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Welcome to our new website! The WCWI website reconstruction project that started in August of 2003, boasts a new archives section devoted entirely to the history of WCWI and documents the historical achievements of women at UWO. Enjoy!
WCWI Essay Award Winners for 2003 are Jenna Flannigan and Lilianne Dang! Please see Essay Awards to read all WCWI winning essays.
As the incoming President of Women’s Caucus, I’d like to welcome you to the Caucus and invite you to join and participate in the activities that are taking place this year.
Since its founding in 1980, the Women’s Caucus has been instrumental in bringing about beneficial changes for female faculty and staff at Western, so it’s a great privilege to serve as the President for the coming year.
We have a number of interesting events that are going to take place. Coming up in December, we will be unveiling our redesigned website.
Another event we are planning is to have a launch of the Women’s Caucus archives project. As well, we are discussing the possibility of having a conference on the topic of Women in Science at Western, perhaps in the spring.
WCWI will also be conducting an essay contest open to undergraduate and graduate students. The winners will be announced in Fall 2004.
Watch for forthcoming details!
I’m sure other projects will arise throughout the coming months – they always do! It should be a great year. I look forward to meeting you at some of our events. And, as always, if you have concerns or issues relating to the status of women on campus, please don’t hesitate to bring them to our attention.
Cheers,
Gloria Leckie,
Faculty of Information and Media Studies.
The University of Western Ontario Caucus on Women’s Issues was formed in 1980 to promote and safeguard the interests of women at The University of Western Ontario and its affiliates. Our objectives are as follows:
Constitution
Articles
Article 1: Name
The official name of the organization shall be: "The University of Western Ontario Caucus on Women's Issues."
Article 2: Aims and Objectives
Aim: The aim of the organization shall be to promote and safeguard the interests of women at the University of Western Ontario and its affiliates.
By-Laws
By-Law No. 1: Membership
a) Eligibility: Anyone employed as a full or part-time
member of the faculty or staff, and any graduate student of The University
of Western Ontario and its affiliates is eligible for membership in the
organization.
b) A person becomes a member of the organization by being eligible and by
paying dues.
c) Additional members may be admitted to the organization by a special vote
of the Executive Committee.
By-Law No. 2: Dues
a) Dues are payable once per academic year.
b) The amount of the dues shall be determined by the general membership.
By-law No. 3: Officers and Governing Body
a) The officers of the organization shall be:
President
1st Vice-president
2nd Vice-president
Secretary
Treasurer
b) The governing body of the organization shall be an Executive Committee consisting of the officers of the organization,the immediate past president, and an indefinite number of elected representatives of the general membership serving on the Executive Committee as members-at large.
By-Law No. 4: Election and Tenure of Officers and Executive Committee Members
a) The secretary of the organization shall act as the chair of an ad hoc Nominating Committee appointed by the Executive Committee. Nominations shall be solicited by this committee and will be accepted from the floor at the general membership meeting for the election of Officers and Executive Committee members.
b) Voting: Election of the Officers and Executive Committee members (including members-at-large) shall take place at a meeting of the general membership and shall be by simple majority of secret ballots where more than one candidate has been nominated, or by acclamation when only one candidate has been nominated.
c) Terms of Office: The term of office for Officers and Executive Committee members shall be for one year or until their successors are elected.
d) Successive Terms: Officers shall be eligible for election to the same office for two or more consecutive terms.
e) Vacancies: Vacancies on the Executive
Committee shall be filled by appointment of the Executive Committee.
By-Law No. 5: Management of the Organization
a) Unless otherwise ordered by the Executive Committee, there shall be at least three general membership meetings during the academic year.
b) The election of Officers and of the Executive Committee, amendments to the Constitution and By-laws, and the establishment of policy and dues must be approved by a meeting of the membership at which a quorum is present. Ten percent of the membership shall constitute a quorum. A simple majority vote shall be required. Letter ballots shall not be used.
c) The Executive Committee shall be entrusted with administration of all other organizational matters.
d) The Executive Committee shall be empowered to make rules for its own procedure, providing always that questions before the Executive Committee shall be settled by majority vote of the Executive Committee.
e) Upon receipt of the Executive Committee of a written request signed by 10% of the membership, the president shall be required to call a general meeting within 14 days.
