Amanda Stuart is a graduating Sociology and Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies- Concentration in Gender and Social Change B.A with a minor in English and History. As graduation approaches, WGSS seniors reflect on their time in the department. 

What made you pursue a Women’s and Gender Studies (WST) major/minor? 

WGSS courses are very interesting and enlightening and helped me to reconcile my experiences living within the intersectionality of my identities as an African American woman. I loved learning about the intersection between race, gender, and sexuality and how these identities have impacted my life experiences which have been very empowering to learn about throughout the WGSS courses I have taken over the last four years at Stony Brook. 

 Are there any professors and/or classes that had an impact on you

I have taken some of my favorite courses through the WGSS department. Freshman year I took my freshman seminar course GLS 102 in Spring 2019 with Mary Jo Bona. I absolutely loved her as a professor, she was always animated and warm and she sparked my passion for WGSS. I especially enjoyed the courses Race and Sex work with Cristina Khan and Black Women’s Literature in the African Diaspora with Tracey Walters.  I have taken a few courses with Cristina Khan whom I admire as a professor. She is very insightful and brilliant as her lectures are always intriguing. I have taken WST 102 with her which has solidified my passion for WGSS. Her class taught me the foundation of the subject that I have brought with me throughout my other WGSS courses and within my life. I am also her TA for one of her WST 102 course sections this semester which is rewarding as I was a student of hers four years ago, and now I work alongside her as her teaching assistant.

What will you miss most about the WGSS department when you graduate?

I will miss all of the professors that I have taken and all of the WGSS courses I did not have the opportunity to take during my time at Stony Brook. However, I will definitely pursue more courses within higher education in the future. 

What do you plan on doing in the future? 

I would love to work in an organization where I could empower people like me specifically women of color that exist within intersectional identities that are marginalized within American society.