The Women’s Studies Research Center
Student - Scholar Partnership Journal
(SSP) Spring 2012
Experience the Energy, Focus, and Determination
of our elite Mentoring Internship . . .
Letter from the Program Coordinator
Greetings!
The Student-Scholar Partnership has had another exciting and learning-rich experience in the 20112012 academic year! With projects in such diverse fields as art, chemistry, the grieving process,
differences between the sexes, and Investigative Journalism there were plenty of opportunities for
students with varying backgrounds and interests to find a project to sink their teeth into! We had
partnerships who explored what it meant to worship the Goddess, who watched films to discover
how older women are portrayed, researched the welfare of women in the country of Ireland, and
worked with children in local elementary schools. Others explored the creative process in conceptual
terms, evaluated the old ”Fear of Success” adage for today’s world, and worked on a book to improve
relations between new in-laws and the people their children married.
Scholars and Students pair up to study their topics of research, but the SSP contains so much more
then that - the relationships that develop between students and their scholars are more mentoring in
nature – and it is not uncommon for these relationships to last for years after the SSP is done! Just
today, I was talking to a Scholar about her current student and she kept checking the door. Turns out
she was simultaneously receiving a plant from her past student to care for while that student was
abroad, and she was waiting for a student from a few years back to come in so they could go out to
lunch and catch up! The professional closeness and understanding from working together intently is
a wonderful real-life experience not many students who graduate will have been able to obtain.
The Projects the program chooses to include are carefully selected and the entire program offering is
crafted to appeal to as many audiences as possible. The projects all are very real and have
constraints, focus, and goals which students and scholars work together to meet. Scholars have the
ultimate responsibility of creating a project, training a student to look at it with the same lens the
Scholar is using, and then working together toward an ultimate goal/deadline in only fifty hours.
This responsibility could be daunting to some, but not to our dedicated Mentors! They receive a
college student’s input into their area of research, and they get the obvious help with research or
project-related tasks. In return, mentors offer guidance, years of experience from the field, honest
input and critique, and in many cases – friendship!
I, and other WSRC members, are very proud of our Scholars and Students in the SSP. If you happen to
run into one, ask them about their experience – I am certain it will be a story worth hearing!
Sincerely,
Kristen Mullin,
SSP Program Coordinator
Student-Scholar Partnership Program Journal
2
volume five
spring
2012
table of contents
page
2
Letter from the Program Coordinator
6
About the Student - Scholar Partnership Program
7
Notable Quotes from Our Last Semester SSP Relationships
8
Full List of Spring 2012 Partnerships
Select SSP Project Essays
10
Scholar: Rosalind Barnett
Student: Anushka Aqil
Project: Sex Differences Research and Annual Gender Roundtable
11
Scholar: Phyllis Silverman
Student: Clare Churchill-Sedar
Project: Understanding the Needs of Grieving Children and if Gender Plays a
Role
13
Scholar: Janet Freedman
Student: Susannah Feinstein
Project: Feminism in Cyberspace
14
Scholar: Florence Graves
Student: Elly Kalfus
Project: Schuster Institute of Investigative Journalism
15
Scholar: Margaret Gullette
Student: Lauren Katz
Project: Age Studies – Commentary, Critique, Blogs and Public Image
3
page
SSP Project
17
Scholar: Susan Eisenberg
Student: Olivia Leiter
Project: “On Equal Terms: Women in Construction” Art Installation
18
Scholar: Rosie Rosenzweig
Student: Vanessa Lubiner
Project: The Creative Process: Artists and Buddhist Psychology
20
Scholar: Hilda Kahne
Student: Jennifer Mandelbaum
Project: Women, Work, and Retirement: Some Issues to Consider
22
Scholar: Elizabeth Markson
Student: Nora Puricelli
Project: Depiction of Older Women in Film, 1930 - 2008
23
Scholar: Brenda McSweeney
Student: Jade Sank
Project: Women in Ireland: An International Gender Case Study
25
Scholar: Ruth Nemzoff
Student: Marielle Temkin
Project: Married Into: Making New In-Law Bonds Work
4
page
SSP Project
26
Scholar: Nance Golddstein
Student: Julie Yiu
Project: Leadership Expectations, Needs and Investment for Hospital Nurses and
Clinical Leaders – Changing Challenges From Healthcare Turbulence
27
Scholar: Phoebe Schnitzer
Student: Justine Zayhowski
Project: Gender Issues in Achievement Concerns: Is “Fear of Success” Still
With Us?
