The Birth and Growth of "Friends of Women's Studies" at the University of Cincinnati

Abstract

Every day, from September through May, for the past six years I have greeted my colleagues in the Center for Women's Studies with a question: How many Friends do we have? I wasn't paranoid; I was checking and rechecking and checking once again on the health of a young organization-Friends of Women's Studies. The following essay is an attempt to explain how Friends came about, how it functions, and what it has accomplished. It is meant, in part, as a response to the many women's studies directors who have phoned and written to ask, How can I start a Friends group? It is also meant as a tribute to the wonderful women with whom I have worked who shared my dream and turned it into a reality. I arrived at the University of Cincinnati in July of 1979 to assume the directorship of the Women's Studies Program, which was then five years old. The university's crowded campus had given rise to many programs for its 36,000 students, but many had also languished because of lack of funds and energy. The Center for Women's Studies had achieved a small niche-an office in an outof-the-way building, a part-time assistant, and a secretary. But despite enthusiastic faculty, a potpourri of wonderful programs, and a regular newsletter, the program had little visibility on campus and very little in the larger community. I was determined to bring women's studies to a much larger audience. I believed then, as I still do, that women's studies courses, lectures, symposia, and publications are too good to keep to ourselves. In the spring of 1980, I brought together a handful of faculty and a somewhat larger group of community women to begin an open-ended dialogue on the significance of women's studies on campus and in the community. That dialogue continues and has expanded over the years to include thousands of participants and to address every significant issue facing women today. The immediate outcome of this extended discourse was the creation of Friends of Women's Studies, an organization devoted to supporting the Center. The longer term outcome has been the personal and communal growth of women's studies faculty and Friends. A description and analysis of three recent events will illustrate the current dimensions of this dialogue.