Men and women in a group hanging out outside

Conference on Women and Gender 2026

Friday, April 10, 2026

The annual Seton Hall University Conference on Women and Gender, will take place on Friday, April 10, 2026 on Seton Hall University's South Orange campus.

Friday, April 10, 2026

Each year, Seton Hall’s Conference on Women and Gender offers a collection of exciting sessions that reflect the diversity of perspectives and approaches that characterizes scholarship on women and gender. The conference's primary goal is consistent with the ideals of a liberal arts institution, such as those articulated by Cardinal Newman in “The Idea of a University”: to provide an interface between the academic and the experiential in order to enrich lived life.

Our conference includes presenters exploring all aspects of scholarship on women and gender from all fields—including the humanities, diplomacy, social sciences, experimental sciences and the professions. The conference’s panels are designed to be accessible to all members of the Seton Hall and South Orange communities. We hope you will join us for a series of exciting events.

Registration for the event closes on April 7, 2026.

Keynote Speaker Information

Event Contact Information

Schedule of Events

Session I: 9 a.m.-10:15 a.m.

Session Information »
1a) Gender and Media
Fahy Hall 236
Chair: Jess Rauchberg, Assistant Professor of Communication Technologies, Seton Hall University

“Reactions to Menstrual Blood in the Media”
- Samantha Kehner, Psychology Major, The College of New Jersey
- Allie Gawron, Psychology Major, The College of New Jersey
- Simmer Jealf, Psychology Major, The College of New Jersey
- Sydney Defrietas, Psychology Major, The College of New Jersey
- Jessica Barnack-Tavlaris, Professor of Psychology, The College of New Jersey
“A Visual Analysis of Popularity, Masculinity, and Sexual Identification in My Chemical Romance’s I’m Not Okay (I Promise)"
- Justin Lotito, Communication Studies Major, Seton Hall University
“Analyzing P!nk’s ‘Stupid Girls’”
- Natania Perez, Communication Major, Seton Hall University
1b) Women in the History of Seton Hall
Fahy Hall 237
Chair: Lisa Rose-Wiles, Science Librarian, Seton Hall University

“Economic Instrumentalism and the Erasure of Women: Seton Hall’s Transition to Coeducation
1937 – 1968”
- Alan Delozier, Humanities and Outreach Librarian, Seton Hall University
“Poetic Pedagogy – The First Female Faculty Authors of Setonia (1937-1968)”
- Stephanie Gomez, Secretary for the Office of Student Engagement, Seton Hall University
- Davaughn Hoots, Ph.D. Candidate, School of Education, Seton Hall University
1c) Gender and Colonialism
Fahy Hall 238
Chair: Widian Nicola, Associate Professor of Social Work, Seton Hall University.

“The War Inside: Algerian Women, Psychological Trauma, and the Afterlife of Violence”
- Youssef Yacoubi, Assistant Professor, Department of Languages, Literatures, & Cultures, Seton Hall University
“A decolonial and decological calling to survive: When endocrine disruption challenges our theological ethics and spiritual frameworks”
- María Carolina Alderete, MA student in Religion, Drew Theological School

Session II: 10:30 - 11:45 a.m.

Session Information »
2a) Gender and Leadership
Fahy Hall 336
Chair: Elizabeth Halpin, Vice Dean, CEPS, and Undergraduate Director of the Buccino
Leadership Institute, Seton Hall University

“Storytelling as Social Justice: Representation, Leadership, and Belonging in Children’s Literature”
- Latisha Porter-Vaughn, Legal Support Specialist, Seton Hall School of Law“
"Leading at the Intersection of Care and Power: Gender, Authority, and Institutional Responsibility in Public Service Education”
- La'Tesha Sampson, Director of the MSW & MPA Programs, Seton Hall University
2b) Gender in Historical Perspective
Fahy 237
Chair: Kirsten Schultz, Professor of History, Seton Hall University