28
Scholar: Pnina G. Abir-Am
Student: Grace Zhang
Project: The Centennial of Marie Curie’s Nobel Prize and he Designation of
2011 as the Year of Chemistry: A Trans-National Commemmoration
of Women’s Greatness
29
Scholar: Georgia Sassen
Student: Micah Broadnax
Project: “Drums and Poems” Supporting Girls Assertiveness and Boys and Girls’
Literacy and Relational Skills
5
About the Student-Scholar Partnership Program
“T
he SSP Program is an excellent opportunity for our talented undergraduates to develop
serious,
productive, and engaging relationships with scholars and university faculty.
These partnerships span so many diverse areas of intellectual inquiry and professional
development - it’s stunning
to me to see how many different projects are available to
our students. This program is truly a credit to the students, scholars, and faculty who
participate.”
- Provost Marty Krauss, June 2006
Overview
The Student-Scholar Partnership (SSP) was launched in the spring of 1997 as a project of the
Women’s Studies Program at Brandeis University. Today, the program continues as a component of
the Women’s Studies Research Center (WSRC). The goal of the Student-Scholar Partnership is to
match undergraduate students with WSRC Scholars and Women’s and Gender Studies faculty to
work collaboratively on research or artistic projects.
The emphasis of the program is to enable
students and scholars/faculty to work collectively on projects that focus on women’s issues in many
different fields. Each partnership meets on an ongoing basis throughout the semester and students
have the option of continuing to work on their project more then one year. Students provide
research assistance including library and online research, archival work, data analysis, interviewing,
preparation for art exhibitions, assistance with book publishing and production, and webpage
development. Two unique aspects of the program include an emphasis on mentoring and students
contributions to the projects. The program supports the important work that the scholars/faculty
are conducting on women’s lives and provides Brandeis undergraduates with an exceptional
opportunity to work closely with established professionals in their fields of interest.
6
Notable Quotes from Our Last Semester SSP Relationships:
Spring 2012
“M
y experience working for the SSP has helped me think critically about the intersections among
gender, social norms, and public policy….The freedom and independence with which (my scholar)
allows me to work has helped me to broaden my viewpoint and consider varied solutions to complex issues.”
- Student Jennifer Mandelbaum working with Scholar Hilda Kahne on “Women’s Post- Retirement Work
Activities”
“W
orking with Ruth has been one of the more enlightening and definitely one of the most informative
experiences of my life.”
- Student Marielle Temkin working with Scholar Ruth Nemzoff on “Married Into: Making New In-Law
Family Bonds Work”
“O
verall, working with Dr. Barnett, I have been able to apply the theory learned in classroom to
practical examples and could not have found a more productive space than this where I would have
been able to accrue knowledge of both the theoretical and practical realms.”
- Student Anushka Aqil working with Scholar Roz Barnett on “Roundtable and Sex
Differences Research”
“O
ur work together unites the objectives of Brandeis University and experiential learning: education
and justice, and I hope to continue working with Janet for the remainder of my tenure here.”
- Student Susannah Feinstein working with Scholar Janet Freedman on “Feminism in Cyberspace”
“W
hat I really liked about this job was that it complimented the other classes that I was taking (Civil
Liberties in America, Liberal Political Thought and Contemporary Art). Not only did this experience
help me understand the different elements that go into promoting one’s work, but the content of
the work stimulated me intellectually and emotionally. “
- Student Olivia Leiter working with Scholar Susan Eisenberg on “’On Equal Terms’ Art
Installation”
“T
his experience has been great. Not only have I been able to form a close relationship with my
scholar, Phoebe, but I have also learned a lot about gender issues and current theories on
achievement differences. It has made me think critically about the ways societal perceptions and
psychological ideas have far reaching effects. “
- Student Justine Zayhowski working with Scholar Phoebe Schnitzer on “Gender Issues in
Achievement Concerns: Is “Fear of Success” Still With Us?”
Student - Scholar Partnership (SSP)
Internship Program
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7
Partnership List Spring 2012
1.
Pnina Abir-AM (Resident Scholar) and Grace Zhang (Student) - “The Centennial of Marie
Curie's Nobel Prize and the
Designation of 2011 as the Year of Chemistry: ‘A Transnational Commemoration of Women's Greatness”
2.
Roz Barnett (Resident Scholar) and Anushka Aqil (Student) - “Roundtable and Sex
Differences Research”
3.
Helen Berger (Visiting Scholar) and Zoe Novick (Student) - “Does Worshipping the Goddess
Make You a Feminist?”
