Women's Studies (Department of) records

The Women's Studies Department is currently found within the College of Social Sciences and Interdisciplinary Studies. The Women’s Studies program at Sacramento State began to emerge in 1969 in response to the increased national attention to Women’s Rights and the adoption of Affirmative Action guidelines at Sacramento State. In 1970, Sacramento State officially began offering a Minor in Women’s Studies that was met with an influx of female students eager to sign up. As the programs’ popularity continued to rise a Coordinated Major was added to the department in 1974. The creation of the Women’s Studies program/department in the early 1970s was met with resistance and support by a variety of sources on and off the school campus. Available source material shows a lively debate between departments, individual faculty members, campus administration, and political agencies regarding not only the creation of the program but the structure of the curriculum. Although the Women’s Studies Department to this day still offers a Major and a Minor program of study this did not happen without the work and dedication of individuals like Sally Roesch Wagner, Carlagaye Olson, and Ellen Rosser Smith. In the early 1970s while supporters of the Sacramento State Women’s Studies Department struggled to find legitimacy for its program members of the department dedicated their time to feminist and women’s support groups on the national, state, and local level. Many members of the department’s Board and the Women’s Caucus wrote papers, gave speeches, and were actively involved in local groups like Sacramento Community Commission for Women, the Women’s Center, and the Sacramento County Chapter of NOW.