Abby Buckingham – Houghton STAR

I am a proud feminist. Make no mistake, though; I am not a feminist with a chip on her shoulder. I am appreciative of everything that the feminist movement has done for me. I love that I can vote. I have great plans for my life that do not feature getting married and having children. I would not be opposed to marriage but I have not made it a priority because I do not have to marry to survive. I have nothing against women who want to get married and have children, though. I am simply thankful for options.

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Yet, we need feminism. Women still earn only 77 cents on the male dollar in the United States. The Steubenville rape case showed that victim-blaming rape culture is alive and well. Young girls all over Twitter jump to Chris Brown’s defense anytime someone mentions the fact that he hit Rihanna with enough force to cause major bruising and say heartbreaking things about how they would let Chris Brown beat them to a bloody pulp.

A few weeks ago, Hanna Rosin published a short article on Slate called “Marissa Meyer Thinks Feminists Are a Drag. Is She Right?”. Rosin’s main premise was drawn from an interview with PBS in which Marissa Meyer described feminists as women with a “chip on the shoulder”. Within the past year, Meyer was appointed the CEO of Yahoo. Feminists across the country celebrated the appointment of a woman to such a high profile position in a male dominated field. Much to the disappointment of these feminists, Meyer has said a few times that she is not a feminist and has worked to dissociate herself from the movement. I have been tracking Meyer’s comments and movements, along with other women in the spotlight who reject the term “feminist”, with much chagrin.

How can these women disregard the way that feminism has fought for their right to be in such positions of power? Do they realize the example they are setting for younger women?

We need to stop calling it feminism, according to Rosin. The word has too many negative connotations, which accumulated as misogynists fought against the rise of feminism and were further perpetuated by (as Meyer said in the same interview) “militant” feminists. Rosin fails to propose a new term, though. I suspect this is because there is no word that can capture the movement in the way that ‘feminism’ can. The term has over one hundred years of fighting power behind it.

Egalitarianism may come in a close second to the term of feminism but it lacks the punch that feminism has. The term definitely goes hand in hand with feminism but, to me, it is the end goal. Some people are already egalitarians, which is wonderful. I have multiple male friends who call themselves feminists and treat me with complete equality. However, we are not in a cultural place where egalitarianism can replace feminism. Too much animosity towards women still exists.

As a feminist, I think women in my age group need to own the term. Each wave of feminism has made it mean something to them and I refuse to give up because it has accumulated negative connotations. We can change those. However, we need to work together. I often hear “I’m not a feminist but…” on Houghton’s campus. I hear things such as: “I’m not a feminist but I would never, ever let him treat me that way.” Or, “I’m not a feminist but I will wear leggings as pants because they’re super comfortable and it’s not my job to keep men from looking at my butt!” Or, “I’m not a feminist but I would love to have a career outside of the home and a husband who helps me with domestic chores.” Congratulations to anyone who has ever said such things, you are actually a feminist.

I understand why many people do not want to associate themselves with feminism. There certainly are militant feminists who are angry at the patriarchy and want to incessantly discuss this fact. However, they are not the majority. They simply have the loudest voices. If women who strive for equality would join together, we could rise above the militant feminists and work toward a connotation of feminism that is positive. We could make it a movement that people want to be a part of.

Am I being a bit idealistic? Of course I am! However, if we are going to fight the awful aspects of our culture, like the rape culture that has been so prominent in the past few weeks, women need to band together and promote feminism. Even if you do not feel oppressed, even if you are happy with your life, other women in the world need you to be a voice of reason. Men, you can take part as well. Just treat women with equality. That is all we want, in the end.

This year, professors Jillian Sokso, Marlene Collins-Blair, Susan Bruxvoort Lipscomb, Ndunge Kiiti, Kristin Camenga, Brandon Hoffman, and David Huth reached tenured status.

The track to tenure begins in a professor’s second year of teaching, when they undergo a review within their department. Then, four years into their appointment, they undergo an intermediate review. Six years into their teaching, the professor is reviewed a final time by the chair of their department and a faculty member. Finally, in the seventh year, the professor is reviewed once more and also undergoes a hearing. In the spring, the Board of Tenure makes a final decision.

“Tenure itself something that is, ultimately, good for the institution because it ensures faculty stability and protects the freedom of scholars to pursue their disciplines”, said Professor Bruxvoort Lipscomb, English, of the process. Tenure can also be a stressful process, Bruxvoort Lipscomb points out. “The process itself, however, produces a lot of anxiety because the stakes are so high–professors who are not granted tenure must leave the institution.”

The tenure process helped Professor Sokso, Art, gain some insight into her work. She said, “Preparing for the reviews and hearing helped me to gain some clear insights about my teaching and research practices, and I feel that I am a better instructor and scholar because of that reflective process, paired with some intentional goal setting for the future.”

All of the tenured professors are great contributors to the communities within their academic disciplines. Sokso recently illustrated one of the criterions for tenure, “integration of faith and teaching/research” in a recent collaboration with Women of Hope International in Sierra Leone. She taught disabled women how to make paper from indigenous plant fibers. She said of the trip, “I saw that opportunity as an authentic extension of both my studio and teaching practices, an example of my commitment to care for God’s creation, and the chance to simply love people who have been abused and disadvantaged their entire lives.”

Professor Camenga, Mathematics, had the chance to attend the Joint Mathematics Meeting in San Diego, California in January with a few of her students after they spent the summer participating in National Science Foundation-funded research. This conference is the premier national mathematics meeting and she said she gets “the greatest joy from the accomplishments of my students.” She said that she celebrates “the unique path that God is taking each of my students and hope that I had a small part in that.”

“With higher education in such a turbulent state right now, I think that many professors feel grateful just to have a job. And it’s really a great job–one in which we get to pursue intellectual and artistic development and be involved in shaping the minds and vocations of students,” said Bruxvoort Lipscomb.

Achieving tenure is an honor, and all of the professors recognize this fact. Sokso said, “I’m very happy to be among the many established colleagues who have chosen to give of their time, talents and lives to this community.” Bruxvoort Lipscomb said, “I know that I’m grateful for my job at Houghton. And I’m grateful that it’s more secure now because I successfully completed the tenure process.” Camenga echoed the sentiments of her colleagues saying, “I am honored to have been awarded tenure and promotion and look forward to continuing to serve the Houghton community.”