Events

Women’s Leadership and Gender Equity Spring Dinner with the Women’s Institute 

Wednesday, April 9, 5:30 p.m., Mellon Living Room

If you are involved with Women’s and Gender studies at Chatham come to the annual spring celebration of Women’s & Gender Studies majors and minors, Women’s Leadership Certificate recipients, Triota (Women’s & Gender Studies) Honors Society members, and Women’s Leadership & Femme-Aligned LLC residents. This event is hosted by the Women’s Institute!

Lights, Camera, Take Action!

Wednesday, April 9, 8:00-11:00 p.m., Eddy Theater

Chatham students are invited to showcase their talents in this exciting and interactive talent show fundraiser! Performers of all kinds are welcome—whether you sing, dance, tell jokes, or have another hidden talent. Audience members will have the chance to vote for their favorite act by making a suggested door donation. You can also direct your donation to support a specific performer or cause, and each dollar will count as a vote toward the winner! The performer or group who raises the most money will be crowned the Talent Show Champion, and all proceeds will go to Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh (WC&S), an organization dedicated to supporting survivors of domestic violence.

Author Event: Carina Stopenski

Friday, April 11, 12:00-1:00 p.m., JKM Library – Room 111

Chatham alum Carina Stopenski (they/them) joins us for a reading of their work and a Q&A about craft and publishing. They are the author of the short story collection The Things We Do For Blood (Alien Buddha Press) and the Appalachian folk horror novel Stuffed (Unveiling Nightmares/Baynam Books). Reception to follow. Books will be available for purchase.

Carina Stopenski is a writer, librarian, and educator based out of Pittsburgh, PA. Follow their work at carinastopenskiwriter.com for more updates.

SPRING CARNIVAL!!

Friday, April 11, 3:00 – 7:00 p.m., Quad

Come one, come all to Chatham University’s 2025 Spring Carnival. Join us from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. to enjoy inflatables, live music performed by The Delaneys, carnival foods, and more! Humanities will have a booth with creative craft (paper heart making) and to talk about all cool things Humanities!

Department updates

On Thursday, March 20, the MFA in Creative Writing hosted its inaugural Appalachian Writer Series with authors Michael Lockett and Linda Schifino. Lockett, introduced by first-year MFA student Kristy Mahoney, brings readers into the rural parts of Appalachia, exploring the complex relationships between nature, people, and the outside factors exploiting their land. Schifino, introduced by undergraduate English major Molly Greene, takes her readers to the Paris of Appalachia, Pittsburgh, where she shares stories of deep Pittsburgh cultural roots and transports readers back in time. This event kicks off many more readings by students and authors prioritizing place and truth in writing.

Dr. Sheila Squillante and MFA students attended the Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia at St. Francis University on March 7-8. The students worked the bookfair table, representing the program and The Fourth River literary journal. Sheila gave a talk called “The New Nature Poem: Writing at the Confluence of Place, Space and Identity from Rachel Carson’s Pittsburgh.”

Chatham alumna Jennifer Van Dam ’12 (Communications and Cultural Studies) visited WGS202 Women’s Leadership in the 21st Century to discuss her leadership journey in venture capital and helping small woman and minority owned businesses to grow.

Dr. Adale Sholock (Chatham class of ’96, English major and very first Women’s Studies minor) visited WGS202 Women’s Leadership in the 21st Century to speak to students about her career. She is currently the inaugural community engagement manager in the Center for Race & Gender Equity at YWCA Greater Pittsburgh.

Faculty Updates:

ASIANetwork has just published this video interview of Karen Kingsbury from last summer.  https://youtu.be/eTWx1C7OudI

Anissa Wardi’s co-authored article, “Mothers and Daughters, Trauma and Textile in Phyllis Alesia Perry’s Stigmata,” was recently published in the journal, Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature.  

Dr. Carrie Helms is the Chair and Keynote speaker of the 2025 Greater Gulf Symposium to be held at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas on March 31 and April 1, 2025.  She is also responding to papers that will be published in a special issue of an academic journal.

Dr. Carrie Helms was interviewed in a podcast called Tip of the Tongue, hosted by Liz Williams from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans, discussing her new book Unpalatable: Stories of Pain and Pleasure in Southern Cookbooks. 

Dr. Jessie Ramey was invited to speak at City Theatre for their “talkback” after the performance of “Birthday Candles,” about the historic role of women as caretakers and feminism in the play.

STUDENT & ALUMNI UPDATES:

Lilly Rogers, class of 2024 (Biology and Women’s Leadership Certificate), is currently pursuing an MBA.

Humanities senior Cat Kuhn was published on DreamBoyBookClub! This is Cat’s first publication. Here’s the link to the published story: https://www.dreamboybook.club/eva-cat-kuhn

Laura Jackson, MFA alum, won the Book of the Year award from The Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia for her debut collection of essays, DEEP AND WILD: On Mountains, Opossums and Finding Your Way in West Virginia (Autumn House Press).

MFA students—Tessa Kilby, Chrissy Richardson, Kristy Mahoney and Madison Kapisak– have just learned that they will be presenting at the Lit Youngstown Festival in the fall! Their panel is called “Teaching Creative Writing: Deconstructing Barriers in Accessibility to the Arts.”

Job opportunities

Job: Undergraduate Intern at The Center for Relational Change

Internship job description: This is a hybrid internship that requires a year-long contract where there is flexibility to be virtual or in person. This internship is an educational and experience-based opportunity that is not monetary-based. The intern contributes to The Center for Relational Change daily by returning intake and referral calls when needed, working closely with the Center’s Community Outreach Director, Brianna Totty, around the “Say It’s Name” conference hosted by the Center every even-numbered year. The intern may be able to shadow their internship supervisor with consent from the supervisor’s client; however, the amount of shadowing available will be subjective to the client’s comfort. In addition to the above-stated responsibilities, the intern is expected to aid in other community outreach activities by making creative marketing flyers, attending tabling events, and contacting businesses and organizations through email, phone, or mail.

Additional responsibilities include helping with any therapy groups running at the Center, performing clerical duties such as checking office supplies, organizing photocopies and faxes, and assisting in special projects from the Center’s clinicians as needed. The intern is expected to work 10-15 hrs/weekly (note: the expected work hours are variable to whichever Community Outreach events are in play that year). C. Michaela Jacks, LMFT, supervises the undergraduate interns. Weekly meetings with your supervisor are required to ensure that you are meeting the expectations of this position. While many supervisions will happen virtually, While many supervisions will happen virtually, there is a mandatory in person once a month group supervision with the internship supervisor.

More info about the job at this link: Undergraduate Intern at The Center for Relational Change