In recognition of Women’s History Month, experts at the University of Houston (UH) are available to discuss a range of topics. If you are unable to reach a professor, please call 713-743-8153.
ECONOMICS OF GENDER
Chinhui Juhn is the Henry Graham Professor of Economics. Her research has examined women’s labor force participation, the contribution of married women’s earnings to family income inequality and the impact of marriage and children on married women’s earnings. Her recent work also studies the impact of trade liberalization policies on gender inequality. Reach Juhn at 713- 743-3823 or cjuhn@uh.edu
LEAN IN
Jamie Belinne is the assistant dean for career services at the Bauer College of Business. She previously managed recruiting and staffing at The University of Texas at Austin. She has worked with organizations around the country on inter-generational management issues and productivity improvement through leveraging diverse, interpersonal styles.She is a former member of the International Triathlon Union Team USA long distance triathlon team (2009) and duathlon team (2011). She is an Ironman, an RRCA Certified Run Coach and a mother of two. Reach her at 832-842-6121 or jbelinne@uh.edu
MODERN MOTHEROOD & WOMEN’S WORK
Elizabeth Gregory is the director of the Women’s Gender & Sexuality Studies Program at UH and a professor of English. She is the author of “Ready: Why Women Are Embracing the New Later Motherhood,” which explores the trend among women to start families at or after 35 and the politics and economics of the intersections between women's paid and home work. Her research, based on interviews with 113 new later moms (and a few dads) and on extensive collateral research, found that older mothers are happy and the delay provides unique benefits to mothers and their families. Her most recent work explores the structural dynamics that affect the way women can or cannot participate in the paid work economy, including childcare and our agrarian school schedule. Reach Gregory at 713-743-0932 or egregory@uh.edu
POLITICS AND PREJUDICE
Nancy Beck Young, professor of history and chair of the department, is a scholar of modern American politics. Her research questions how political institutions have shaped the lives of average people through public policy. Much of her work involves the study of Congress, the presidency and first ladies. She has written a biography of Lou Henry Hoover, the wife of President Herbert Hoover, and also a biography of a Texas woman, Frances Goff, who was integral to the success of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in its early years. Reach her at nyoung@central.uh.edu
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
Beverly McPhail is the director of UH’s Women’s Resource Center. Her primary area of interest is violence against women and the status of women. She co-authored, “Confronting Sexism and Violence Against Women,” as well as a report on the status of women and girls in the greater Houston area. Reach her at 832-842-6194 or bmcphail@uh.edu
WEIGHT MATTERS
Norma Olvera, professor of health education in the Department of Educational Psychology, UH College of Education and director of the BOUNCE (Behavior Opportunities Uniting Nutrition Counseling and Exercise) program, designs interventions to prevent and treat obesity. Her award-winning BOUNCE healthy lifestyle programs are nationally recognized as effective obesity treatments. One feature of the BOUNCE experience, involves the inclusion of pre-adolescent girls and their mothers. Olvera, who studies how family, environment and culture affect diet and physical activity, strives to educate both mothers and daughters about healthy eating, importance of exercise, and behavioral strategies to combat obesity and its related illnesses. Reach her at 832-842-5925 or nolvera@uh.edu
WOMEN AND THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Linda Reed, associate professor of history, is a noted scholar in African-American history with a particular interest in women and the South. For the past two years, she has been the director of Graduate Studies in the Department of History at UH, and she also served for nine years as the director of the UH African-American Studies Program and was the national director of the Association for Black Women Historians. Her works include an award-winning book concentrating on the forgotten years of the civil rights movement, “Simple Decency and Common Sense: The Southern Conference Movement, 1938 – 1963.” She is currently completing a book on Fannie Lou Hamer, the influential Mississippi civil rights activist, whose oratory skills are comparable to those of Martin Luther King, Jr. Reach her at 713-743-3092 or lreed@uh.edu
WOMEN’S BODIES
Samantha Kwan is an associate professor of sociology. She conducts research in the areas of body, gender and health, focusing on how cultural and social structures shape physical and psychological well-being. Her work examines the social construction of bodies, embodied resistance and body modification practices. She is co-editor of “Embodied Resistance” and "The Politics of Women's Bodies, 4th Edition," and the co-author of “Framing Fat.” She can comment on the sociology of the body and the sociology of gender. Reach Kwan at 713-743-3948 or sskwan@uh.edu
WOMEN IN POLITICS
Nancy Sims, lecturer in the Department of Political Science, spent 25 years as a political consultant and lobbyist. She can address historical figures who are good examples of rising interest in early feminists, such as Sarah and Angelina Grimke, to current women in politics. Reach her at 713-818-1695 or nancy.sims@gmail.com
WOMEN AND SPORT
Demetrius Pearson is an associate professor in the Department of Health and Human performance. His research focuses on the sociocultural and historical aspects of organized sport. He has written several research articles and book chapters on the depiction and characterization of women in contemporary sport films. He maintains a repository listing of American sport films from 1930 to 2014. His area of expertise focuses on competitive sport forms and fitness administration. Reach Pearson at 713-743-9849 or dpearson@uh.edu
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About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized by The Princeton Review as one of the nation's best colleges for undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation's fourth-largest city, UH serves more than 39,500 students in the most ethnically and culturally diverse region in the country.