How Academic Studies Motherhood- Every Mother Counts Interview with Aurelie Athan, Ph.D.

Currently and historically, most research related to motherhood isn’t actually about the mother. It’s usually about her impact on her children. Dr. Athan is on faculty in the Department of Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University and a founding member of the Sexuality, Women, & Gender Project where she focuses on women’s development across the lifespan and the transition to motherhood. We talked with Dr. Athan about her unique perspective on motherhood.

 

“The mother is the beginning of everything yet she’s often the last called to the table.”

Aurélie Athan, Ph.D. is changing the way academia looks at motherhood by focusing on mothers themselves. Read the full interview here.

The Reproductive & Maternal Wellbeing Track of the SWG Certificate!

TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

Reproductive & Maternal Well-Being is part of TC’s mission to educate the workforce needed to address the complex questions of the changing procreative lives of 21st century women and families locally and globally. 

FOCUS ON MOTHERS

  • Teachers College, Columbia University offers a 12-Credit NY State Approved Graduate-level Certificate Program in Reproductive & Maternal Wellbeing.

MATRESCENCE

Despite mothers forming the cornerstone of most theories of human development, training that supports their own needs remains difficult to find. This curriculum speaks to the absence of graduate-level coursework on maternal development and reproductive mental health.

Matrescence was first revived at TC by Dr. Aurelie Athan, a co-founder of the Sexuality, Women, and Gender Project. She applied it to the creation of a unique academic arena solely focused on Maternal Psychology.

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CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

You may receive certification upon completion of:

  • 12 points of specialized courses

  • An in-depth research paper

  • A semester long practice/volunteer experience.

Coursework

Coursework will focus on the dynamic biological, social, emotional, cultural, political, economic, and spiritual forces that shape a mother/parent’s development. We envision it effectively addressing the holistic needs of families, broadly defined, and inclusive of the diversity of care-taking roles and experiences.

CCPX 4126: Matrescence: Developmental and Clinical Implications

Few areas in psychology have developed as slowly as research and theory about mothers.  The purpose of this course is to explore matrescence: the biological, psychological, social, cultural, and spiritual factors that influence women’s well-being as they transition to motherhood. Theories of maternal development from conception through pregnancy, the postpartum period, and beyond - inclusive of adoption, surrogacy, and various forms of family building - will be critically examined and applications for practice discussed. Readings include empirical, descriptive, theoretical, literary and popular readings. Topics covered include: preconception care, motivation/timing of family planning, infertility, psychological stages of pregnancy, decision making in birthing and feeding practices, maternal “instinct” and trends in parenting styles, maternal distress and of diagnostic criteria, work/life balance and social support, global and anthropological perspectives, and positive psychology/spiritual reconceptualizations of maternal experience among others. Project-based learning includes fieldwork and research with participating organizations and individual experts.

CCPX 4199: Perinatal Mental Health

This course will utilize history, theory, research, student discussion, personal anecdotes (e.g. videos, podcasts, blogs), news, and social media to develop a broad understanding of the issues related to perinatal mental health, including in historical and modern contexts. Course objectives include understanding the etiology, theories, and treatment modalities for psychopathology before, during, and after pregnancy and family building. An additional focus of the course will be to expand current thinking about perinatal mental health with an emphasis on understanding women’s diverse experiences, as well as the changing landscape of perinatal and reproductive mental health.  Special topics include fertility issues, reproductive trauma, family policies, and advocacy among other increasingly complex topics. Guests lecturers and cutting edge-specialists in the field will also be invited.

CCPX 4125: Women and Mental Health

The course will explore the multitude of factors that affect women’s mental health over the lifespan. We will address issues such as sexuality, motherhood, work, intimate relationships, traumatization among many others. The focus of this class is clinical rather than sociological. We will examine the class topics with the purpose of helping you to be more sensitive, aware, and informed in your practice with female patients. Themes about common affects that dominate the female experience in psychotherapy and in life such as shame, fear, envy, and anger will be recurring throughout our discussions. We will use relational psychodynamic and feminist theories to understand these experiences.

CCPJ 4199: Working with LGBTQ Couples and Families

This Special Topics course will provide a foundation for supporting and intervening with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) couples and families across a range of helping contexts.   The course will begin with an examination of social constructions of sexual identity/orientation, gender identity/roles and relationship or familial norms.  Following this, the course will explore the experiences of LGBTQ-identified individuals within a broad range of helping contexts:  education, healthcare and counseling.  Lastly, drawing from the literature, case study analysis and current professional codes of ethics, the course will present helping professions with interdisciplinary and multiculturally competent recommendations for working with LGBTQ couples and families.

