(More Than) Grrrl Power! Girls Studies at UCF

Hey everyone, my name is Jen Torrent and I’m a senior at UCF this year as a Psychology major with a Sociology minor. I eventually plan on pursuing a PhD in Sport Psychology. I’m a cheerleading and gymnastics coach to pre-school students and that job pretty much drains me. Generally I do find some time for myself and I usually spend it in the gym. I’m an aspiring Olympic weightlifter, which can sometimes be a struggle socially, but a confidence builder at the same time. I’ve been dating a girl for the past two and a half years and that’s been a really awesome experience. I come from a very accepting family, so being gay is something I look at more as a blessing than anything else. I hope to gain a bit more working knowledge of society’s impact on girls which will give me insight on how to treat them as athletes/ clients. I’m excited to get some perspective and opinions from others. This is my first women’s studies class and also my first time blogging, so it’s almost like stepping into

Hey everyone. My name is Meagan Lorenzo and I am a grrl in transition. I am a senior at UCF majoring in Molecular and Microbiology hoping to continue on to medical school in the next year or so. In the last two years I have becoming very heavily involved in feminism, though I think I was born a feminist, and women’s studies and plan on always incorporating it in my life in some way. I love medicine, science, and feminism. I hope to find myself. As we all know, our identities are multi-faceted and as such our politics are fluid and subject to change. In the past few months my feminism has evolved and thus, I am a grrl in transition. I am taking this class because I’m a girl. Simple as that. I am interested in the way society and cultures shape our lives and experiences as girls. I know that the girls we know will grow into women and what better way to enhance and understand the female experience than to start at the beginning? “Your Life as a Girl.” I was shocked and hor

  Hello, everyone!!! May I just say this is my very first blog post ever! I am very familiar with blogs, I actually follow quite a few of them, but for some reason I just have never had the courage to create my own.  So, I guess I will start with the usual introduction… My name is Ana Alvarez, and I am currently majoring in Political Science with a minor in Legal Studies. As you can see this is clearly not a class required for my major/minor, but it caught my attention and figured it would be a very interesting class. Looking at the material, I am already loving it!!! GIRLPOWER!   My plan is to become a lawyer, right now prepping for the LSAT is my life L (taking it in Sept. 26). Although, I currently have a lot of stress in my life I try not to let it get to me. I love being active…. Exercising works as a great stress reliever for me. Spinning and kickboxing are a couple of my favorites. I am very happy with my life right now, of course it is nowhere near perfect but when will

Hello Everyone, My name is Natasha and I am sad to say that this will be my last semester at UCF because I will be graduating in December. My major is psychology and my Minor is Women's Studies. Women's Studies has literally changed my life, so much so that I plan on getting my Masters in Women's Studies. I think I have been a feminist all my life, I just never really knew what a feminist was until I started taking Women's Studies classes. Now, I am a strong activist for the Women's movement and what it represents. I love telling people I am a feminist and the actions, beliefs, and comments I receive in reply to that statement. lastly, I am happily married feminist with two CATS! Your life as a Girl” I think Sittenfeld effectively captures the girlhood experience, because she displays the constant struggle between the boy-girl relationships and the societal pressure for girls to conform to standards of what women should be. For instance, the boy’s nit-picking of

Hi! My name is Lauren, i'm 23 yrs old and a senior! I can finally say i'm in my last year at UCF! I have 4 classes left until I have successfully completed my bachelors with a major in psych. and a minor in women's studies. I am taking this course as one of my required courses for women's studies, they said they would sub it in. I am a manager at Publix, so I work a lot and basically have no life. Especially have no life with work, school, and volunteering at Serene Harbor, a local women's shelter. This would be why I have nothing too interesting to write about myself. :) As far as the readings go, I identified with these little girls' stories. I can remember feeling the same things when I was younger, it makes me wish I was a kid again - even though some of the feelings I felt weren't all that great. In "Your Life As a Girl", I cannot relate to this as much as some of my friends growing up could. I remember longing for a boy's attention, but

