Where Are We Headed? What’s in Our Way? How Can We Get There? Thoughts From Directors of Women’s and Gender Studies Programs

Abstract

We are at a critical time in determining the trajectory of the discipline of Women’s and Gender Studies (WGS). This article explores how WGS programs are marginalized within the academy, and alternately, by what means they have succeeded. We additionally take stock of predictions for the future of this highly dynamic discipline, drawn from the perspectives of those uniquely positioned to carve out these spaces and new territories—the directors of WGS programs. Data were gathered through a census of WGS programs at large 4-year institutions across the United States and Canada and supplemented by 24 in-depth follow-up interviews.