Past examples of other "Special Topics" Courses:

CCPX 4199: Brave New Birth: Psychosocial Issues in Reproductive Technology & Genetic Testing

Advances in reproductive technology and genetic testing have reshaped the natural contours of giving birth: altering the definition of family, preserving fertility in the face of aging and disease, creating choice where once there was only chance, and peering into the uncertainties of inherited risk.  We will discuss clinical, ethical, and policy implications of these emerging technologies, balancing conceptual issues with social forces that influence access to reproductive care.  These larger issues will be balanced with consideration of the lived experience of making hard choices on this shifting frontier. 

REQUIREMENTS

TO APPLY FOR THE CERTIFICATE PROGRAM CLICK HERE 

FOR ADMISSIONS

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Dr. Riddhi Sandil quoted in the Atlantic

The Sexism of School Dress Codes

These policies can perpetuate discrimination against female students, as well as LGBT students.

Our very own Dr. Riddhi Sandil was quoted in The Atlantic in an Oct. 20th article exploring the movement against dress codes here.

Ultimately, such rules could be the wrong way to handle some of the issues that they purport to cover. Since so many have previously been used to address the potential of sexual harassment in schools regarding male students paying inappropriate attention to female students, it’s clear other practices, like courses on respect and harassment, may be needed to fill this gap. These initiatives would shift the focus of school policies.

“Is it possible that we can educate our boys to not be ‘distracted’ by their peers and not engage in misogyny and objectification of women's bodies?”

...asks Riddhi Sandil, a psychologist and co-founder of the Sexuality, Women and Gender Project at Teachers College at Columbia University.

Read more here.


Apply for our new certificate: Sexuality, Women, and Gender in Psychology and Education

Beginning Fall 2015, the SWG Project will be offering the first New York State approved certificate program of its kind - a world-renowned training ground for the next generation of educators, researchers, practitioners, administrators, and activists interested in learning the next wave of theories and practices to improve the well-being for LGBTQ individuals and women.

TO APPLY FOR THE CERTIFICATE PROGRAM CLICK HERE FOR ADMISSIONS

 

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

It is rolling admission and is open to everyone.

PROGRAM OF STUDY

Interested students may receive certification upon completion of:

  • 15 points of specialized curricular requirements (9 of which must be completed within CCP)
  • A research paper covering a covering the student’s research and practice interests
  • A semester long practice/volunteer experience.

THE CURRICULUM

Students must take nine points (e.g., three classes) within Counseling and Clinical Psychology (CCP).  The following are a list ofapproved courses that may be used for the certificate program. Courses in bold are required for the certificate. * Denotes that this course is available in an online format:

  • CCPJ 4050        Microaggressions in Institutional Climates
  • CCPJ 4180      LGBT(Q) Issues in Psychology*
  • CCPJ 4030        Transgender Issues in Counseling and Psychology
  • CCPJ 4165         Consultation in Community Agencies and Resources
  • CCPJ 5164        Multicultural Perspective in Counseling and Psychology
  • CCPJ 4068       Counseling Women
  • CCPX 4125     Women and Mental Health*
  • CCPX 4126        The Mother-Child Matrix: Developmental and Clinical Implications
  • CCPX 4036       Psychology of Human Intimacy
  • CCPX 4199        LBGTQ Psychology

The remaining six points (e.g., two classes) should come from outside of the Counseling and Clinical Psychology Department. The following list is not comprehensive and continues to expand and grow each semester. Be sure to check the course catalogue for updates.

  • HUDK 5123     Psychological Development of Women
  • HBSS 4122       Women’s Health
  • HBSS 4133       Human Sexuality Education*
  • HBSV 4011      Women and weight, eating problems and body image
  • C&T 4032        Gender Difference and Curriculum
  • ITSF 5008       Gender, education and international development
  • A&HB 4140     Latina Narratives
  • A&HF 4130     Gender & Violence (3)
  • A&HF 4199     Media & Gender (3)

Students should register for zero points of independent study, via either of these course codes, when they complete their semester long practicum/fieldwork volunteer:

  • CCPJ 6902      Independent Study (along with semester long practice/volunteer 
  • CCPX 5902      Independent Study (along with semester long practice/volunteer

RESEARCH PROJECT

Students completing the certificate program will also be required to complete a research project that increases their knowledge and awareness of a chosen domain of interest (as it pertains to sexuality, women and gender). Some examples of appropriate research project topics include: understanding the relationship between minority stress and attachment satisfaction of sexual minorities; the impact of gender discrimination on career satisfaction of women in male dominated professions; understanding the link between first generation female college students and academic self-efficacy; understanding marginalization faced by partners of transgender individuals.