By-Law No. 6: Standing and Ad Hoc Committees
The Executive Committee may appoint Standing or Ad Hoc Committees as it considers necessary to promote the aims of the organization.
By-Law No. 7: Amendments to the Constitution and By-laws of the Organization
Members shall be notified in advance of meeting of all proposed changes and the constitution and by-laws.
By-Law No. 8:Policy on Endorsements and Mailing List
Decisions about what to endorse,co-sponsor or circulate information about via the electronic mailing list will be made by caucus executive on a case by case basis. Decisions will be made by those members of caucus executive who can be reached. In making these decisions, the executive will be guided by the following principles:
Activities
1. General meetings take place at least twice each year. They provide opportunities to discuss current issues of interest, to plan activities and to meet others on campus who are interested in women’s issues.In addition, the WCWI executive meets once a month, and more often when necessary to keep on top of developments. If you are interested in joining the WCWI Executive for the year 2004-05, please contact WCWI president.
2. The WCWI Newsletter appears several times a year, thanks to Frances Bauer. It is distributed by email to all members of WCWI and is also available on this website. Please contact Frances if you have news, announcements of talks in your department or on campus, or other items of interest for the newsletter.
3 . WCWI in cooperation with others has sponsored production of videos on the chilly climate experienced by women on campus and on sexual harassment on campus. If you or your campus group would be interested in seeing one of these videos, contact Equity Services, SLB, 661-3334. If you would like to purchase one please see Order Videos.
4. Caucus also serves as a liason between many women's organizations outside the university and the community of Women at Western including the National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC) . Contact the vice-president if you have news relevant to NAC and WCWI.
5. Increasingly, WCWI is called upon to comment on issues and policy or to name representatives to sit on UWO committees. If you have special interests and would like to represent WCWI be sure to list your interests on the membership form or to communicate your interests to the executive.
6. Finally, WCWI makes two special awards each year:
A) The Women’s Studies Essay Award , intended to recognize a student or students whose creativity, scholarship and understanding of issues facing women in society and across cultures shows commitment to women’s studies. For i nformation about eligibility and timing of submissions see Essay Awards.
B) The Montreal Memorial Book Award is given to a female student in Engineering who is entering second year and who holds no other awards. This award is in honour of the fourteen women ki lled at the Ecole Polytechnique on December 6, 1989.
This page offers biographical information on the WCWI Executive Committee Members.
2003/04 Executive Committee Members
Gloria J. Leckie
Associate Professor
Associate Dean
Middlesex College Room 255D
Phone: 519 661-2111 x88505
University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5B7
Fax: (519) 661-3506 Email: leckie@uwo.ca
Teaching
My areas of teaching centre around cataloguing and classification, academic
librarianship, foundations of library and information science, and scholarly
and professional communities of practice. I teach in both the MLIS and PhD
programs.
Research Interests
My research has been primarily related to higher education and academic
libraries. In particular, I have looked at faculty status for academic librarians,
and downsizing in academic libraries. I have also conducted research related
to information literacy. Anne Fullerton (University of Waterloo) and I have
an overview of information literacy in higher education coming out this
spring in the latest volume of the Encyclopedia of Library and Information
Science.
Lately, I have been exploring a new area, relating to the role of central public libraries as civic space. Jeff Hopkins (a colleague in Geography) and I obtained a SSHRC grant to do a comparative study of the Metro Toronto Reference Library and the new Vancouver Central Public Library and the impact these two libraries have as a type of civic space. We are currently writing up the findings and giving various presentations about this study.
Tracy Isaacs
Associate Professor, Philosophy
Acting Director, Centre for Women’s Studies and Feminist Research
Tracy Isaacs has been a fulltime faculty member in the Department of Philosophy since receiving her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992. Her main areas of research and teaching are moral philosophy and feminist ethics.
Her principal research project right now is a book on the impact that collective contexts have on individual moral responsibility. In recent months, she has written papers related to the book, including a discussion of individual responsibility for collective wrongs, and an examination of the ways that oppressive social contexts compromise liberatory agency, as well as ways that such obstacles might be overcome. She hopes to have a complete manuscript by the spring. Her next major research project will tackle issues of agency and identity under oppression, with a focus on race.
