I saw this old ad for Legos and thought how wonderful that the girl is in regular play clothes, enjoying a non-gendered toy.  No princess outfit, tea sets, glitter or dolls.  The caption says it all for me, "What is it is beautiful."

Introduction

Hello my name is Gerri and this is my junior year at UCF. I am seeking a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, Majoring in Art History and Humanities and minoring in Woman’s Studies. I love cooking and gardening, hiking, and sailing.  I am not your normal college student but I have noticed that there are quite a number of 50 + year old students on campus. It’s great to see that people are going back to school and starting a new chapter in their lives. I am a wife, daughter, mother, sister, and aunt and soon to be grandma that want to be a mentor to young girls to help them see that life is more than what TV and Magazines shows and how to succeed in life  becoming  strong and independent.

I am interested in woman and girl studies so that I can use the experience I have in living life with the knowledge that I will acquire through these classes to help relate with girls. Raising two strong young men to respect woman was an accomplishment that I am very proud of and enjoy their success in their personal relationships with strong young woman. My oldest son is married to a strong independent woman that he respects and supports in all of her interests and endeavors.   

I believe that popular culture strongly affects the way girls think of their bodies and their self- esteem. They seem to be afraid to be themselves for fear that they will not fit in or belong in the same group as their peers. 

Growing up in a disconnected family I learned the majority of things from classmates instead of from a strong female that I believe would have made a significant difference in the way I viewed myself and developed my self-esteem. Due to a lack of that strong female in my life it took a long time for me to understand what I was capable of doing with my life. That old saying comes to mind “ If only I knew than, what I know now”. But saying that I still wouldn’t change the last 30 years of my life. I now have a strong family and believe that my boys have a strong female in their lives that has made a difference in the way the view themselves and the value of the woman in their life.   

HI