4.
Susan Eisenberg (Resident Scholar) / Olivia Leiter (Student) - “’On Equal Terms’ Art
Installation”
5.
Janet Freedman (Visiting Scholar) and Susannah Feinstein (Student) - “Feminism in
Cyberspace”
6.
Nance Goldstein (Resident Scholar) and Julie Yiu (Student) – “Leadership Expectations,
Needs and Investment for Hospital Nurses and CLincial Leaders – Changing Challenges
from Healthcare Turbulence”
7.
E.J. Graff (Resident Scholar) and Amelia Ray (Student) - “Schuster Institute of Investigative
Journalism”
8.
Florence Graves (Resident Scholar) and Elly Kalfus (Student) - “Schuster Institute of
Investigative Journalism”
9.
Margaret Gullette (Scholar) and Lauren Katz (Student) – “Age Studies – Commentary,
Critique, Blogs and Public Image Discussion”
10. Hilde Kahne (Resident Scholar) / Jennifer Mandelbaum (Student) - “Women’s PostRetirement Work Activities”
11. Elizabeth Markson (Resident Scholar) and Nora Puricelli (Student) – “Depictions of Older
Women in Feature Film, 1930-2008”
12. Brenda McSweeney (Resident Scholar) / Jade Sank (Student) – “Irish Women Today:
Perspectives from Glaway to Dublin on Gender Equality”
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13. Ruth Nemzoff (Resident Scholar) and Marielle Temkin (Student) - “Married Into: Making
New In-Law Family Bonds Work”
14. Rosie Rosenzweig (Resident Scholar) and Vanessa Lubiner (Student) – “The Creative Process:
Women Artists and Buddhist Psychology”
15. Georgia Sassen (Visiting Scholar) and Krista Giuntoli and Micha Broadnax (Students at 25
hours each) – “Drums and Poems: Supporting Girls Assertiveness and Boys’ and Girls’
Literacy and Relational Skills”
16. Phoebe Schnitzer (Visiting Scholar) and Justine Zayhowski (Student) - “Gender Issues in
Achievement Concerns: Is “Fear of Success” Still With Us?”
17. Phyllis Silverman (Resident Scholar) and Claire Churchill Sedar (Student) – “Understanding
the Needs of Grieving Children and if Gender Plays a Role”
Sex Differences Research and Annual Gender Roundtable
Scholar: Roz Barnett
Student: Anushka Aqil
As a second year SSP participant, I have had the opportunity to delve into a variety
of projects and learn a number of new facts, theories, and skills. From learning details
about the wage gap that continues to persist to the concept of Glass Cliffs to performing a
literature review within an hour, I will be coming out of this partnership a much more
learned student.
I was fortunate enough to work with Dr. Barnett, a scholar who is not only well
known in her respective field but one who is also known for challenging many widely
held beliefs. From working on issues regarding single-sex education to how female
9
CEOs are becoming increasingly used as scapegoats, Dr. Barnett has brought to light
many misconceptions about women, gender, and our society.
Most recently, I have been most involved with helping Dr. Barnett research the
glass cliff phenomenon for her next book. As a student who was mostly unaware of this
topic, I have learned a great deal about politics in the professional world and how subtly
discrimination against women continues to persist. In addition, I have become more
conscience of the number of levels that exist in our society in which both women and
men suffer discrimination due to their gender and the crucial necessity to change society
so that each may be perceived as intellectual equals. Overall, working with Dr. Barnett, I
have been able to apply the theory learned in classroom to practical examples and could
not have found a more productive space than this where I would have been able to
accrue knowledge of both the theoretical and practical realms.
Understanding the Needs of Grieving Children and if Gender Plays a Role
Scholar: Phyllis Silverman
Student: Clare Churchill-Seder
My experience assisting Dr. Phyllis Silverman this semester has been eye opening
both academically and emotionally. I have been aiding her with her ongoing research
regarding the benefits of The Children’s Room in Arlington Mass. The Children’s Room is
a center for grieving families—providing support and community for both children and
parents. Children and adolescents experiencing the loss of a loved one meet in age
10
specific groups on a biweekly basis to share, play, and create while the parents also
meet in less formal groups.
By looking at interviews with parents and children rather than qualitative data, we
have been investigating experienced aspects of grief and support. We have been able to
tease out some main themes of these experiences such as feelings of loneliness and the
benefits of shared understandings between peers. It has become clear that the general
literature on grief is lacking in terms of its handling of a child’s experience of grief and
why it is SO helpful (self-acclaimed helpfulness rather than clinically acclaimed) for kids
to meet others like themselves. We hope to continue this project, and to continue to
attach theoretical tools to our conception of the experience of loss.