“Timber as a Symbol of Female Vulnerability and Vengeance in Lycophron’s Alexandra”
- Kathleen Kidder, Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Languages, Literatures, & Cultures, Seton Hall University
“Roman Masculinity within Barbarians (Virtus in Gaul)”
- Helen Jakubowicz, Anthropology and History Major, Seton Hall University
“The Dress Reform and Reshaping Femininity Through Politics”
- Julia Chryc, History Major, Seton Hall University
2c) Gender and Digital Technologies
Fahy 238
Chair: Maria Barca, Lead Instruction Librarian, Seton Hall University

“The History of Women’s and Gender Studies at Drew: A Digital Humanities Project”
- Grace Gannon, Junior WGST and Art major, Literature minor, Drew University
- Wendy Kolmar, Director of WGST and Professor of English, Drew University
“Putting the Self in the Psychology of Gender: Student Gender Autobiographies as Feminist Pedagogy”
- Dr. Rachel A. Fikslin, Seton Hall University Psychology Department
- Saraya Baskerville, MSW Program, Seton Hall University
- Grace Dermott, Biology Major, Seton Hall University

Luncheon Noon - 1: 15 p.m.
Bethany Hall, Room C

Lunch Information »

Keynote Address 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Bethany Hall Room C

Keynote Information »
“The Joys of Black Feminist Worldmaking”
- Brittney Cooper, Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Africana Studies, Rutgers University

Session III: 2:45 -4 p.m.

Session Information »
3a) Panel
Fahy 236
“Mansplaining: a very long history”
Chair: Aleksy Tarasenko-Struc, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Seton Hall University

“From Snark to Satire: Writing the Ideal Japanese Woman from Murasaki Shikibu’s Tale of Genji to Ihara Saikaku’s Life of an Amorous Woman”
- Anne Giblin Gedacht, Associate Professor of History, Seton Hall University
“The ‘Manly Woman’ and Women’s History in the Eighteenth-Century Portuguese Atlantic”
- Kirsten Schultz, Professor, Department of History, Seton Hall University
“Men and Moms in Midcentury America”
- Sara Fieldston, Associate Professor, Department of History, Seton Hall University
3b) Panel
Fahy 237
“Women’s History Month at 40, Black History Month at 100, and America at 250: Reprising diverse women’s stories during a contradictory season of commemoration and erasure”
Chair: Forrest Pritchett, Director, Martin Luther King, Jr. Leadership Program, Seton Hall University

Panelists:
- Carm Almonor, Africana Studies Program and Department of Political Science and Public Affairs, Seton Hall University
- Nkosi Anderson, Africana Studies Program and Department of Religion, Seton Hall University
- Stephanie Harris, Director, Africana Studies Program, Seton Hall University

Keynote Speaker

Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittany Cooper

This year we are pleased to welcome Brittney Cooper, Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Africana Studies at Rutgers University, as our keynote speaker. She is the author of The New York Times bestseller, Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower, and Beyond Respectability: The Intellectual Thought of Race Women, which won the 2018 Merle Curti Prize for Best Book in U.S. Intellectual History from the Organization of American Historians. Professor Cooper is also co-author with Susana Morris and Chanel Craft Tanner of Feminist AF: A Guide to Crushing Girlhood, a Kirkus top Young Adult Book of 2021 and nominee for the Garden State Teen Book Award from the New Jersey Library Association.

Questions?

Please contact the conference organizer Denise Vigani, denise.vigani@shu.edu.

Conference on Women and Gender 2026

The annual Seton Hall University Conference on Women and Gender, will take place on Friday, April 10, 2026 on Seton Hall University's South Orange campus.

Friday, April 10, 2026

Schedule of Events

Session I: 9 a.m.-10:15 a.m.

Session II: 10:30 - 11:45 a.m.

Luncheon Noon - 1: 15 p.m.Bethany Hall, Room C

Keynote Address 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.Bethany Hall Room C

Session III: 2:45 -4 p.m.

Keynote Speaker

Questions?

Luncheon Noon - 1: 15 p.m.
Bethany Hall, Room C

Keynote Address 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Bethany Hall Room C