Tracy has been active on the Caucus executive since 1997, and served as Caucus President from 2000-01 to 2002-03. Her work with Caucus has been one of the most rewarding parts of her time at Western so far. This year (2003-04) she is Acting Director for the Centre for Women’s Studies and Feminist Research. She will resume her regular duties in Philosophy on July 1, 2004
Gillian Demeyere
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Law
gdemeyer@uwo.ca
Gillian Demeyere joined the Faculty of Law as an assistant professor in 2003. She received her B.A., LL.B. and M.A.(Philosophy) from the University of Western Ontario, and an LL.M. from the University of Toronto, where she is currently completely her S.J.D. (Doctorate in Law). Her research is primarily in the areas of labour law, human rights and private law theory.
Andrea Purvis
e-mail: ajpurvis@uwo.ca
position: Administrative Assistant
room: Talbot College 315
phone:
fax:
(519) 661-2111 ext 85742
(519) 661-3922
University service:
Member of the Executive, Western's Caucus on Women's
Issues
Member, President's Committee for the Safety of Women on Campus
Frances has been Ombudsperson since June 1988. Before becoming Western's Ombudsperson, she held held positions at Dawson College, Concordia University and John Abbott College, all in Montreal. She holds a B.A. from the University of Manitoba and two Master's degrees from Concordia. She was a founding member of the Association of Canadian College and University Ombudspersons (ACCUO), and has served that organization as both President (1990-91) and Secretary (1996-98). She has also served as Member-at-Large on the Board of the University and College Ombuds Association (1994-96). In December 2001 she was elected to the Board of Directors of the newly formed Forum of Canadian Ombudsman (forum canadien des ombudsmans) as the representative of the College and University section.
Sara Steers
Sara Steers is Associate Director, E-Alumni and Development & Outreach, Department of Alumni Relations and Development, UWO and graduated from Western in psychology in 1981.
Sara worked in continuing education at Western before joining the Department of Alumni Relations and Development at The University of Western Ontario in September 1997.
At Alumni Relations and Development Sara oversees the ways Western reaches out to its alumni and students world-wide through regional programming and the Internet.
Sara has Chaired several professional development conferences
and has presented at various conferences on privacy issues, alumni relations
and e-communications.
She is a current Board member and Treasurer of the Canadian Council for
the Advancement of Education-Ontario Chapter and chairs the Privacy Legislation
Task Group.
Sara was a past president of Western’s Caucus in the mid-nineties and is currently a member at large on the Board
Dr. Carolyn McLeod
Assistant Professor
Talbot College Phone: (519) 661-2111 x85877
University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario, Canada N6C 1H1
Fax: (519) 661-3922
Email: cmcleod2@uwo.ca
Carolyn McLeod received her B.A. (Honours) and M.A. from Queen's University,
and her Ph.D. from Dalhousie University. Her supervisors were Christine
Overall (for the M.A.) and Susan Sherwin (for the Ph.D.). From 2001-2002,
she was assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Tennessee,
Knoxville. In the two years prior to that, she was a Social Sciences and
Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) postdoctoral researcher at
the Bioethics Center, University of Minnesota, and the philosophy department,
University of Western Ontario. In 2002, she published Self-Trust and Reproductive
Autonomy with The MIT Press. Her book and research interests in general
cover areas at the intersection of philosophical moral psychology and health
care ethics. Her sub-areas of interest are feminist theory and reproductive
ethics.
Why Join WCWI?
A faculty member says, "I joined Western's Caucus on Women's Issues because there were so few women in my department. I wanted to get to know other women; to find out what was happening on campus and to get involved. Caucus has been the most effective way I have found to work for change here at Western." -Margaret Kellow, Past President
A graduate student comments, "It's important to me that my feminism be expressed in more than just talk. Being involved with Caucus lets me be a part of an organization that forces positive change in my community, improving the status and the situation of women at Western." -Letitia Meynell
And a staff member says, "Membership in Caucus has given me the opportunity to become much more aware of, and involved with, women's issues that are important to me. Caucus is a lively and very welcoming group, and I urge other staff members to consider joining." -Andrea Purvis
Enter your graduate or undergraduate essay this year!
Details: Award: $200
Length: Maximum 3000 words
Due: May 31, 2004.
Criteria: Original Work (e.g. term papers, seminar papers, etc.) A topic involving research on women Scholarly, but accessible style. Collaborative efforts welcome. Submissions welcome from any discipline.
Send 3 Copies to: Anne Cummings, Faculty of Education
Please include an address where you can be contacted and your student number. Specify whether graduate or undergraduate student.