Approaching this project from an anthropological perspective rather than a
psychological one has been a very important part of this semester for me. The use of
personal narratives is a humanizing and delicate way to deal with an extremely nuanced
phenomenon. Where a discussion of grief ‘symptoms’ can demean the lived human
experience, giving legitimacy to the narratives of participants at The Children’s Room
acknowledges the real experts on grief—those who live it.
It has been a real honor working on this project with Dr. Silverman as I have
learned about the somewhat ambiguous nature of research outside of the classroom.
While I am reading as much as I can about the nature of grief, there is no ‘right’ answer
waiting for me when I hand in my paper. I find the investigatory quality new and exciting.
On a more personal level, looking into this subject has helped me to think about my own
experiences with grief and to believe in the power of support systems like The
Children’s Room. In fact, through this opportunity I have been spurred to co-found a
11
support group for grieving students on campus and have high hopes for its growth next
year.
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Feminism in Cyberspace
Scholar: Janet Freedman
Student: Susannah Feinstein
Thanks to the Student- Scholars Partnership (SSP) program I have had the great
pleasure of collaborating and working with Janet Freedman, a research fellow at the
Women’s Studies Research Center (WSRC). She is writing a book examining women and
small groups, especially consciousness raising groups and groups that have followed
these. I am Janet’s research assistant. Together, we crafted the second chapter of the
book entitled, “Only Connect: Using Electronic Networks to Advance Common Goals.”
We started off with small projects and assignments which mainly consisted of perusing
through different feminist blogs, collecting data and information, and reporting back
with my findings during our weekly meetings.
We spent many thought-provoking hours discussing how the face-to-face practices
of consciousness raising (CR) have moved to the online blogosphere. Every Tuesday we
would meet at a local café and share insights over a cup of tea. Through these weekly tea
dates Janet became more than a mentor to me, she became my friend. It is rare to find
someone so passionate about all that they do and who truly practice what they preach.
Working with Janet has been an enormous learning experience for me both on an
intellectual level and personal level.
As a double major in Health, Science, Society, and Policy and Women and Gender
Studies, much of my coursework was reflected in this project. Ideally, blogging in a
feminist context involves the integration of meaningful community engagement with
learning and reflection. The purpose of these other blogs is to connect feminists across
the globe and to encourage activism. Our work together unites the objectives of
Brandeis University and experiential learning: education and justice, and I hope to
continue working with Janet for the remainder of my tenure here.
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Schuster Institute of Investigative Journalism
Scholar: Florence Graves
Student: Elly Kalfus
This semester I have worked at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism as
a Student Scholar Partner to the Institute’s Founding Director, Florence Graves. I have
been working on a long-term research project in regards to wrongful conviction cases in
which lawyers have been able to prove clients’ innocence, resulting in their release,
without utilizing DNA testing. DNA evidence is available in a minority of cases, and even
when it is applicable, many states make it difficult for defense attorneys to obtain DNA
after their clients have been convicted. My partnership has taught me a great deal about
flaws within the criminal justice system, as well as how to conduct online research.
What is the Schuster Institute?
The Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism, the nation’s first investigative
reporting center based at a university, was launched in 2004 to help fill the void in highquality public interest and investigative journalism. As one of the pioneers in the new
nonprofit journalism, our goals are to investigate significant social and political problems
and human rights issues, and uncover corporate and government abuses of power.
Founded by longtime investigative journalist and editor Florence Graves, the Schuster
Institute is among just a handful of independent reporting centers in the United States
focused on local, national, and international issues—and the only one whose central
focus is social justice and human rights.
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(taken from the Schuster website:
http://www.brandeis.edu/investigate/about/index.html)
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Age Studies – Commentary, Critique, Blogs and Public Image
Scholar: Margaret Gullette
Student: Lauren Katz
Student Lauren Katz writes:
“This semester I had the opportunity to work with Margaret Morganroth Gullette,
an expert on all things age-related. My time was split between age studies-related
work and the Free High School for Adults in Nicaragua. My age-studies related
work ranged from editing and gathering information for articles, including one for a PBS
blog called Next Avenue [which opens in May 2012], to seeking appropriate sites to
publish various articles.
