Thanks to a generous gift from Distinguished Professor Emerita Mary Jo Bona and her partner Judith Pfenninger, WGSS@SBU will be launching the Mary Jo Bona Distinguished Lecture Series during the 2026-27 academic year. Our gratitude for Mary Jo and Judy’s generosity is matched only by our excitement about planning the inaugural lecture!
Dr. Mary Jo Bona – and her partner Judith Pfenninger – have gifted the WGSS Department $250,000 to establish the Mary Jo Bona Distinguished Lectureship Endowment Fund. Thanks to the New York State match program, WGSS@SBU will receive an additional $125,000 to support the endowed lecture series. We couldn’t be more excited about this gift!
The Mary Jo Bona Distinguished Lectureship Fund will provide support to host an annual public lecture at Stony Brook by a distinguished speaker whose field of expertise falls within the interdisciplinary scope of the department. The funds will be utilized for the speaker’s award/honorarium, travel expenses, and other related expenses, including but not limited to, hosting workshops, reading groups, experimental projects, or activities related to the speaker’s visit to campus.
As many of you know firsthand, WGSS@SBU is thriving today because of Dr. Bona’s profound commitment to growing the field of women’s, gender, and sexuality studies on our campus and beyond. From the moment she arrived at Stony Brook to her retirement this past winter, Dr. Bona’s commitment to service, leadership, and feminist knowledge production was unwavering. Last spring, when we celebrated the end of her final teaching semester with a daylong symposium, we heard from colleague after colleague, mentee after mentee – 22 speakers in all! – about what an impact Mary Jo had not just on their careers but, crucially, on their shared fields of study. The Humanities Institute was packed, wall to wall, for the entire event, as students, faculty, and staff cycled in and out, eager to give Dr. Bona the sendoff she deserves.
Needless to say, Dr. Bona is most certainly missed, but her legacy lives on. The Distinguished Lecture Series will be a wonderful opportunity to continue celebrating Dr. Bona’s contributions to our campus while also continuing to to grow WGSS@SBU by hosting events featuring the most transformative feminist, queer, and trans thinkers.