SEMESTER LONG VOLUNTEER/SERVICE EXPERIENCE

The certificate program in Sexuality, Women and Gender is strongly committed to social justice and multiculturalism as it pertains to issues of equity and access for sexual and gender minorities and women. In the spirit of this commitment, all candidates for certificate program will be expected to complete a semester long volunteer/service experience in an agency that serves the aforementioned populations.

FIND OUT MORE

Please drop in or call during the following office hours. Each faculty member has a general specialization but can speak to any aspect of the certificate.

Aurelie Athan (Women/Reproductive): 212-678-7461; ama81@tc.columbia.edu; by appointment

Melanie Brewster (LGBTQ): 212-678-7441; Mondays 4:00-6:00pm

Riddhi Sandil (Race/Gender): 212-678-4016; Tuesdays 5-6:30; Thursdays 300:-4:30pm

Sexuality, Women, & Gender Project Featured at Seleni.org

Excerpt: The Need for Perinatal Mental Health Training by Amanda MacMilla

 

Not all graduate schools are neglecting maternal mental health, says Davis. A growing number are integrating it into their curriculum. "Wherever it is happening, it's because there's a pioneering faculty member who says, 'I know how common and how important this is,' and finds a way to teach it."

Aurélie Athan, PhD, is one of those pioneers. The Sexuality, Women, and Gender Project she cofounded at Teachers College Columbia University will soon offer a Reproductive and Maternal Well-Being curriculum, along with its current masters- and doctoral-level certification programs and a master's concentration within the clinical psychology department.

And while she agrees that her program is unique, she says the landscape is changing elsewhere, as well. "There's a lot of good work being done," she says. "I wouldn't say that training is absent; sometimes it's just scattered."

An interested student might take electives or find mentors in other departments, she suggests, such as women's studies, psychiatry, public health, or nursing. (Although maternal mental health training is also limited in psychiatry, there do seem to be more examples of medical schools doing it well.) "The very nature of the subject is interdisciplinary," she adds, "so it can be challenging to consolidate it as part of a core curriculum."

Davis, who teaches postgraduate training through Postpartum Support International, says the future of maternal mental health education is promising. "I've watched this next generation of leaders come to trainings and get excited and go back to their institutions and create good curriculum," she says. "It's only going to get better."

- See more at: http://seleni.org/advice-support/article/the-need-for-perinatal-mental-health-training

 

CALL FOR INSTRUCTORS - TEACHERS COLLEGE, REPRODUCTIVE & MATERNAL WELL-BEING CURRICULUM

This image © MyOilArt 2015

This image © MyOilArt 2015

Teachers College, Columbia University is launching their new Reproductive & Maternal Well-Being curriculum in 2015-2016 as part of the Sexuality, Women, and Gender Project.

If you are interested in a one-time speaking engagement or are a fieldwork site interested in participating in our program, please also contact us. Prospective students are also welcome to learn more about our program.

 

This specialization will address the increased need for graduate training in this burgeoning field through: (1) didactic courses and colloquia (2) intensive research training and mentoring, and (3) fieldwork in community-based organizations.  The overarching goal is to create an educated workforce able to address the much-needed and complex questions arising from the changing procreative lives of 21st century women and families locally and globally.

We are currently recruiting experts to teach the following courses (names may be changed). Multidisciplinary perspectives are welcome:

  1. Menstruation to Menopause: Developmental Implications of Reproduction
  2. Perinatal Mental Health: Clinical and Counseling Perspectives
  3.  Family Systems: Varieties of Parenting Experiences (e.g. LGBT parenting, fatherhood, adoption, single mothers by choice)
  4. Special Topics: advanced seminar in a topic of your expertise (e.g. infertility, grief/loss, reproductive psychiatry, maternal mortality, prenatal mind-body practices)

Please send your CV along with a cover letter of interest to Aurelie Athan:

ama81@columbia.edu

Panel Discussion: Behind the Yellow Wallpaper: Literature and the Psychology of Change

Please join us for our inaugural 2015-2016 event series as we also celebrate the commencement of our new SEXUALITY, WOMEN, & GENDER IN PSYCHOLOGY & EDUCATION CERTIFICATE.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman published “The Yellow Wallpaper” in 1892, exposing the realities behind the (mis)treatment of women’s mental health issues through the infamous “rest cure.” In doing so, Gilman not only opened a dialogue on the medical, social, and emotional treatment of women in society, but eventually effected change on how women's mental health was treated. A collaboration between Behind the Yellow Wallpaper: New Tales of Madness, an anthology from New Lit Salon Press, and the Sexuality, Women, and Gender Project at Teachers College, Columbia continues the efforts set forth by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in a panel discussion titled Behind the Yellow Wallpaper: Literature and the Psychology of Change. The panel will consist of select Behind the Yellow Wallpaper contributors along with artist and psychoanalyst Steven Poser from The Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies. The discussion will focus on how literature impacts our understanding and view of madness: its causes; treatments; compassions; and the vital role psychology plays in effecting change. 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 20TH AT 7PM

MILBANK CHAPEL

TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

WEST 120TH STREET AND BROADWAY


The Sexuality, Women and Gender in Psychology and Education Certificate

The New York State approved the Sexuality, Women and Gender in Psychology and Education Certificate!