My work with the Free High School focused on securing donations for the
upcoming year. The Free High School, co-founded by Dr. Rosa Elena Bello and Gullette
in 2002, is a grassroots non-profit organization that has found innovative ways
to provide high-quality secondary and technical education to under-served low-income
mainly adult populations, according to the school’s website. My responsibilities included
researching grants and compiling a list of potential grants and organizations, as well as
editing grant proposals.
The Student-Scholar Partnership allowed me to utilize and strengthen my
editing and writing skills. Additionally, I gained knowledge about age-related topics in a
one-on-one environment. The partnership gave me the chance to explore a topic of
personal interest outside the classroom. It was a pleasure to work with Margaret
this semester, as she has taught me so much more than I could have ever expected.”
Scholar Margaret Gullette writes:
This semester I was working on one large essay on the way the “Alzheimer’s
defense” affects international atrocity trials. Lauren did useful work, especially
researching the current Khmer Rouge trials in Cambodia. I was also working on two
short blog pieces for PBS. (One, titled "On Anticipation," is about why our expectations
of later life are so grim despite increases in health. The way "health news" is presented
influences this. The other, "The One-Stop Anti-Aging Shoppe," is a satire on anti-aging
advertising.) Lauren also did Web research on cultural representations of various age16
related topics in the media (e.g., updates on menopause discourse). Her edits on one of
the pieces were useful. In general, she saved me a lot of time by getting the references
right.
At this point I haven’t yet seen the compiled foundation lists. (We started the
semester late because I was out of the country.) But Lauren found one likely foundation
that I hadn’t discovered, which is excellent given the difficulties. Her ability to get the
point of an assignment rapidly, and follow through, was refreshing.
‘On Equal Terms’ Art Installation
Scholar: Susan Eisenberg
Student: Olivia Leiter
I got a lot out of my time working for the SSP this past semester. I worked as an
assistant for artist and activist Susan Eisenberg. I met with Susan regularly and learned a
lot about the process that goes behind putting up an installation exhibition. Some of my
responsibilities included making daily updates on Susan’s blog and transcribing
interviews.
I found the content of Susan’s work to be very though provoking. Her installment,
“On Equal Terms,” centers around the experiences of women who work on construction
sites. I learned about the discrimination that women face in the workplace. I transcribed
an interview that Susan had conducted with one of the women who was a victim of this
discrimination and found her story very moving.
17
What I really liked about this job was that it complimented the other classes that I
was taking (Civil Liberties in America, Liberal Political Thought and Contemporary Art).
Not only did this experience help me understand the different elements that go into
promoting one’s work, but the content of the work stimulated me intellectually and
emotionally.
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The Creative Process: Women Artists and Buddhist Psychology
Scholar: Rosie Rosenzweig
Student: Vanessa Lubiner
This semester, I had the pleasure of working with WSRC resident scholar Rosie
Rosenzweig. As I reflect on her annual creativity panel, this year appropriately named
“Art and Angst: Is Pain Necessary?” I better understand the meaning of our work
together. Throughout the spring, my role was to help Rosie with her book proposal, an
exploration of the link between creativity, angst, and healing. Through this process, I
have learned a great deal about creativity, neuroscience, archiving, publishing, and
professionalism. I spent a great deal of time listening and taking notes on Thomas Lewis’s
“Neuroscience of Creativity” lectures and learned about the effects of dopamine on the
brain. Lewis used well-known historical figures to demonstrate how dopamine influences
thought process, frequency, and novelty—directly affecting imagination. It was
interesting to see these trends of disorganized, scatter-brained people as creative forces
(it is difficult for a creative person to get much done, his or her head is being pulled and
pushed into too many places at once, yet they can create masterpieces). Leonardo Da
Vinci left most of his work unfinished (including his hygienic tasks, but with all those
thoughts flying about, who would have time?). Thomas Lewis used the creation of the
universe as a framework for human creativity. Rosie and I used this framework, the big
bang, the coming together and falling apart of the universe, as a new direction. We
looked at Neil deGrasse Tyson’s “Most Astounding Fact” and learned about how wanting
to put the pieces together drives people towards creativity. We also studied Zen
Buddhism and its relation to creativity and healing. Though letting yourself go and fly off
is important for creativity to flourish, it is also important to stay grounded.
I also became acquainted with Rosie’s data and interviews from past years.
