The Women’s and Gender Studies Program is excited to announce our 2023-2023 Scholarship awardee’s! This year we were able to support four undergraduate awards for the Linda Galyon Scholarship. Each awardee was asked to tell us a little about themselves and why they enjoy the WGS program. Here is what they had to say!
Kaylynn Dresch (she/her) is a junior double majoring in English and Women’s and Gender Studies. They also serve as the programs social media manager! Here is what Kaylynn said about her experience with the program;
My WGS experience has been nothing short of unforgettable, I have completely adapted to an intersectional frame to which I view my life, which I think has enhanced my experiences as both a person and a student, and I owe it all to Women’s and Gender Studies courses. I had never even known that intersectionality was a thing before taking these courses.
I chose to major in Women’s and Gender Studies because I was originally a mentee in the Writing and Gender Learning Community my freshman year and completely fell in love with the content taught in the intro course. And being a part of the LGBTQIA+ community, I finally felt myself being represented in course content, and I knew that I absolutely had to absorb as many of these courses as I could, and what better way than to add a major in it!
Olivia Garcia (she/her) is a junior double majoring in Women’s and Gender Studies and Environmental Studies. She also was one of the WGS Conference student interns this year, and here is what she had to say about her WGS Experience;
I chose to major in WGS after taking WGS 201 my freshman year. Ever since then, I’ve loved my experience in the program because it allows me to learn about different communities and identities outside of my own. Attending a PWI, there is not a lot of representation of people of color in academia, so by putting myself in this space I hope to help pave the way for other multicultural students and Latinx students like myself who deserve to be in higher education spaces. I believe that everything I’ve learned in the WGS program is extremely relevant to a lot of the issues that we are seeing today, and feel that leaving the university, I will be better prepared to handle these issues. Things that I’ve learned in the WGS program inform my everyday decisions and allow me to become a more well-rounded individual.
Jaiden Jarmosco (she/her) is a third-year student at Iowa State, double majoring in WGS and Communication Studies, with a Leadership Studies Certificate. Here is what Jaiden said about WGS;
The WGS program has changed my life in many aspects! My freshman year I started my undergrad in Nutritional Studies. One week into taking my first WGS class, I was sold and changed my major. WGS felt like one of the first decisions I made for myself. I am looking forward to incorporating WGS insights into all the spaces I exist in. Whether that be jobs working outdoors, the nonprofit world, and/or working with LGBTQIA+ youth in my future!
The WGS program provides expansive and analytical learning opportunities, and this continues to be an essential tool to my academic toolbox. As a queer individual, WGS has created spaces to exist, learn, and find joy in academia. I am forever grateful and privileged to gain intersectional perspectives and knowledge because of this program.
Kaibrea Schoning (she/her/hers) is currently a junior at Iowa State University majoring in Women’s & Gender Studies on a pre-medicine track. As an aspiring physician with plans to later specialize in obstetrics/gynecology, Kaibrea can confidently say her holistic approach to medicine would not be as enhanced without the WGS program.
It is through WGS specifically that I have the ability to examine societal imbalances, specifically within medicine. The skills and determination I’ve obtained throughout my time as a WGS major will directly translate into my career, viewing patients with an equal lens, regardless of gender, race, age, etc. I am honored to have the opportunity to create a future of eliminated discriminatory practices within healthcare.
Congratulations to all of our scholarship awardees!