We are proud to publish all Essay Award winners on the WCWI website:
WCWI Newsletters (current academic year):
Fall l, 2003 (coming soon)
WCWI Newsletters (past years):
Fall
I, 1999 Fall
II, 1999
Fall I, 2000 Fall
II, 2000
Spring I, 2001 Spring
II, 2001
Fall I, 2001
Fall II, 2001
Spring
I, 2002 Spring
II, 2002
Fall l, 2002 Fall
ll, 2002
Videos Available From WCWI:
1. The Chilly Climate: In Colleges and Universities
"The film is excellent, important, and makes its point with vigour,
intelligence, and humour" (Sheldon Levy, Vice-President, York University,
Ontario).
"The video is having a tremendous impact... Our Employment Equity Office
is constantly receiving requests that it be shown" (Lousie Forsyth,
Dean, College of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Saskatchewan,
Saskatchewan).
This film is a fast-paced and interesting collage of the voices of many different women who clearly and succinctly outline the issue of the chilly climate and its pervasive harm in universities and colleges. The issues in this film are still relevant, and more than simply for the historical account it presents. A facilitator's manual is also available to direct post-viewing discussion.
2. Backlash to Change: Moving Beyond Resistance
In the name of freedom of speech, liberal values, and individual expression,
those opposed to equality justify their backlash to change. Constructive
change to eliminate discrimination on the basis of gender, race, class or
ability faces many different forms of backlash tactics to prevent constructive
change from happening -- or to turn it around.
3. Backlash to Change: First Nations People
Speak Out
"Backlash has deep roots in racism, oppression and genocide. Our people
have survived over 500 years of attacks on our culture, livelihoods, and
communities...." Backlash to equity is not new for First Nations people.
Elders need to pass on stories to bring truths forward, to expose the wounds
that allow healing to take place. In this film First Nations people share
their insights into and experiences of backlash to equity.
The annotated links provided on this page are external. You will exit the WCWI website by clicking any of the links listed below.
On Campus
Women's Issue Network (WIN). Run by undergraduates, WIN offers a safe space on campus; it also coordinates many events throughout the year.
Equity Services . Sponsors events and provides confidential counselling and mediation services for those suffering harrassment or discrimination on the basis of race or gender -- or for other human rights issues.
Centre for Women's Studies and Feminist Research. Through the work of Women's Caucus, the Centre was established in 1987, and is jointly sponsored by the Faculties of Arts and Social Science.
Women's Studies: Weldon Library -- a fantastic research resource, both for holdings on campus and links on the web!! Includes an excellent background on International Women's Day.
Ad hoc Equity Issues Committee and Social Justice-For more information please contact the Society of Graduate Students.
Off Campus
National Library of Canada - Celebrating Women's Achievments: an excellent source celebrating "a selection of Canadian women who have made outstanding contributions. Each woman's life and achievements are described, followed by a list of suggested readings.
Archives and Special Collections-The Canadian Women's Movement Archives: This site is maintained by the University of Ottawa Library. "The Canadian Women's Movement Archives is a valuable resource for the study of "second wave" feminism in Canada. Founded in 1977 by feminist activists."
National Action Committee on the Status of Women: WCWI serves as a liason between many women's organizations outside the university and the community of Women at Western including the National Action Committee on the Status of Women. "The National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC) is the largest feminist organization in Canada. A coalition of more than 700 member groups, NAC has been fighting for women's equality for 27 years."
Ontario Women's Directorate: this site is maintained by the Government of Ontario. It offers various programs and information available to women residing in Ontario.
Library of Parliament-Women's Right to Vote in Canada: This chronological list of dates documents the implementation of women's right to vote across Canada.
Dawn Ontario-Disabled Women's Network Ontario: "DAWN Ontario is a progressive, volunteer-driven, feminist organization promoting social justice, gender equality, human rights & the advancement of equality rights of disAbled women through education, research, advocacy, coalition-building, resource development, and information & communication technology."
Womennet.ca-The Canadian Women's Virtual Information Centre:"Womennet.ca, the Canadian Women's Information Centre, helps women respond to challenges and improve their quality of life. Whether they are working outside the home or parenting, on their own or with a spouse, young, middle-aged or elderly, women face challenges. Womennet.ca is the site to turn to for information and resources to help women take charge of their lives."
