Women, Gender, and Sexualities Collective (WGSC)

Welcome!

The Women, Gender, and Sexualities Collective (WGSC) at Howard University is an interdisciplinary forum for Howard students and faculty, created to support and encourage discussion, scholarship and activism on gender and women’s issues on campus, nationally and internationally. Given the lack of an institutional center or institute on campus dedicated to researching and teaching gender and women’s issues, and the clear need for such an intellectual space given the composition of our student body and the wider Howard community, the WGSC will begin to fill this gap by supporting innovative programming and curriculum development that speaks to the intersectionality of gender, race, class and other identities. The WGSC seeks to build a supportive network of scholars and learners on campus who can share and discuss each other’s’ work, to serve as a resource on gender and women’s scholarship and programming within the wider academy and surrounding communities and develop collaborative interdisciplinary research proposals, deliverables and collaborations. We look forward to working with all interested allies, and we hope you will join us in our exciting mission.

J. Jarpa Dawuni, Esq., Ph.D.
Director
Department of Political Science
Associate Professor
Phone: (240) 801 6688
Email: womenscenter@howard.edu

For the past four years, Howard University has joined the global community to celebrate International Women’s Day. This year, in line with the United Nations Women (UN Women) theme on Women in Leadership, Howard University will celebrate the women of Howard University Hospital under the theme “Women in Leadership: A Tribute to Howard Women Frontline Workers” on March 3rd. The response of women to this pandemic is noteworthy and today, more than ever, we must celebrate their leadership, emphasize the roles they play in the community and stress the necessity of their expertise, knowledge, and perspectives into the formulation and implementation of policies and programs in all aspects of the pandemic response and beyond.

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Past Events

4th Annual International Women's Day

March 8 is International Women's Day, a day mandated by the United Nations to celebrate and reflect on women's issues globally. For the past three years, Howard University has built a tradition by joining the global system in celebrating and reflecting on Black Women.

On March 4, 2020 we engage in conversation with H.E Phumzile Mlambo-Ngucka (Executive Director of UN Women) and Ambassador Thelma Phillip-Browne of St. Kitts and Nevis. Reception to follow.

Fireside Chat: Women in Politics

After the triumphant release of her autobiography, "It Takes a Woman", former First Lady of Ghana, Mrs. Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings visited Howard University to impart some wisdom on an eager crowd of faculty, dignitaries, and students. The event, dubbed Fireside Chat, was organized by Dr. J. Jarpa Dawuni, Associate Professor of Political Science and Co-Director of the Women and Gender Studies Collective at Howard University.

Fireside Chat on Women, Leadership, and Mentoring

Women in Politics and Law: International Women's Day

Palaver Series: Africa and Black Diasporic Engagements

This Palaver Series Lecture was given by PLO Lumumba on October 18, 2018. PLO Lumumba is a Kenyan lawyer and anti-corruption activist who served as the Director of Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission and the former Director of The Kenya School of Laws. His lecture at Howard University was centered in his work in engagements between Africa and the Diaspora. As a Pan-Africanist, he spoke about the role of Africa and the Black Diaspora in international affairs.