Flip the Table Feminism

Dr. Jane Bleasdale, mother, advocate, scholar, seeker, life lover, justice seeker. #livelaughlove #inclusionnottolerance

Counting down to our first public event with the mother, sister, scholar activists, critical feminist leaders affectionately known as the ‘FEM 10’

Why do this?

Because it gives voice to the exciting , affirming and challenging work our group is doing

Because we know how much we have grown by being in community and we want to share !

Sharing Our Story

How did this group of women find each other?

In the fall of 2019 I taught a class as en elective. Critical Feminist Perspectives on Leadership , in response to student requests for more electives that focused particularly on social issues. This was a subject I was exploring and experiencing as a scholar, mother, educator, daughter and partner. Several students were student critical theories and were looking for a space to combine their thoughts and experiences , positive and negative , on feminism. Fortunately I work at a University and teach in a school and department where we were encouraged and empowered to teach new electives. So, I introduced the class as an experience in Participatory Action Research (PAR) . We would co create the class, bake as we go , try new ingredients, taste test.

The glass had 10 students, and it was an incredibly empowering and collaborative experience. At the end of the semester the students genuinely wanted more. We continued to meet informally and connect on our personal and professional journeys. A year later and after many more conversations I was deep into the PAR project and looking to engage doctoral students on a deeper level. Again, with the support of my institution I co created with students- an elective using a non traditional model. Combining a research project, data gathering and the students desire for community we chose to spend a weekend in community- on retreat.

During the weekend we read, reflected, walked, shared , gathered in identity spaces and discussed our greatest fears, deepest friendship and personal and professional experiences.

Since that time- January 2020 we have continued to connect in person and virtually .Students are deep into their research and we are connecting in critical ways to deepen our understanding of what it means to be a critical feminist leader.