Professor L. Monique Ward
Area: Developmental
Research Interests: My research interests center on children’s and adolescents’ developing conceptions of gender and sexuality, and the contribution of those notions to their social and sexual decision-making.
What has been your proudest moment?
There are several. Watching my children (now 7 and 9) as they mature into
wonderful, smart, thoughtful people makes me continually proud. And being awarded
tenure stands out, perhaps because it was so recent. Reading my graduate students’
final dissertations is a high point as well.
What has been your most humbling experience?
Having my first manuscript rejected. Sitting on the Psychology Department’s
AEC and seeing how you really measure up in comparison to some spectacular
scholars. When I failed my driver’s test the first time (at age 25), and watched teeny
boppers pass around me.
What do you wish you had known at the beginning of your career?
Not to hold on to manuscripts too long; just get it written and get it out. I think
I nursed each of my first few manuscripts for about a year.
What is one thing most people don’t know about you?
I was captain of my High School Bowl team, which was a local TV quiz show.
Unfortunately we lost that year, or came in second as I like to say.
If you had to choose another career, what would it be?
I think I’d like to be a screenwriter. I love films and creative writing, and have
been working on a script since 1990. Okay, so I’m a slow writer.
"Five Minutes With..." Features
Rob Sellers | Cathy Lord | Patti Reuter-Lorenz | Monique Ward
Chris Peterson | Bill McKeachie | Margaret Shih | Cindy Lustig
On Our Minds 2005 Homepage
