Gender & Communication Conference

GCC Gender and Communication Conference

Join us on April 5, 2013 for the Third Annual Gender & Communication Conference! 2:30-7:30 PM in Grise Hall.

About the Gender & Communication Conference

The Third Annual Gender & Communication Conference is a special opportunity for WKU students to gather and thoughtfully discuss topics of gender and how it relates to them personally and globally. WKU Faculty and Staff presenters will engage students to critically think and discuss how these topics apply to their everyday lives. Students will walk away with new insights and tools to effectively work and live with others in today's society.

Session Schedule

Session I

A.) Social Constructs Within the U.S. & U.K. Cosmopolitan Magazines - Grise Hall 134

Presented by Heidi Sisler - Explore the representations of femininity, masculinity, sexuality, and whiteness within the pages of the U.S. and U.K. Cosmopolitan™ Magazines. We will discuss how these representations act as indicators for the types of social, cultural, and political environments which create and distribute them and to explore the relationship between the ideologies held within those environments and finding evidence of those ideologies in the language and images of these magazines.

B.) Gender in the Media/Gender Stereotypes - Grise Hall 135

Presented by Zuri Thurman, Stephanie Lott, and Sharminic Washington - It has been said, "Whoever controls the media controls your mind." Do you believe this is true? Could you be subconsciously brainwashed daily? In this presentationw e will uncover how the media influences gender roles and stereotypes from Disney movies to candy commercials.

Session II

A.) BRAS4CUBA: A Gender Service-Learning Project for Women by Women - Grise Hall 134

Presented by Tracy Jo Ingram & Meghan Kennedy - Explore the gendered implications of running a nationwide service learning project developed for women, by women. Bras4Cuba began as a local donation drive for feminine hygiene products and undergarments for women in Cuba that quickly gained considerable attention in which gendered response patterns emerged.

B.) Gender & Community - Grise Hall 135

Presented by Crystal Hardeman and Lauren Cunningham - We all wear different hats. We are students, learners, teachers, men, women, leaders, club members, daughters, sons from different backgrounds and places. How do we as individuals navigate through our communities within our various roles while remaining true to who we are? Join our interactive conversation about identity, gender, and community.

C.) Across the Lines - Grise Hall 143

Presented by Tim Gray - This session is designed to improve racial, cultural, and gender role understanding within our university and global community through personal awareness, student engagement, relationship building, and honest communication among students from various cultural belief systems. Throughout the session we will cover a vast array of intriguing and controversial subjects in an effort to encourage diversity of thought, perspective, and approach to create an open and inclusive environment where both professional and personal objectives and growth can be met.

Session III

A.) Gender Through Generations: Your Code, Past, Present, and Future - Grise Hall 135

Presented by Minnette Huck and Alicia Golston - Come join this interactive presentation as we explore how gender has changed throughout several generations. Each participate will get to experience what is was like to be a different or same gender in a different time period. This interactive discussion based presentation will allow students to explore their own gender code as it relates to their generation and what it means for their future.

B.) Social Media and its Effects on Courtship - Grise Hall 138

Presented by Jeff Long and Sarah Rigsby - The rise of social media has greatly impacted the way in which individuals communicate with one another. Romantic communication is no exception. This session will examine the impact of social media, dating websites and texting on courtship in the twenty-first century.

What Past Participants Had to Say:

"Made me wish I took 'Gender Communications' when I had the chance, and made me more aware of what I'll face post graduation."

"I really enjoyed this and I am definitely coming back next year."

"Great. Unedited. Refreshing."

"it was insightful, entertaining, and fun!"

"I thought it was a really good interactive session. It was a comfortable environment where people could speak up. It got to a deeper, a typical level, where you could talk about things not generally pointed out."

"I learned that people are just like me; we struggle with the same things when it comes to gender whether we are male or female. It was interesting to me that male as well as females struggle with self image."

"(I learned) to learn others' point of view and not to immediately respond without them finishing. (I learned to) honor people's decisions regardless of their beliefs, (my) beliefs; accept them for who they are."

*To guarantee a t-shirt and other conference items, please register by 4:00 pm Monday, March 25, 2013. Registration will remain open, however these items cannot be guaranteed for conference participants after this date.