A bit about me Hi Everyone! My name is Amy Goldrod, and I am currently a junior here at UCF. I really love this school, and love being involved on campus. My first two years, I was a part of the Student Government Asssociation, and am also involved with Greek life. My major is Advertising/Public Relations, and have been interning in that field as well. Other things I have done in the past two years include teaching, being a camp counselor at a sleep away camp, and volunteering. I believe that you get out of life what you put into it, so I try to put in a lot! I am taking this class because I love taking Liberal Arts electives, and want a well rounded education. I would consider myself a “feminist” to a certain extent, but not in a radical way what-so-ever. My minor is Psychology and I figured that this class would be interesting and relate to my minor, as I have been learning about all different types of people. As a girl myself, I figure it is important to know about other woman. I h

Hello, my name is Hickory and I am a senior with a major in English Lit. and a minor in Women's Studies. I work a super full time job, take a full course load at the Orlando campus, workout like a freak, am recently divorced and take care of a small petting zoo at home (2 dogs, a cat, a rabbit and a blue and gold macaw). When I am not working, at the gym or cleaning up after my menagerie, I like to read. Imagine that, a literature major who likes to read! I am also big into music and of course movies. I am taking this course not only to satisfy my minor requirements but also to learn more about the trials of girls today. It has been awhile since I was a girl. I have to say, Sitteneld’s story did not sound familiar to me at all. I was not any of those things when I was a girl. I didn’t react as this girl did and I did not engage in the same ludicrous activities. I was actually disgusted by the girl in the story. I just could not believe that someone would let themselve

Introduction Hello everyone, my name is Angie, and like many of you, this is my first time blogging . Although I almost created an entirely new blog when I attempted to complete our first assignment, I suspect I'm going to enjoy this immensely! I am a non-traditional student, and a late bloomer. Although chronologically and physically speaking I am an adult, I am not ashamed to admit that I often struggle with the same issues I once faced as a girl . The truth is, some things never change, and quite often, we will have to face our past in order to advance into our future. I enrolled in this course because I am pursuing a double-major at UCF in Sociology and Women Studies. My goal is to become a full-time advocate for victims of crime. I specifically want to help victims of human trafficking, and want to do all I can to educate and enlighten our society about the existence of this heinous crime. Assignment I enjoyed reading Sittenfeld's story a s I was able to place myse

Pink Ribbons Fade Color As You Mature. Hello class! I am Elizabeth Nesbitt aka (Labbygirl.) I prefer to be called Liz. I am returning to college after an 18yr. hiatus’. I am an Interdisciplinary studies major in Humanities and Social Sciences with a minor in Health Administration. I am taking this class towards my major and I thought it seemed really interesting. I am in my early forties and work full-time for Shands Healthcare in Gainesville, Florida. I am a financial counselor and enjoy helping people. I am petite, use and electric wheelchair for mobility and drive a high tech. van. I have Spinal Muscular Atrophy a form of Muscular Dystrophy. I love dogs, and rescue Labrador retrievers for Florida Labrador Retriever Rescue in my county. I have a beautiful yellow lab named Tuffie, who is my service dog and goes with me everywhere. I live with my partner Terry of 20 plus years and truly love him. We have the first dog I ever rescued a big black 90lb. lab named Midnight. He is a gentle

Introduction My name is Brandon Male and I am a senior at UCF studying Technical Communication. I am from Miami, Fl. but I have lived in the Orlando area for about the past 4 years pursuing my education at UCF. I am a Buddhist, vegetarian, and I enjoy reading, writing, and talking about different ideas. One person that I really respect is the Dalai Lama. Throughout my time here at UCF I have been open to many different topics and I have taken a wide variety of classes, including criminal justice, political science, literature, business, education, sociology, and psychology. I figure women’s studies would be a good topic to add to my repertoire. Women, their specific struggles, and the differences and similarities between the two genders have always fascinated me. I figure that I can increase my personal worth by better understanding these topics. This is why I am enrolled in this class. Your Life As A Girl I enjoyed this well-written piece. I am unsure if she captures the real

I am Misty, I love singing, and I hope to heal from pelvic pain. I have a rare illness that affects women and men and finally just recently received its five minutes of fame on 20/20 (not me personally). Most gynecologists are men and told me I probably just had something psychiatric going on but now with research (and more women coming forward), it is discovered that I have nerve damage and a problem that may affect up to 200 million people. Women and healthcare and how they are treated as patients by male doctors are fascinating, really. Male doctors (and females) know our anatomy but not the nerves. It’s new to consider such a thing seriously; neurology of the pelvis. I am taking this class because first, this teacher is awesome and offers engaging readings and Anja and Tara weren’t included, for reasons I still don’t know” (Oldroyd 179). Secondly, I have a 10-year old daughter and am going back in time now (“Mommy, when will I have boobies and Mommy when do I get tampons?”)

