02/07/11
LSU Women’s and Gender Studies
Strategic Plan 2010-2020
Mission
The mission of Women’s and Gender Studies is to provide students with an appreciation
of gender's importance for women and men, to develop students' understanding of
women’s roles in a wide range of disciplines, to foster interdisciplinary research related
to women’s and gender studies, to contribute to a better understanding of diversity, and to
provide a pool of expertise concerning women and gender upon which various
communities can draw.
Vision
Women’s and Gender Studies will continue to build on its outstanding record of research,
teaching, and service:
1) interdisciplinary, innovative, and engaged research, publication, and creative work
focusing on the role of gender and sexuality in twenty-first-century culture and
society.
2) innovative pedagogies that provide students with critical thinking skills applicable
to disciplines ranging from the humanities to the sciences.
3) the production of an engaged citizenry with an understanding of gender, sexuality,
and women’s roles in wide range of disciplines, periods, cultures, and texts.
4) productive engagement and collaboration with diverse cultures and communities at
the local, national, and global level.
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Values
the importance of understanding and incorporating diverse perspectives as both
scholars and students of gender and sexuality, and as engaged citizens.
interdisciplinary and collaborative action in our scholarship, classrooms and
community.
creation of a diverse community that is inclusive, responsive, committed,
egalitarian and flexible.
Goals
1. Discovery: continue supporting and producing innovative scholarship and
creative work that advances our understanding of gender in the twenty-first
century and contributes to creating a more engaged and educated citizenry
on issues of gender and sexuality.
 Support innovative, interdisciplinary, and collaborative Women’s and Gender
Studies scholarship and creative works.
Performance indicators
 Publications (Single-authored books, articles in refereed journals,
filmmaking and video production, scholarly editions of primary literary
and cultural texts, edited book series, journals, and essay collections.)
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Grants, fellowships, and awards.
Evidence of national and international significance of work. Indicators
might include citations (scholarly and otherwise), use (inclusion on course
syllabi, reading groups), membership on editorial boards, invited lectures
and readings, and conference presentations
Number of faculty conducting interdisciplinary and collaborative research
or creative projects
Strategies
 Maintain and seek to increase University, College, and Departmental
support for interdisciplinary research and collaboration leading to
publication both in print and in the visual arts and digital media.
 Encourage faculty to form collaborative groups that foster
interdisciplinary projects.
 Forge more connections with other interdisciplinary programs and
departments.
 Work with the College and University to hire more faculty working in the
field of Women’s and Gender Studies.
 Establish and create incentives for faculty to provide mentorship and
feedback on work in progress and grant applications.
 Track interdisciplinary publications more effectively as well as the impact
of interdisciplinary research on the university, local, national, and
international community.
 Update program website to better advertise faculty accomplishments.
 Encourage use of the faculty listserv to make faculty members aware of
publication opportunities across disciplines
 Provide time and resources to support journal editors and encourage new
journals, including innovative electronic journals.
2. Learning: continue providing and expanding a curriculum that advances
students' understanding of gender and women's roles in a wide range of
disciplines, periods, cultures, and texts in order to prepare them to meet the
life and career demands of an increasingly complex, globalized world.
 Improve opportunities for critical thinking through interdisciplinary study
among undergraduates.
Performance indicators
 Evidence of critical thinking skills in written and multi-media work in
WGS courses and electives
 Increased participation in ASPIRE (Arts&Sciences Program in Research)
 Portfolios of graduating concentrators, including research
 Low class size for written, research, and service-intensive courses
 Number of students enrolled in WGS courses
Strategies
 Organize student colloquia on interdisciplinary topics
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Organize pedagogical workshops for WGS faculty to explore techniques
for teaching topics in gender across disciplines.
Continue exit interviews with graduating concentrators
Increase participation in campus-wide initiatives, such as CxC
Maintain adequate faculty to keep classes small
Increase number of students enrolled in WGS courses
 Expand opportunities for engaged learning among undergraduates
Performance indicators
 Number of service-learning courses
 Number of student internships
 Begin to explore alternative modes of teaching and ways to reach nontraditional students, such as distance-learning classes
 Increased WGS faculty-student dialogue about diversity
Strategies
 Maintain and seek to increase University, College, and Departmental
support for faculty participation in service-learning
 Maintain and seek to increase University, College, and Departmental
support to expand curriculum in service-learning
 Maintain and develop community connections to sustain and increase
service-learning and internship opportunities
 Seek to increase University, College, and Departmental support to invite
guest speakers to promote awareness of diversity
 Expand opportunities for graduate research and professional training
Performance indicators
 Number of professional development workshops (such as grant-writing,
job materials, conference abstracts) for graduate students
 Number of graduate student reading groups
 Number of graduate students who present at conferences and other
colloquia.
