Impact That College Has on Feminism and the Effect That Feminism Has on College

In our first week’s readings we were introduced to many different articles. These articles all had a central idea, and that was to introduce us to what women’s studies are.   We learned a little about the history behind the women’s movement, with many important women who have help mold what feminism is today. In this week’s response paper, I am going to discuss the impact that college has on feminism and the effect that feminism has on college.   They go hand –in-hand.
My first look at the importance of college and feminism came with reading Claiming an Education by Adrienne Rich. What an eye opening article. I would have never thought to use the term claim about my educational rights. I have always said that I am here at Niagara University to receive an education in hopes to better myself for my future, “To claim is to take as the rightful owner; to assert in the face of possible contraction”(25) After all the struggle that we have been through as women throughout the years, Rich could not be more right about the fact that we are here to claim our education because we deserve it just as must as the next guy.   Rich says that “Today, with increasing numbers of women students in nearly every branch of high learning, we still see very few women in the upper level of faculty and administration in most institution.” (25) I understand that Rich is taking this as a bad thing, but to be completely honest with you, I look at it in a positive light. Now obviously I want to see more women in upper level faculty, and guess what? It will happen! We just need time.   It took 42 years for the women’s suffrage amendment to be introduced, so again, we just need to be patient. (Shaw&Lee,9) In 1970, women were not even allowed to attend schools like Dartmouth, Columbia, Harvard, West Point, Boston College(Baumgardner&Richards,29) and look at us today. There are a very high number of women in higher institutions claiming their educations, and eventually in time we will be in...