Dr. Stephanie Y. Evans has been named the next director of the Institute for Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Georgia State University.
Dr. Stephanie Y. EvansEvans is a scholar-administrator focusing on areas including Black women’s intellectual history, mental health and wellness, social justice, empowerment education and African American literature and history. She comes to GSU from Clark Atlanta University, where she was chair of the African American Studies, Africana Women’s Studies and History (AWH) Department.
“I feel honored and energized at my selection as the incoming director of the Institute for Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies,” Evans said by email. “After eight years at the University of Florida and eight years at Clark Atlanta University, Georgia State University is a natural progression for my work. It seems to me that GSU is the ‘best of both worlds,’ combining several of the most attractive elements of my two prior institutions.”
WGSS faculty, students, staff and others in the GSU campus community have been “incredibly welcoming,” Evans added, noting that she appreciates the outreach that has already begun during her onboarding process.
As director, Evans said she is thrilled to work with a network of colleagues to shape the next phase of the institute’s growth “during this important moment in state, national, and international history.”
The institute, she said, has an “extremely committed” core faculty, involved affiliate faculty and several student groups that are working to carry out the mission of critical feminist womanist scholarship, teaching and community engagement.
“As WGSS celebrates 25 years of the Institute and will commemorate 50 years of the academic discipline of women’s studies in 2020, I hope to highlight the excellent work already happening, particularly in a way that addresses ongoing human rights issues,” Evans said. “Of course, I also look forward to sharing my research on Black women’s wellness and making the most of resources like the Black Women’s Studies Booklist.”
In 2011, Diverse named Evans an Emerging Scholar.
Evans earned a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Long Beach and a master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She will begin her role at GSU on July 1.
