"Women in the Community" aims to address the gaps and misconceptions that often exist between feminism as an academic discourse and feminism in practice. Through classroom engagement and community involvement, students will explore the intersection of academia and activism as it pertains to working to improve the lives of women and their communities. WOMENSTD 350 students commit to volunteering in an area community-based organization as well as to active participation in the classroom. The course will consider the writings and work of well- and lesser-known activists and feminists; local, national, and international activism efforts current and past; and the roles of necessity, inspiration, and/or choice in working towards social justice. Students will have the opportunity to dialogue with community activists from diverse backgrounds and learn about community activism from a variety of perspectives. The course will encourage students to see themselves as world citizens and to assess their own passions and potential contributions to creating a more just world. Through readings, written assignments, classroom participation, and service experiences this course endeavors to nurture and facilitate: critical thinking about community service, feminisms, and their relationships to social change; consideration of how feminist thought can be applied to work in communities and how communities can inform feminist thought; and the development of skills for working effectively within community-based organizations and with communities around issues that affect women’s lives. No Instructor Consent Needed.