lived
in, and the events that inspired her activism and her hard work and dedication.
SESSION IV - .11
3:00 PM – 3:55 PM
MESA ROOM
(Panel Presentation)
Women Artists Through the Eyes of Texas Tech Graduate Student Artists
Panelist: * Alberto Careaga, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of Art, Texas
Tech University * James Chase, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of Art, Texas
Tech University * Hannah C. Dean, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of Art,
Texas Tech University *Scotty Hensler, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of Art,
Texas Tech University *Charles Koonce, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of
Art, Texas Tech University * Tedra McMillian, MAE, Graduate Student, School of Art,
Texas Tech University * Yasaman Moussavi, Graduate Student, MFA Program School
of Art, Texas Tech University * Amy Porter, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of
Art, Texas Tech University * Kristy Scales, Graduate Student, MFA Program School of
Art, Texas Tech University
Who is Maira Kalman…and Portia Munson, Vija Celmins, Julie Speed, Claude Raguet Hirst, Julie
Bozzi, Squeak Carnwath and Nina Allender? Learn about contemporary women artist who help us shape
ideas on gender, cosmos, grotesque, humor, absurdity, politics and poetics. Ten Texas Tech graduate
student artists team up to share a comparison of their work with a woman artist in honor of Women's
History Month.
SESSION V
SESSION V - .12
4:00 PM – 4:55 PM
CANYON ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Feminist Pedagogy: Not Just for Women’s Studies by Samantha D. Christopher,
Doctoral Student, Department of Psychology, Texas Tech University
Feminist Pedagogy is often associated with the Women’s Studies classroom, but this essay posits
that the practice of Feminist Pedagogy can be utilized in classrooms across disciplines. This article is
presented for new instructors across disciplines who are interested in exploring how Feminist Pedagogy
can be used within their classroom and identifies three primary facets of this pedagogical approach:
critical analysis of knowledge within the context of self-actualization; the importance of personal
experiences and history in the acquisition of knowledge; and learning within the diverse classroom
community.
18
(Individual Paper)
Food, Communities, and Copyright: Recipes as Invitational, Communal, and OpenSource Argument by Amelia Chesley, Graduate Student, Master of Arts in Technical
Communication with the certificate in Publishing and Editing, Texas Tech University
"Food, Communities, and Copyright: Recipes as Invitational, Communal, and Open-Source Argument"
is an exploration of three popular recipe blogs as examples of feminist invitational rhetoric and opensource, community-based offering. Much of the discourse surrounding recipes makes use of what the
feminist theorists Sonja K. Foss and Cindy L. Griffin call invitation rhetoric. Recipes are a unique but
universal and diverse genre, and provide ample space for pondering difference between ‘traditional’
rhetorics and feminists rhetorics, as well as the implications those differences may have on ownership
and copyright policies.
SESSION V - .13
4:00 PM – 4:55 PM
PLAYA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
What inhibit battered Chinese women from ending their abusive relationship?--An
ecological review of literature by Shu Yuan, Doctoral Student, Human Development and
Families Studies, Texas Tech University
Since China entered the era of reform and opening to the outside world, the media has occasionally
published shocking stories of domestic abuse that create a public uproar. However, research on domestic
violence by China's theorists and the women's community is in its initial stages. This paper reviewed the
literature of why battered Chinese women stay in abusive relationships. The factors include patriarchal
influence, poor criminal justice system and lack of social and family support. Lastly, discussion includes
practical suggestions and implications that family, social workers, policy makers, and researchers can
utilize.
(Individual Paper)
From Shame to Strength: My Transition from Victim to Survivor by Lauran Schaefer
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Department of Communication Studies, Texas Tech
University
Living in a rape culture is hard for all people whether we all recognize it or not. According to RAINN, 1
in 6 women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime. Statistics like these indicate that sexual assault
happens to all of us. So why is it we hardly tell our stories? Learning to turn my shame into strength has
allowed me to share my story hoping others will be encouraged to share theirs.
SESSION V - .14
4:00 PM – 4:55 PM
MESA ROOM
(Individual Paper)
Contrast and Collaboration through Cultural Exchange Important Women Architects,
Photographers, and Artists in Early 20th Century New Mexico and the American
Southwest by Benjamin King Shacklette, AIA Associate Professor College of
Architecture Texas Tech University
During the early 20th century, women artists and architects in the American Southwest set new standards
in achieving equal recognition for their work. This is also true of many women photographers, writers,
and political activists of the same period. Westward expansion into the New Mexico Territory brought
white American women into full contact with matriarchal Native American cultures that had differing
viewpoints regarding the traditional roles of women particularly as artists and builders. Consistent with
19
the rugged and self-reliant spirit of the 19th Century American West, many white New Mexican women
took on roles equal to those of men.
This presentation investigates selected Southwestern American women architects and artists who
challenged prevailing norms at the turn of the 20th century and achieved international fame in their
fields. This paper examines the life and works of several famous women who made significant
contributions to art, architecture, and photography including Mary Colter, Julia Morgan, Laura Gilpin,
Georgia O’Keefe, Pop Chalee, and Maria Martinez. This study also considers evidence that White
women generally sacrificed marriage and family to be pioneers in their professions whereas Native
American artist were able to manage both. This study also considers the influences of the Arts and Crafts
Movement and the Reform Movement on Native American and Non-Native women and compares the
strategies, social conditions, and personal choices made by each woman regarding race, culture, family,
gender, and the changing political realities of the time.
(Individual Paper)
Playing in the Shadows: Trials and Tactics of Female Videogame Players by Robin L.
Haislett, Graduate Part-Time Instructor, College of Media and Communication, Texas
Tech University
Through interviews with 28 avid game players, this investigation shows how women attempt to find their
place in the masculine social structure of video gameplay. The social conventions of gaming culture echo
Bourdieu’s concept of habitus, as well and the cultural economy in which female participation is
simultaneously seen as a value and a threat to the norms. These elements relating to gendered practices
and uses emerged, including females as a silent player, the preferences for gameplay and what holds
back games as a true meritocracy.
20