Five College Women's Studies Research Center : Welcome

Welcome

Our annual Five College Women's Studies Fall Reception will take place this year on Wednesday, September 23, 2009 from 4-6pm. Please join us! (Parking and directions link at bottom of page)

History and Overview
The Five College Women’s Studies Research Center was founded in 1991 as a site for scholarly activity on issues relating to women and gender. Located in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, it is supported by a consortium of Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The five institutions have a thirty-five year history of cooperation and innovation in higher education and boast one of the largest concentrations of women’s studies scholars anywhere in the world.

The Center’s main purpose is to encourage engaged, critical feminist scholarship from diverse perspectives. To this end, it hosts up to fifteen scholars and activists each year for three to eight months. Research associates have come from thirty countries. While at the Center they have access to Five College archival and other library resources and have various opportunities to present their work to a broad activist and scholarly community. The Center is committed to ensuring that visiting scholars include some who have international interests and backgrounds and some who will study and engage in community activism. It also seeks to create a forum in which women’s studies faculty from the five institutions can present and discuss their work and interact with associates through faculty seminars, workshops and conferences.

Dedicated to supporting research on all aspects of women’s studies, the Center welcomes inquiries from local, US-based and international scholars, teachers, writers, artists, community organizers and political activists.

The Center is located in two gracious buildings, adjacent to one another on the Mount Holyoke campus in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Facilities include a large seminar room, kitchen, dining room, outdoor deck, gardens, and fifteen offices. Area resources include the Emily Dickinson Homestead in Amherst, the Sophia Smith collection at Smith College, the papers of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony at the University of Massachusetts, and archives at Mount Holyoke college on the history of women’s education.

Laura L. Lovett, Director
Elizabeth M. Lehman, Assistant Director

(Parking and directions information)

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I first learned about the FCWSRC from a colleague at UMass Boston who suggested that in retirement I might want to look into the opportunities the Center could offer. During the years I was a university professor I wanted to write about biracial women from the perspective of self-empathy, an idea emanating from my doctoral dissertation. The Center felt like an academic home where I could turn my attention to and focus on my work. The venue (the building with its first floor meeting rooms and kitchen, and the offices on the second floor) was ideal for creating a relaxed and nurturing environment. My office could not have been better. I expected to have a space to work and access to Five College facilities but my expectations were exceeded: the venue was more convenient, inviting, and sustaining than I had anticipated. The resources were better than I expected, e.g. library assistance, media support, flexibility among the Five Colleges for using resources. I had also not anticipated the comradeship among the researchers. I found each a unique source of information, and I developed many friendships. What I will remember as liking the most was associating with a diverse group of researchers: the ideas they brought to discussions, their curiosity and interest in the projects of others, their level of intellect and academic background. I had also not expected the support, help, and comradeship of the administrators. What a wonderful surprise! Thank you for this unique opportunity. MaryAnna Ham Professor Emerita, University of Massachusetts Boston FCWSRC Research Associate, 2006-2007	Welcome Our annual Five College Women's Studies Fall Reception will take place this year on Wednesday, September 23, 2009 from 4-6pm. Please join us! (Parking and directions link at bottom of page) History and Overview The Five College Women’s Studies Research Center was founded in 1991 as a site for scholarly activity on issues relating to women and gender. Located in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, it is supported by a consortium of Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The five institutions have a thirty-five year history of cooperation and innovation in higher education and boast one of the largest concentrations of women’s studies scholars anywhere in the world. The Center’s main purpose is to encourage engaged, critical feminist scholarship from diverse perspectives. To this end, it hosts up to fifteen scholars and activists each year for three to eight months. Research associates have come from thirty countries. While at the Center they have access to Five College archival and other library resources and have various opportunities to present their work to a broad activist and scholarly community. The Center is committed to ensuring that visiting scholars include some who have international interests and backgrounds and some who will study and engage in community activism. It also seeks to create a forum in which women’s studies faculty from the five institutions can present and discuss their work and interact with associates through faculty seminars, workshops and conferences. Dedicated to supporting research on all aspects of women’s studies, the Center welcomes inquiries from local, US-based and international scholars, teachers, writers, artists, community organizers and political activists. The Center is located in two gracious buildings, adjacent to one another on the Mount Holyoke campus in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Facilities include a large seminar room, kitchen, dining room, outdoor deck, gardens, and fifteen offices. Area resources include the Emily Dickinson Homestead in Amherst, the Sophia Smith collection at Smith College, the papers of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony at the University of Massachusetts, and archives at Mount Holyoke college on the history of women’s education. Laura L. Lovett, Director Elizabeth M. Lehman, Assistant Director (Parking and directions information)