Helloo! My name is Tara Anderson and I am in my 5th year as an Art major here at UCF. I am recently married and my husband and I both work at UCF. I work in the CAH Dean's Office as an Accounting Assistant (an Art major working as an accountant, weird I know!). I have also been doing a little design work on the side such as making wedding invitations for several of my friends and designing T-shirts. I enjoy going to baseball games and going dancing. I also LOVE to sing. I'm a master at flip cup even though I'm a lightweight. My favorite shows are Dexter and Project Runway. I love my boxer Rocky :). And I kind of hate sweating. Over the summer I took Intro to Women's Studies and I absolutely loved it! I loved it so much that I decided to minor in Women’s Studies. I am super excited about Girl's Studies and can't wait to get to know everyone a little better! In reading Your Life as a Girl, I think that Sittenfeld captures "girlhood" perfectly,

An Introduction Hello, my name is Jennifer Larino and I am a 21-year-old senior in my final semester at UCF. I hope to graduate in December with a degree in a journalism with a creative writing minor. In the meantime, however, I have the freedom to enroll in classes that truly interest me to fulfill my residency here. Girl's Studies will be my second women's studies course during my time at UCF and I am excited to begin breaking down and reliving the young female's experience. For a long time I have lamented the awkward and lonely girl that I was throughout middle and high school. I want to revisit her, understand her and, finally, learn to celebrate her. "Your Life as a Girl" and Red Response Sittenfeld's "Your Life as a Girl" was an interesting way to break into this course. It seemed in one fell swoop Sittenfeld captured much of the tensions, confusions and worries that shape, and sometimes plague, girlhood and female adolescence. While not all of

Hi everyone! I’m Kristen Bartlett and I am a junior in the Ad/PR program here at UCF. I love fashion and I plan to live in NYC in the future. I have an amazing boyfriend named Jeff, who I have been with for two and a half years now. I am so proud to be a woman and I am very excited about this class. I can’t wait to get my service-learning project started! Sometimes I get very upset about how much women have to fight for everything. Why has the world made it so that we are afraid to walk alone to our cars at night? I am looking forward to what I hope to be an empowering experience in this class. Sittenfeld, Curtis. “Your Life as a Girl” Right away I thought I would not be able to relate to this story because I was never really good at sports, and I never wanted to get dirty playing outside. I was pleasantly surprised as I read on. Sittenfeld writes, “Everything about you is horrifying: your voice, body, hair, inability to be witty and panicky desires for approval and

Hey new classmates! My name is Haley, I'm 22, and in my LAST semester ever at UCF! I'm getting my degree in interpersonal/organizational communication. While looking for the last few requirements of needing upper level classes, I saw the description of this class and immediately signed up. I first started getting interested in this topic in the Gender Studies class, which is why I was excited when I saw this class. I'm actually from Chicago, and moved here just for school. I'm always interning/volunteering at places relevant to my career. That's about all I can think of for now! Concering the "Your Life as a Girl" story, I was surprised at how into the story I was, wanting to see the next stage of Anna's thoughts and experiences. I think that it doesn't necessarily represent girlhood for everybody- I think that depends on environment and each girl herself. However, I think it was a great generalization of what many girls might experience in their

I’m Jessica Darden and I am a wife, mother, step-mother, and Interdisciplinary Studies/Women’s Studies major. My family is the most important thing to me and I would do anything for them. I am a stay at home mom who has a passion for women studies, marital devotion books, pop culture, blogging, face booking reality T.V. and HBO Sunday Nights.  I have taken Intro to Women’s Studies online with Ms. Preston last fall and learned so much. I am ready to take on this last semester with great vigor so that I can be an influence to the young girls that I will be helping. Moreover, I am growing smarter and stronger about who I am and why I love being a woman so much.  More importantly my faith ties it all together for me. I hope that I can learn a lot from others in this class and in return give great feedback. Week One Assignment: Sittenfeld, Curtis. “Your Life as a Girl. Sittenfeld captures some aspects of girlh

