FAQ's

Please browse our frequently asked questions and corresponding answers.

What is a Women's Center?

Historically, Women's Centers began emerging on college campuses around the 1970s and continue to be added to campuses to this day. (Tufts University Women's Center was founded in 1972) When Women's Centers were developed in the 1960s and 70s, they served as a safe space for women on campuses during a time when women were both a minority in numbers and a marginalized group on college campuses.  Despite the fact that many universities and colleges are now home to plus or minus 50% enrolled females, women are still institutionally marginalized as a group within society and still face gender discrimination, sexual harassment and violence on campus; therefore, a safe space (see our Statement of Respect) to explore issues of women and gender is still needed. It also important that we have administrative positions charged with advocating for gender inclusion and equality on campus.

Today, women continue to be underrepresented in positions of power on campus and in the world including student senate, tenured faculty positions, and high-powered careers. (These numbers often become even grimmer when we consider the race, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status of women who are in high levels of power) Women still disproportionately experience sexual harassment, sexual assault, and other forms of gender discrimination despite advancements in gender equality, gender education, and legal protections.

With the change of time and issues related to women and more broadly to gender, Women's Centers of today can take on many forms. Some exclusively address issues salient for women while others address these issues and also explore questions of gender across identity more broadly, considering the experience of men and other gendered folk. Tufts University Women's Center operates under this latter belief. The Director believes it is important to provide a space for all students to think about the ways that gender impact our lives and our interactions with others and the world we live in.

Who is welcome at the Tufts Women's Center?

One of the number one questions we get asked is if men are welcome in the center. All members of the Tufts community are welcome regardless of gender. What we do ask of all who enter is an adherence to our Statement of Respect.

What does not often get asked, but is essential to the functioning of the Tufts Women's Center is: Do we consider other aspects of identify and provide a welcoming space that is not only inclusive of all genders, but also inclusive and aware of race, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status and other identities?

The Director of the Tufts Women's Center, Steph Gauchel, has this to say, "We cannot examine gender without considering other aspects of identity. We are not just gendered beings, but raced, classed, sexualized and differently-abled beings, for example. So, for example, if we are talking about parenting at the Women's Center, I am asking people to think about all the ways that parenting is gendered. But, there isn't just one or two gendered parenting experiences. We need to think about intersecting identities that also impact the experience of being a parent and consider the cultural stereotypes or prejudices we have regarding this type of parent. For example, what is the experience of a white, straight, male-identified, single-father of a low socioeconomic status and how might this experience be different from the experience of a transgender, female identified, woman of color, middle class co-parent who does not identify with the label 'mother?' There is more to ask than, "What is it like to be a mother, a father, or a parent?" Steph Gauchel, Director

How is the Women's Center connected with other departments, centers, and programs on campus?

The Women's Center is part of the Group of Six (made up of the Asian American Center, Africana Center, International Center, Latino Center, LGBT Center, and Women's Center) and works collaboratively with both individual and all centers on various projects and programs.

The Women's Center Director is part of the Division of Student Affairs Social Justice Leadership Initiative Committee. The Director also serves on the AS&E Diversity Council and is on the Women's Studies Board.

The Women's Center co-sponsors programs and initiatives with a diverse group of departments; connects students to administrative and support offices and members of their staff; and collaborates with university departments and offices as needed to address issues of women and gender.

Why isn't there a Men's Center on campus?

This question can be answered in two ways. First, the Tufts Women's Center is open to all students who want to think about the ways in which gender impacts all of our lives. Secondly, as a group, men in our society and in societies throughout the world have not been systematically denied access, faced gender oppression, or had to fight for equal rights based on gender or because of their status as men. However, this does not mean that men have not suffered because of our gender system or that individual men have not experienced cruelty and violence as a result of cultural issues related to misogyny, masculinity and gender expression. Women on the other hand have historically experienced, and in most cases continue to experience, discrimination in such areas as voting, access to education, employment and salary equity, marital laws, religious institutions, social organizations, and more. Men as part of other disenfranchised identity groups have had to fight for some of these rights, but not because they are men: in these cases the fight for men has been about race, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status, for example.

Specific to colleges and universities, our curricula are based on the valued knowledge of our world. Historically, the knowledge that has been recognized, recorded, and passed on has been that of men, particularly white men. While many universities and individual professors are working to include more voices into their courses, this does not mean that all types of knowledge are universally valued or included or that the diversity of voice being added to curriculum is reflected by the pool of faculty teaching the courses, particularly faculty in tenured track, full time positions.

As has been echoed on many other University's Women's Center's websites, in essence, because of this history and the current status of women around the world, we could say that all society and social, educational, political and religious institutions have served as men's centers.

Who can I turn to if I have been sexually assaulted or raped?

Students who have experienced sexual assault may have a variety of reactions which may surface at different times following the assault. The Tufts Health Ed website has a comprehensive section to help you sort out your concerns and needs whether they are medical, emotional or academic. Please visit the sexual violence section of the Health Education website for important information and useful resources.