Interviews and raw data are integral to a project like this. I had the chance to interview
Sarah Zell, the Hadassah-Brandeis resident artist this spring. The WSRC’s current exhibit,
“Occupy Sanhedrin,” is Sarah’s most recent work. I interviewed her to collect data,
quotes, and stories for Rosie’s book. It was exciting to collect data myself, and more
19
directly from a first source. I enjoyed talking to Sarah because I got to see how artists feel
about their own creativity and their own work. Her perspectives were extremely
insightful
and interesting, adding new dynamics to the project that were absent before. We
discussed the romanticized artist and romanticized creativity. She uses her creativity to
express big ideas. This semester, I got to hear the stories of many artists, scientists,
Buddhist teachers, and Rosie, herself! I really enjoyed this experience and look forward
to seeing where it goes.
Women, Work, and Retirement: Some Issues to Consider
Scholar: Hilda Kahne
Student: Jennifer Mandelbaum
My experience working for the SSP has helped me think critically about the
intersections among gender, social norms, and public policy. For the past two semesters,
I have worked with Hilda Kahne on research related to women’s work patterns and
retirement. Although our subject of investigation has changed throughout the course of
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the SSP, our main focus has remained on how changing work patterns and income in
women’s lives have consequences for income adequacy in retirement. We began this
project with the intent to research the work activities of retirement-age women but have
since shifted our focus to how decisions made by the worker and other entities (such as
the employer, public authorizes, or interactions with others) influence women’s
decisions regarding retirement. Some questions we have considered include: How does
the family unit engage with the larger community and the broader society? How does the
community and broader society further define our personal environment? How do the
building blocks of education, occupation, and family structure describe and reflect
retirement potential possibilities? Do they offer a new frontier of interests and
possibilities, or do they represent another challenge because of some inadequacy that
prevents retirement from reflecting a welcome opportunity for integration and reflection
when one’s work is done?
The work I have done has helped me to better understand my own position on the
challenges women face as they plan for retirement. By conducting independent research
on the impact cohabitation has on women’s retirement options, I have gained a better
sense of how public policy influences personal choices. Working with Hilda on the SSP
has given me the opportunity to build upon the texts and theories I have studied in my
sociology and women’s and gender studies courses. I have gained an appreciation for
the politics of location by studying how interests, preparatory training, and education, in
conjunction with the recession, earnings, unemployment rate, minimum wage, and
poverty, construct the patterns by which we live our lives. Working for the SSP has also
helped me to better inform my opinions on social issues and understand how I advocate
feminism.
I have truly enjoyed working with Hilda on this project. The freedom and
independence with which Hilda allows me to work has helped me to broaden my
viewpoint and consider varied solutions to complex issues. Throughout my time working
for the SSP, I have honed my research skills and feel more confident in my ability to
conduct literature reviews. I have a greater understanding of and appreciation for the
research and writing process, a process that evolves as we read and think. Above all, I
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feel incredibly fortunate to have been able to work with Hilda on this project. I enjoy
hearing about the incredible amount of knowledge and experience Hilda has with these
issues. Hilda and I also have different academic backgrounds, and I have appreciated
hearing Hilda speak about public policy issues from her background in economics, as
opposed to my social science background. I look forward to seeing where this research
leads me, and I am so happy to have had the opportunity to work with such an
exceptionally knowledgeable and kind scholar with a passion for social justice.
Depiction of Older Women in Feature Film, 1930 - 2008
Scholar: Elizabeth Markson
Student: Nora Puricelli
When I first started this project on Older Women in Film with Elizabeth, I tried to
think of my preconceived impressions about the ways and instances that older women
were represented on film. I quickly realized that I had almost none because it was so rare
to actually see a woman above 60 in any significant film role. So starting with a pretty
clean slate I looked at the materials from her own research which Elizabeth had given
me, including excerpts from her book Aging Bodies: Images & Everyday Experience and
an extensive list of films from 1930 to 2006 which featured a woman over 60. I picked
some films from the list, trying to focus on different eras. By the end of this preliminary
research it was clear that even when older women did appear in films their characters fit
into narrowly defined stereotypes.
Elizabeth and I discussed this trend and were both curious about if and how this
continued in the past six years. Elizabeth suggested that I look from writing from
22
contemporary feminist film critics, what did they have to say about this phenomenon?