Amnesty International-Listen to the Women: This site offers "profiles of women human rights activists around the world, and the Amnesty International members who help safeguard these women’s right to carry out their important work."
2003/04 Executive Committee Membership
Gloria Leckie,
President
Tracy Isaacs,
Past President
Kelly Olson,
Vice President
Stephanie
MacLeod, Treasurer
Gillian Demeyere,
Secretary
Andrea Purvis,
Safety Committee Representative
Frances Bauer,
Newsletter
Letitia Meynell,
Archivist
Sara Steers,
Social Programming
Debra Dawson,
Memberships
Anne Cummings, Essay Awards
Liz Kelly,
Member-at-Large
Madeline Lennon,
Member-at-Large
Bonnie MacLachlan,
Member-at-Large
Carolyn McLeod,
Member-at-Large
WCWI website copyright statement:
The content (content being images, text, programs and scripts) of this website
is copyright © Western's Caucus on Women's Issues, unless otherwise
stated below as belonging to other specified copyright holders.
The content of this website can be accessed, printed and downloaded in an unaltered form, with copyright acknowledged, on a temporary basis for personal study and non-commercial use. Written permission must be obtained from WCWI, including:
Requests for permission to reproduce material from this website should be addressed to the corresponding person found at the contact us page.
WCWI has made every reasonable effort to locate, contact and acknowledge copyright owners and wishes to be informed by any copyright owners who are not properly identified and acknowledged on this website so that we may make any necessary corrections.
Other individuals and organisations wishing to make WCWI content accessible through their websites are encouraged to create hypertext links to the required content on this website.
More information and free advice about copyright law in Canada is available from the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.
The images found on the WCWI website have been borrowed for non-comercial use and are credited as follows:
Image of Emily Murphy
© Public Domain
Source: Emily Murphy, crusader : "Janey Canuck" / by Byrne Hope
Sanders --
Toronto : Macmillan, 1945. -- xviii, 355 p., [11] leaves of plates :
ill., ports. ; 23 cm.
Reproduced from the National Library of Canada's website,
www.nlc-bnc.ca/women
Image of Rosie the Riveter
We Can Do It!
by J. Howard Miller
Produced by Westinghouse
for the War Production
Co-Ordinating Committee
NARA Still Picture Branch
(NWDNS-179-WP-1563)
Image of Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene Khan
Written permission granted from Samantha Burdett
Information Services Coordinator
Amnesty International Canada
sburdett@amnesty.ca
613 744 7667 extn. 249
Image of Roberta Bondar
This photo, borrowed from the National Library of Canada (DITS #440) is copyrighted to the Canadian Space Agency @ www.space.gc.ca.
Image of Florence Bird
Photographer: Harry Palmer-Details can be found at the National Archives of Canada in the ArchiviaNet's Photograph Database under Florence Bird. The Negative Number is PA-182436.
Image of Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value Protest in Ottawa
Photographer: Amada Bankier Date: May 10, 1975 Photograph taken in Toronto.
Image of WWll poster: Women of Britain come into the factories
Copyright Act, 1911
18. Without prejudice to any rights or privileges of
the Crown, where any work has, whether before or after the commencement
of this Act, been prepared or published by or under direction or control
of His Majesty or any Government department, the copyright in the work shall,
subject to any agreement with the author, belong to His Majesty, and in
such case shall continue for a period of fifty years from the date of the
first publication of the work.
http://www.wkac.ac.uk/poster/disclaimcopy.htm
Image of Suffrage poster: Votes for Women Wanted Everywhere
British suffragette poster of 1905
Copyright Act, 1911
18. Without prejudice to any rights or privileges of
the Crown, where any work has, whether before or after the commencement
of this Act, been prepared or published by or under direction or control
of His Majesty or any Government department, the copyright in the work shall,
subject to any agreement with the author, belong to His Majesty, and in
such case shall continue for a period of fifty years from the date of the
first publication of the work.
http://www.wkac.ac.uk/poster/disclaimcopy.htm
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There may be Websites linked to and from this site that are operated or created by or for organizations outside of the WCWI. Those organizations are solely responsible for the operation and information (including the right to display such information) found on their respective Websites. The linking to or from this site does not imply on the part of the WCWI any endorsement or guarantee of any of the organizations or information (including the right to display such information) found on their respective Websites.
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