Gender & Identity Studies
College of the Atlantic
Gender, race, and class are material realities, not just social constructs
We experience categories in bodies that make some more subject to violence or ridicule, bias or lower pay. COA tries hard to be an accepting and open community. We think a lot, both individually and collectively, about what makes up identities, how they change, and how to consider and handle difference. There are a host of moral and ethical questions: What should we do with the identities we have? Do we determine our identities, or do our identities determine us? How can we cross gulfs of gender, sexuality, race, class, ethnicity, nationality, and religion to create community?
Claiming identities but resisting labels
And then there’s the personal, the embodied reality. No matter what you study or teach, you still have to find a way to inhabit, assemble, recognize, and maintain a personal identity and sense of self. Finding coherence can be a challenge. How do you experience gender, race, ethnicity, culture, and class? Do they constrain or empower you?
Follow your questions, find your contexts
Study gender and identity through education and psychology, anthropology and literature, history and philosophy. Courses like Sex, Gender, Identity, and Power, Adolescent Psychology, and Feminist Theory in a Transnational Frame enable students and faculty to work with feminist and queer theory, race and ethnicity, questions about individuality, and structures of social power.
Reminder: Areas of study aren’t the only way to think about courses. Browse and explore here.
Faculty
Vice President, Academic Innovation and Global Outreach Faculty, Education and Psychology
McNally Family Chair in Human Ecology and Philosophy
Faculty in History, Latin American Studies, and Historical Agriculture
Faculty in Literature and Writing, Digital Humanites, & Global Anglophone and Postcolonial Literature
Faculty in Cultural and Political Anthropology, Postcolonial Studies, Feminist Theory, & Israel Studies
Ready to build your own path?
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Student voices
COA Might be Right for You if…
…you are ready to have your life and identity flipped on its head and dunked in the ocean repeatedly.
Jonna Lynn Nielsen ’27
…you don’t know what you want to study because you have far too many interests to just focus in on one of them.
Wilson Korneev ’28
…you want to be in a small community where people will remember your name.
Alya Kiiashko ’25
…you have an open mind, enjoy small communities, and want a well-rounded (however unconventional) education experience.
Seth Sears ’28
…you want to meet politically, emotionally, and academically engaged people.
Alder Ame ’27
…you think being sent to the oceanside to improve your mental health actually sounds awesome (it totally is).
Carolina de Oliveira Castro ’26
…you are passionate about the natural world and want to study it and love spending time outside.
Conrad Kortemeier ’26
…you want to be surrounded and inspired by people who are excited about niche subjects, and by people who are still figuring out what they’re doing.
Marina Schnell ’25
…you can’t choose between the mountains and the sea.
Megan Maloney ’26
…you want freedom in your class structure.
Andie Piliouras ’26
…you want small, intentional community.
Conlan Lamb ’28
…you want to expand your perspective and knowledge of the world around you, and gain valuable connections from all around the world!
Trinket Lester ’28
…you question the answers to your questions, challenge the status quo, and seek tranquility in the heart of the spruce-fir forests.
Greta Bernier ’27
…you have the desire to choose your own path to a degree.
Béatrice St-Louis ’28