In winter 2004, we honored Claire Carothers and Professor Pamela Simpson. Each has contributed a statement to this website about what the Women's Studies Program means to her.

Claire Carothers

When I arrived at Washington and Lee as a freshman, I already knew I would be an English major, but I had never heard of the Women's Studies program. I registered for Professor Alexandra Brown's Gender Roles and Religion class in the fall of my sophomore year mainly because it fit nicely into my schedule. This fortunate accident provided my initial introduction to the essential lessons and perspectives I have learned through the Women's Studies program. Enthused by Professor Brown's class, my decision to concentrate in Women's Studies was solidified by my subsequent classes. However, my closest friends, family, and even strangers worried over my potential stigmatization as a "Feminazi" and continually questioned my decision, frequently asking, "What are you going to do with it?"
 

As a senior, I can now say that little in my academic or personal life has remained untouched by the lessons I have learned through the Women's Studies program. My classes have provided me with the opportunity to study gender in a variety of social and historical contexts and relate those issues to ones of race, class, and sexuality. I have been privileged to take courses from a wide range of professors who have taught me to combine many disciplines in my education. My constantly expanding knowledge of feminist theory and criticism has made me a more independent thinker and influenced my experience in my other classes. I have been forced to continually challenge my assumptions and those of the people around me in order to understand many different perspectives on the past and present challenges facing women. The energetic and engaging nature of the Women's Studies classroom has come to exemplify the very best of my liberal arts education.
 

 The history of the Women's Studies program is rooted in activist movements, a legacy which lends a dynamic nature to the course material. Many of the things I learn about in class are immediately applicable to my personal beliefs and my professional future. Through seminars and colloquiums, the program exposed me to the challenges and successes of women in the workforce and society. Stimulated by my classes, I began working as a crisis counselor and shelter volunteer at Project Horizon, a local battered women's shelter and hotline. More than any other lesson, the Women's Studies program has taught me to resist passivity in every aspect of my life. As I approach law school next fall, I know the lessons I have learned in the Women's Studies program will continue to shape my experiences as a woman, a student, and a future professional.

Professor Pamela Simpson

I sometimes feel like the Ancient Mariner when it comes to women at W&L—telling my tales of what it used to be like. I came here in 1973, over thirty years ago, as the first woman hired for a tenured track position in the undergraduate school. When we went co-ed in 1985, I was associate dean and headed the steering committee that oversaw the transition. I taught one of our first women’s studies courses when I introduced a class on Women Artists in the spring of 1987. A lot has changed since then! Now there are a significant number of women on the faculty, nearly half our students are women, and Women’s Studies is a discipline so widely recognized that our curriculum would be considered odd if it didn’t have it.

Of course, all that does not change the sexism that women continue to encounter daily. But it does mean there is a significant support network that can make a difference. It also means that the academic exploration of gender is something we take seriously. This is a much more welcoming and comfortable place to be than it was 30 years ago, believe me. My experience is that change really can happen!