Transformation Now Course

The course is for everyone. This course provides a brief, detailed historical account of gender, the language that has shaped gender, the laws that have defined gender, and the various transnational revolutions that have taken place to redefine gender altogether. Students will be able to recognize how essentialist/biological determinist beliefs are used by institutions to reinforce systemic oppression so they may develop skills to transform their communities.

Any undergraduate and graduate UConn student can take the 1-credit UNIV-3088 course. Undergraduate students with 12 or more credits on the 10th day of classes will not be charged additional for this course. Non-degree/non-matriculated or part-time students may take the course but will be charged accordingly by credit. Please consult your advisor prior to dropping if you are using this course to achieve full-time status for financial aid.

Our community shaped our desire to construct this course. The lived experiences of students, staff, and faculty in our community reflect the expansiveness of gender, though much of our community is still mired in the binaries of gender based on our socialization and the lack of connection to experiences different than their own. We have come to learn that students, staff, and faculty are looking for opportunities to learn, and think more deeply about the nuances of gender. 

Student activism also inspired us to create this course. Our students are calling on UConn to respond more effectively to inequity and to be more proactive around gender and power based violence, discrimination, and harassment they are experiencing on campus. Moreover, the current socio-political context and the hundreds of anti-trans bills put forward, the on-going anti-black state sanctioned violence, the many proposals to reduce civil rights, and the overturning of Roe v. Wade threaten the essential human rights of privacy, freedom, and bodily autonomy motivated us to create this course.

The Women’s Center 50th anniversary  also presented an opportunity to acknowledge and interrogate the legacies of equity and anti-oppression work on campus and beyond. Ultimately, our investment in  transformation is connected to a sense of urgency about structural and systemic change. The teaching and learning in this course can help support community organizing to thwart these oppressions, to amplify the change work in progress, and to envision new futures.

You should expect to dedicate 6 hours a week to this course. This expectation is based on the various course activities, assignments, and assessments and the University of Connecticut’s policy regarding credit hours. (More information related to hours per week per credit can be accessed at the Online Student website.)

This course is graded Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U).  The course syllabus contains more detailed information.

For additional information on undergraduate grading policies see here: https://registrar.uconn.edu/grades/.

What is the cost in the fall or spring semester?
Pop-up courses offered during Fall and Spring semesters are coded 1-credit 1-cost. For matriculated students who are enrolled in 12 credits or more on the 10th day of the semester, a Pop-up course will be zero cost. Students who are enrolled in less than 12 credits on the 10th day and who enroll in one or more Pop-up courses will be billed for the credit costs of the course(s). There are no costs for materials.

What is the cost in summer or winter?

UConn students enrolled in a degree program (matriculated) may take a Pop-up course offered during any Summer Session and earn 1 credit at no cost. Matriculated students enrolled in any summer Pop-up course will receive a charge on their Summer Session bill for the cost, but an automatic waiver will be applied to bring the final cost to $0. Additionally, there will be no enrollment fees for taking a Pop-up course nor any costs for books or materials.

Note: This course is not available to non-degree / non-matriculated students in the summer nor winter sessions.

Without a W: Students can drop using normal add drop procedures prior to Monday, September 11th. Undergraduates must request the drop by Monday, September 11th to avoid receiving a “W” on the academic record.  Please consult your advisor prior to dropping if you are using this course to achieve full-time status for financial aid.

With a W: Requests made after Monday, September 11th must be made via the Registrar’s official withdrawal channels (Student Enrollment Request Form) and students must have advisor approval; all must be completed by Thursday, October 12, 2023. Please consult your advisor prior to dropping if you are using this course to achieve full-time status for financial aid.

Yes, if you are at your credit maximum, you should reach out to your advising dean’s office about the possibility of obtaining excess credit permission so you can take this course.

UNIV-3088 courses can be used to achieve full-time status only if enrolled within the first 10 days of the Fall or Spring semester. If this class is being used to achieve full-time status, students are to contact Financial Aid prior to dropping.