Strategies
 Maintain and seek to increase University, College, and Departmental
support for graduate student travel
 Maintain and seek to increase University, College, and Departmental
support for increased faculty involvement in graduate student mentoring
3. Diversity: continue to enhance student learning through exposure to diverse
cultures, increased diversity in WGS classes, and increased diversity among
WGS faculty.
 Enhance student learning through exposure to diverse cultures
Performance indicators
 Number of courses in WGS concentration that address issues of diversity
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Number of WGS “courses of related interest” that focus on diversityoriented content
Number of students traveling to/interacting with different cultures
Strategies
 Increase the number of WGS rubric courses related to diversity
 Work with department, college and university administrators to secure
more course releases for existing faculty
 Work with college and university administrators to hire more WGS faculty
 Increase the number of opportunities for students to interact locally with
different cultures (Service-Learning, LSU’s Center for Community,
Engagement, Learning and Leadership, partnership opportunities with
local Baton Rouge community organizations)
 Work with departments offering “courses of related interest” to improve
tracking of offerings and develop new ones
 Encourage more WGS concentrators to study abroad either in summer
session or academic semester and identify sources of funding to facilitate
such travel
 Increase the number of international exchange students in the WGS
concentration
 Encourage student participation in local organizations that focus on
diversity issues
 Increase diversity in WGS classes
Performance indicator
 Degree of student diversity by race, gender, sexual orientation, class,
nationality, etc., in WGS classes
Strategies
 Target minority and underrepresented populations for WGS classes
 Target minority and underrepresented populations for WGS concentration
and provide sufficient mentorship so that they complete the program
 Explore outreach and partnerships with BRCC and Southern University
 Increase diversity among WGS faculty
Performance indicator
 Number of WGS faculty members who represent diverse races, ethnicities,
sexual orientations, etc.
Strategies
 Increase recruitment of existing faculty at LSU to WGS from targeted
areas mentioned above and provide sufficient mentorship to assist them in
their careers
 Work with university administrators to increase hiring and retention of
WGS-oriented faculty from diverse backgrounds
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Work with department, college, and university administrators to increase
the number of visiting international professors and target for research and
teaching partnerships with WGS during their time at LSU
4. Engagement: Create and strengthen connections with partners to enhance
research, teaching and service that will benefit local and global communities
 Strengthen and expand the connections of faculty, staff and students with
the community
Performance indicators
 Number of students engaged in community activities and outreach
 Number of community programs and events in which WGS student, staff
and faculty are involved
 Number of service-learning classes taught by WGS faculty and graduate
students
Strategies
 Work with the College and University to provide support for servicelearning courses.
 Publicize WGS activities, including outreach events, more widely,
including through the use of social media
 Provide information on the website about WGS speakers available for
community events
 Invite experts from the community to speak in classes and at WGS events
 Strengthen outreach activities such as “Community Connections” and
“Friends of WGS” programming by including community members in
planning and implementing activities
 Promote the adoption of service-learning in WGS courses with assistance
from the Center for Engagement, Learning and Leadership
 Encourage faculty to apply for service-learning grants
 Foster research, teaching and service that can improve local, regional, and
global communities.
Performance indicators
 Number of classes that focus on improving communities
 Number of faculty and graduate student applications for internal and
external grants for research and teaching involving community
engagement
 Number of publications of faculty and graduate students related to
community engagement and improvement
 Number of awards received and grants awarded to faculty and graduate
students for research and/or teaching that involves community engagement
Strategies
 Explore collaborative research, teaching and service with other
universities and units, such as the LSU Law School
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Work with the University and the College to identify ways to support
faculty and graduate student travel to conferences related to community
engagement
Encourage and support faculty and graduate student grant applications to
facilitate research with community engagement
Collaborate with local organizations and other units at LSU to solicit
funding to invite presentations on community engagement projects in
WGS classes, WGS Research Series, and other events and to develop
networks in the community that will lead to classroom enrichment