Hey! I’m Merritt Johnson, I’m currently a junior and an ad/pr major here at University fo central Florida. I am from the Keys and loveeee being outside and in the water. I am a big animal lover and love volunteering at the local shelter in the keys. My mom and I trapped over 40 feral cats got them spayed and neutered and feed them every day. I have a little sister that’s 13, her hormones are now raging, but we are like best friends. I took women’s studies with professor Preston this summer, and got a lot out of it and loved it. I am also currently enrolled in her WST 3621 class this semester. I didn't really relate myself to Anna, in “Your Life As a Girl”. I have never been athletic, yet I was not the homecoming queen or anything like that. For awhile I tried cheerleading, soccer, softball, lacrosse, only to find I’m very un-coordinated. I hung out with the pretty popular girls only to realize they were fake and not my friend. At that point, I didn’t care who I hung out with or wh

Hey class, I’m Mary. I’m a recently converted Interdisciplinary Studies student on the Women’s Studies track with a minor in literature, which means I’ll probably be at UCF for way longer than the average business student. I’m one of those people that can be halfway through their undergraduate degree with still no idea what I want to do with said degree when I finish. I am, however, growing more passionate about my activism, particularly with equal rights (animals’, womens’ GLBTQ, what have you. I’m not picky). I spend most of my time (when not in school or at work) writing, daydreaming, thrift-shopping, and making things. I’m taking the girls’ studies class mainly because last semester in my first few womens’ studies classes, I realized how insane my own girlhood was and how many issues girls face today. I’d like to be able to help girls’ in some capacity, because I know just how difficult it can be. I felt “Your Life as a Girl” captured girlhood in a sense, but it might have been exa

Hi everyone I’m Anita, but I go by Ani. I am originally from Michigan, so I hate this Florida heat. My time is spent reading, cleaning obsessively, and watching really trashy reality TV. I’m the girl in class that speaks way too much, I’m almost positive that every time I raise my hand people roll their eyes. My height has reached its peak at 5’1” but my voice never shakes. Growing up I thought I was supposed to be a boy, but my love of fashion and gossip helped me form a few friendships with girls. Now I realize that my reproductive organs should not determine how I act/love/speak/dream. I hope to one day earn a PhD. in Social Psychology, and create programs to help school boards minimize violence against open/out GLBT youth. I am taking this class for two reasons 1.it didn’t fit into my schedule the first time it was offered and came very highly recommended 2. I want to critically analyze why girls like me feel so out of place. Sittenfeld, Curtis. “Your Life as a Girl”

My Life as a Girl / Your Life as a Girl Mini autobiography: Hello friends! My name is Misty and I’m a Senior here at UCF. My major is Interdisciplinary Studies with concentrations in Physical Sciences and Humanities, as well as Minors in Theatre and Women’s Studies. I sing in the a cappella club, I’m an honors student, and I love to act in films. I’m taking this class because I’m very passionate about Women’s Studies, and also because I have a 15 year old sister and I want to be able to relate to what she is going through. I’m so excited for this class and look forward to working with all of you J Sittenfeld, Your Life as a Girl: I feel that Sittenfeld did capture girlhood effectively. To start, her style of writing was hectic and fast-paced, much like my own hectic and fast-paced experience of growing up as an adolescent and into my teens. The cruelty shown by her male classmates with the use of female-specific vocabulary was an accurate portrayal of how, once differences ha

Hi Everyone, My name is Amanda. As there are multiple Amanda’s here, I shall be known, henceforth, as Amanda W. : ) I have a teenage daughter. I’m taking this class because I need a more objective viewpoint in regard to her. It was not that long ago that I was a teenage girl but I was different from my daughter in many ways. (At least, my memory of myself is different from her.) She is very dramatic about seemingly everything. (I do not like drama.) I’m hoping this class will help me to put her attitudes and behaviors into perspective. I also hope it will help me to remember what it was really like for me as a 13-year-old girl. In this way, I hope to be able to relate to her better. Onto the readings…. I first read the section from Red. I was surprised at the high quality (and vocabulary) of writing some of these very young girls created. I enjoyed the whole “Anything Extracurricular” section. There were two essays in particular that I’d like to discuss. “Apiarian Days” by Samantha Gil