Sacramento State recently became the eighth university in the California State University system to recognize the women’s studies program as its own major, which will allow students in the program to graduate with a bachelor’s degree.

Before, students interested in women’s studies had to declare it as a special major and go through a “tedious petition process” to become eligible, said women’s studies professor Sujatha Moni.

“Students were required to fill out a series of forms and provide justification (a personal statement) as to why they were petitioning for a special major in women’s studies,” Moni said. “There (were) several steps and signatures that a petition goes through before it could be approved by the Office of Undergraduate Studies.”

According to the university catalog, students who wanted to major or minor in women’s studies must have had a 2.5 minimum grade point average, submitted a statement outlining their educational and career goals and two or more letters of recommendation, and received the college dean’s approval.

The women’s studies department had tried for several years to turn the program into an accredited degree, but was never able to do so because of lacking funds. Finally in August, the department received approval from the CSU chancellor’s office.

Moni said an accredited degree symbolizes the recognition of the historical significance of centuries of women’s struggle for equality in society.

“It gives legitimacy to women’s studies as a serious academic discipline on par with other degree programs in the university,” Moni said. “I believe a bachelor of science encourages students to chose women’s studies as a major since they will get the same degree for their hard work as they would if they were to pursue a bachelor’s degree in engineering or humanities.”

Sally Wagner, a historian and women’s rights activist who established Sac State’s women’s studies department in 1971, said she is thrilled that the program is now its own major. She said it is the third women’s studies program in the nation after San Diego State and State University of New York in Buffalo.

Wagner recalled the struggles she and fellow professors went through in starting the program at Sac State.

“It is hard to describe what the environment was like at the time. We were pushing against a world where it was a natural thing for women to have a second-class status in everything,” she said. “To even think about a having an academic program that looked at the world through the lens of women, when every single discipline looked through the lens of a man, was unheard of. Women were essentially invisible. We were looked upon as a joke. It was not an easy thing to go through.”

Wagner said a degree in women’s studies gives students basic skills, such as verbal, writing, creative thought and critical analysis, which are needed in any career.

“In my experience working with employers, often times they are looking for someone who has a set of skills that will allow them to do the work. A women’s study major uniquely teaches those kinds of skills,” Wagner said. “Sometimes employers will assign a special role for the employee because of their background in women’s studies.”

Students who have already completed the petition for a special major in women’s studies can choose to take 12 additional units to receive a Bachelor of Science Degree in Women’s Studies.

Junior anthropology major Erica Lee said she recently found out about the change in the program’s status, and is now in the process of requesting to change her major to women’s studies.

“At my community college, I took a cultural anthropology class and my instructor focused on gender differences and similarities, and that is how my interest in women’s studies began,” Lee said. “I do not think I will have to stay an extra semester, but if I do it will be worth it because I am majoring in something I love.”

Laila Barakat can be reached at [email protected].