Institute for Research on Women and Gender
Established in 1995, the Institute for Research on Women and
Gender (IRWG) is the research umbrella that grew out of the
Women’s Studies Department at the University of Michigan.
Housed together in historic Lane Hall, this close proximity
provides for a dynamic partnership, allowing for heightened
awareness of the University of Michigan’s role in promoting women’s
and gender studies. While Women’s Studies is an academic
unit whose mandate is to prepare students for professional work
and further academic engagement in the field of women and gender
studies while supporting the research endeavors of its faculty, IRWG’s
primary purpose is to facilitate scholarship and disseminate
important findings to the academic and public communities.
IRWG
partners with other units throughout the University and with
universities around the world, bringing together diverse faculty,
staff and graduate students who are examining the experiences
of women and issues of gender. It supports scholarship, program
areas, and research studies that explore the impact of culture,
ethnicity, social class, economics, history, sexuality, education
and health on women’s and men’s lives. IRWG and Women’s Studies often
collaborate in organizing a variety of informative events such as conferences,
lectures, and discussion groups, as well as artistic exhibits that communicate
the importance and relevance of women’s and gender studies in the past,
present and future.
While IRWG serves as the organizational clearinghouse for
ongoing U-M research programs that focus on similarities and
differences between women and men, it shares a similar mission
with Women’s Studies in encouraging
education and mentoring between faculty, students and staff from a variety of
different disciplines.
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