Thus I used the library’s various research databases to look in scholarly journals
pertaining to this topic. The majority of opinions I found said the same thing: women over
60 are systematically marginalized in American film. However, one paper, which looked
at how elderly men and women were portrayed in the highest grossing teen movies of
the past 30 years, gave me inspiration of how to continue my research. I decided the look
at the Box Office Top 100 from 2007- 2010 and watched the movies in which a woman
over 60 was a significant character. This would be a reflection of how the most popular
movies which vast numbers of Americans were watching chose to portray women over
60. Doing this study with Elizabeth has helped me continue to develop a critical eye for
movie watching as a Film Studies student. In looking at older women it was equally as
important to notice an absence of a character’s depth or backstory as it was to observe
how the film presented certain personality traits. When looking at any demographic
onscreen it what is unseen and unsaid is often more telling than what ends up in a film.
Women in Ireland: A Gender Case Study
Scholar: Brenda McSweeney
Student: Jade Sank
This project is focused on taking a closer look at gender, and in particular the role
of women, in both the recent past and in current events in Ireland through the
perspectives of organizations such as the National Women’s Commission Ireland, The
Equality Authority Ireland, and through the perspectives of individuals involved in
politics, academia, non-profit organizations, and individuals in the labor force who have
their own stories to tell. An important part of this project relies on the UNDP’s Human
Development Reports over the past few years and the recent change from measuring
“gender-related development index” to the newer “gender inequality index”. An
underlying question forming the basis for this project is, what exactly is the difference
and how is gender inequality measured? From these questions stem many arguments
23
about the origins of gender inequality in Ireland, and whether the gender gap,
especially in the work sector, wage gap, is being narrowed or broadened. This project is
rich with stories from Irish informants, of several genders, scholarly articles from other
professionals in this field, and with current events stories.
This project may seem extremely Ireland-centric because this is where the studies
are focused in particular, but this project touches upon very general issues of gender
inequality, genders in the workplace, the gender wage gap, family and time use etc. that
can be discussed in the context of any people. Through gaining an understanding for the
Ireland-specific organizations and background stories one can gain a sense of what to
look for when looking at similar issues in a different context. This study also includes
more general background knowledge specifically to do with time use, family structure,
class role in families, in gender roles and in labor policies. This project does not require
a background in Irish studies but rather a background in women’s studies specifically in
the areas of work and family, and research experience in working with many sources of
information, primary and secondary, and working collaboratively.
The goal of this project is a semester-long course on this research. Preparations for
this upcoming course include putting together a power point presentation, reading
articles and deciding which ones are the most important, dynamic, informative and
interesting for this project. Other goals of this project are the writing of an e-publication
for UNESCO, creating blog posts, and maintaining connections with informants via email.
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Married Into: Making New In-Law Bonds Work
Scholar: Ruth Nemzoff
Student: Marielle Temkin
Working with Ruth has been one of the more enlightening and definitely one of the
most informative experiences of my life. Through our partnership, she has taught me
countless lessons on how to stand out when searching for a job and how important it is to
never (ever!) stop networking. This semester, we rewrote and edited sections of her
second book many times over, wrote posts for various blogs, wrote speeches for events,
among multitudes of other tasks that came up along the way. What is amazing about Ruth
is how ceaseless her mind is--there were so many times when we would be writing an
email to her publisher and she would suddenly exclaim that there was something else we
had to do at that very minute. Needless to say, one of the more difficult aspects of
working with her is convincing her finish one task before moving on to the next. Because
of her forward-thinking personality, I became accustomed to running on the same level
of multitasking that she does, and my efficiency when dealing with various school and
work projects has skyrocketed, which was not something I expected to learn from this
partnership but is so valuable to me because of my busy schedule.
Before this semester, I had never worked with anyone who so honestly wanted to
hear my input, and the knowledge that Ruth, despite her many years of incredible
experience, values my opinion so highly is remarkable to me. Her faith in my opinion has
given me much more confidence in my skills as a writer and editor, and that is priceless.
Our partnership has been so beneficial to me and is unlike any other experience I could
hope to have as a undergrad, and I have truly enjoyed every minute of working with
Ruth. Thanks to the Women's Studies Research Center for this opportunity!
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Leadership Expectations, Needs and Investment for Hospital Nurses and Clinical Leaders –
Changing Challenges from Healthcare Turbulence
Scholar: Nance Goldstein
Student: Julie Yiu
The project I worked on is called “Leadership Expectations, Needs and Investment
for Hospital Nurses and Clinical Leaders – Changing Challenges from Healthcare
Turbulence”. The first goal of the project is to find up-to-date information about
leadership demands and gaps in hospital nursing that reflect imminent healthcare reform
and payment policy changes. The second is to collect and compare Massachusetts
hospitals’ policies and resources for investment in improved leadership in nursing to fill
the leadership gaps. The project will offer hospitals decision-makers a contrast of
workforce investment policies among similar regional hospitals. This may assist them in
assessing their own policies for retaining valued skilled clinicians in a national shortage
of experienced nurses.
