The Women’s and Gender Studies Program co-sponsors two speaker series every year: OUTspoken (an LGBTQ speaker series) and the Women's and Gender Speaker Series. These presentations are free and open to the public. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for either of these speaker series please contact Paula Ekcard at pgeckard@uncc.edu  or 704-687-4309. All contributions are tax deductible.

 The Women’s and Gender Speaker Series

Every spring the Women’s and Gender Studies Program brings a nationally known speaker to campus to address issues that are central to women’s and gender studies. Past speakers include international best-selling author Naomi Wolf, foremost African-American feminists bell hooks and Patricia Hill Collins, anti-sexist educator Jackson Katz, and writer and activist Gloria Steinem and Professor of Law Anita Hill.

This year we are proud to announce that Jessica Valenti will be our keynote speaker.  Valenti is a hero to many young modern feminists.  Called one of the "Top 100 Inspiring Women" in the world by The Guardian, Valenti is the founder of feministing.com and author of Full Frontal Feminism, The Purity Myth, He's a Stud and She's a Slut, Why Have Kids?, and Yes Means Yes.  Notorious for her wit and defiance, Jessica Valenti has been featured on The Colbert Report, the Today show, CNN, MSNBC, and Anderson Live.  In addition to her popular online activism, her writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Nation and The Guardian, as well as in magazines such as Ms., Bitch and Salon.

 Jessica Valenti will speak about "The Purity Myth" in Cone University Center's McKnight Hall on March 19 at 7:00 p.m.  This will be followed by a book signing and dessert reception in the Lucas Room. This event is free and open to the public.

OUTspoken

Every fall, the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, the Multicultural Resource Center, the Counseling Center, and PRIDE co-sponsor OUTspoken, an LGBTQ speaker series that brings a nationally known speaker to campus to talk about gay, lesbian and/or transgender issues. Past OUTspoken guests include noted transgender queer youth activist Kate Bornstein, former Executive Director of the Human Rights Campaign Elizabeth Birch, and author and political commentator Keith Boykin, and Brian Sims, the only openly gay NCAA football captain, author/activist Jennifer Baumgardner and slam-poet and author Staceyann Chin.

Stay tuned to see who our 2013 OUTspoken speaker will be…