EWU to offer new sexuality and queer studies minor

CHENEY – This fall, Eastern Washington University is set to offer a new academic minor in Sexuality and Queer Studies through its Women’s and Gender Studies Program.Introduction of the minor is part of EWU’s ongoing commitment to inclusion and diversity.

The new minor, comprised of 20 credits, offers students an interdisciplinary course of study focused on the histories, experiences, contributions, activism and community-based knowledges of LGBTQ+ people. All of these elements are to be considered intersectionally and within the context of larger social, political, and structural formations — including heterosexism, heteronormativity and transphobia. With three required courses and one elective, students will be able to personalize the minor to fit their needs.

The number of students who identify at LGBTQ+ is rising. In 2018, a Gallup survey indicated that 12 percent of Gen Z teens described their sexual orientation as something other than heterosexual. Ten million American adults identify at LGBT, about 4.1 percent of the population.This new area of study will promote understanding and reduce disparity and inequity.

This minor will be the first of its kind at EWU, but not the first in the region. Washington State University, Western Washington University, Portland State University and the University of Oregon all have Sexuality and/or Queer Studies minors.

The new minor consolidates existing learning that the Women’s and Gender Studies Program facilitates, and signals to employers and/or graduate schools that the student has expertise in an important field and knowledge of a marginalized population.

The Sexuality and Queer Studies minor is part of an ongoing commitment to extend and enhance understanding of EWU-based underrepresented campus constituencies on topics such as gender identity/expression and sexual orientation.

To read more about the new minor and its requirements, visit ewu.edu/wgs

For more information please contact the EWU Women’s and Gender Studies Program at cmartin22@ewu.edu or 509-359-2847.