I am mainly responsible for data collection and analysis. I updated hospitals’
contact information, did research on hospital performance, collected data about patient
experience, patient safety and quality measures through publicly available sources, like
the Leapfrog Group and Hospital Compare. I assisted Partner in creating appropriate
categories for collecting and analyzing fieldwork data, for example, how to categorize
size of hospitals into small, medium and large. I also learned to use the software Audasity
to prepare Partner for recording interviews, collecting data from mp3 files, labeling and
storing files; editing files for efficient analysis.
My personal goal is to work in healthcare administration to help improve the health
care delivery system in the U.S., which is very important in improving health for the
population. Leadership and workforce are critical in healthcare system. Therefore, I find
this project very meaningful. I gained a lot from this project, for example, developed a
deeper understanding about the health care delivery system in Massachusetts, knowing
more about how each hospital is connected with each other and how coordinated the
care is. I also learned about measures for patient care quality and safety and the widelyrespected measures in a data-intensive industry.
I am surprised by the huge amount of information that is available to the public for
comparing different hospitals in terms of quality, patient safety and satisfaction. This
project confirmed my interest in health care management. I believe that the knowledge I
acquired from this project will be very useful for my future work.
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Gender Issues in Achievement Concerns: Is “Fear of Success” Still With Us?
Scholar: Phoebe Schnitzer
Student: Justine Zayhowski
This year I continued working with Phoebe K. Schnitzer PhD examining gender
differences, interpersonal concerns, and achievement. The perception of women has
changed since the 1970s, and we are looking to see if “Fear of Success” is still a relevant
descriptor for achievement differences between men and women.
Last year, we began examining Ann/John stories, written by Wellesley and MIT
students, stemming from the prompt: “After the first term finals, Ann/John finds
her/himself at the top of her/his medical school class.” This year we completed our
coding system, transcribed all the stories into electronic form, coded the stories, and
have run preliminary data analysis on the results.
This experience has been great. Not only have I been able to form a close
relationship with my scholar, Phoebe, but I have also learned a lot about gender issues
and current theories on achievement differences. It has made me think critically about
the ways societal perceptions and psychological ideas have far reaching effects.
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The Centennial of Marie Curie’s Nobel Prize and the Designation of 2011 as the Year of Chemistry: A Trans-National
Commemoration of Women’s Greatness
Scholar: Pnina G. Abir-Am
Student: Grace Zhang
During the school year of 2011-2012, I worked together with Dr. Abir-Am to
investigate the importance of the celebrations of the centennial of Marie Curie’s 1911
Noble Prize in chemistry, which coincides with the 2011 International Year of Chemistry.
I assisted Dr. Abir-Am on re-examining the contributions of Madame Curie in science
and women in science. Also, I helped her to compiling the data on the career
development of women scientists after Curie, and examining the popular stereotypes
towards female scientists.
The SSP program is a rewarding experience for me. As a student majoring in
chemistry, I have always set Marie Curie as my role model on the road of science. This
detailed study of Madame Curie and her scientific career gave me insight on the
tremendous difficulties female scientists could encounter in the career path. Thanks to
the opportunity of being able to participate in the SSP program, I’m able to examine how
Marie Curie overcome all the unimaginable difficulties and smashed all the biases with
her hard work and talent, and I’m greatly inspired by all these findings.
“Drums and Poems”: Supporting Girls Assertiveness and Boys and Girls’ Literacy and Relational Skills
Scholar: Georgia Sassen
Student: Micah Broadnax
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This semester I had the opportunity to assist Dr.Sassen with Drums and Poems. The
program uses the creation of rhythm and communal poetry to increase literacy and build
relationships. Joining second semester to this program that started the first semester, I
was kindly welcomed by the Drums and Poems team. Drums and Poems was
implemented this year as an after school program for third graders that met once a week
on Thursdays.
Through this experience, I developed the ability to aid children in a creative process.
During the sessions, at times the children would become disengaged from writing
communal poems. I found posing questions was an effective to way refocus the children,
whether I help them brainstorm words that rhyme together or help them by probing
their poem along. Assisting children in the writing of their poems was a rewarding
experience. I enjoyed seeing how they took ownership and pride of their work as they
would share it with the class. Also through this experience, I became informed about the
theories of social relational learning and action research.
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