Founded in 2012, The Sexuality, Women and Gender Project at Teachers College, Columbia University was created by three leading Professors, Drs. Aurelie Athan, Melanie Brewster and Riddhi Sandil. Their hope is to envision and implement the next wave of theories and practices to improve the well-being for LGBTQ individuals and women. Beginning Fall 2015, the SWG Project will be offering the first New York State approved certificate program of its kind - a world-renowned training ground for the next generation of educators, researchers, practitioners, administrators, and activists.


With the recent movements in LGBT rights and the ongoing efforts to better serve women in the workplace, the World Health Organization declaring Violence Against Women to be epidemic, there is no better time than the present to graduate with the certificate in Sexuality, Women and Gender in Psychology and Education. It's mission is to promote learning through pedagogy; provide intensive research, mentorship and production; and apply gender and sexuality theories in practice. The Sexuality, Women and Gender in Psychology and Education Certificate program will promote the trans-disciplinary dialogues needed to solve complex, real-world problems across all areas including Education, Counseling & Clinical Psychology, Public Health, Gender and Queer Studies, Reproductive Psychiatry, Sociology, and Law among others. This specialized training will train future leaders in topics relevant to sexuality, women and gender; increase awareness and understanding of multiple oppressions experienced by these populations; provide research and clinical training to professionals interested in serving these marginalized populations and create liaisons between various professionals as they provide services to these underserved groups.

Call for Submissions: Annual MOM Conference, Spring 2015

Teachers College, Columbia University, Marymount College, Manhattan College, and Museum of Motherhood (MOM) are proud to welcome the return of the Annual 2015 MOM Conference!

 

 

 

Museum of Motherhood - MOM Conference Call for Papers, 2015 - SUBMISSION DEADLINE EXTENDED

“New Maternalisms”: Tales of Motherwork (Dislodging the Unthinkable)

April 30th, May 1st-2nd, NYC

Deadline EXTENDED TO JANUARY 15, 2014

Call for Papers for the Annual 2015 MOM Conference: As another Mother’s Day approaches, this conference, designed to bring together academics, artists, and laypersons will be an opportunity to critically explore the institution of motherhood. Much research on motherhood has been published in the past eighteen years from Ruddick to Crittenden suggesting an increased interest in and visibility and acknowledgement of feminism and the topic of motherhood. The literature is concerned with the invisibility of mothers and the labor of caregiving or “motherwork.” Drawing on artist Natalie S. Loveless’ curation in Spring 2012 for FADO in Toronto, The Museum of Motherhood (MOM) calls this shift in the representation of motherhood in the literature as “new maternalisms”. Klein (2012) argues “new maternalisms” expose “the fissures and cracks between the ideological representation of motherhood and the lived experiences of being a mother.” It is in service to this in-between space of research and theory and the lived and everyday that the Museum of Motherhood introduces the following Call For Papers.

The purpose of this conference lies in focusing on “new maternalisms” by exploring “motherwork” or the invisible labor of caregiving in our everyday lived experiences as wo/men, hence including mothers, fathers, and caretakers and our communities. The objective is to explore how wo/men experience “motherwork,” what “motherwork” means to us, and how “motherwork” impacts and is impacted by the communities in which we live in. The conference organizers encourage submissions that cross disciplines to provide critical insights into mothering, fathering, and family issues; that draw direct links between theories and/or research findings; or that offer practical approaches to issues facing contemporary mothers and families. The overarching goal of this conference is to provide an environment to explore new ideas and approaches for tackling issues that concern mothers as well as important others who fill a care giving role in the family.

Here, examples of possible topics include but are not limited to: 1. What caregiving practices are pursued in “motherwork”? And how have these practices been shaped by factors such as nation, religion, gender, and other axes of difference? 2. How do caregivers frame/understand their “motherwork”? 3. What alliances do caregivers build locally, regionally, and internationally, and why? What factors have caused rifts or fissures between and among caregivers? 4. To what extent does caregiving intersect with other forms of activism/resistance? 5. How have wo/men’s identities as caregivers been disrupted or shaped by binaries, such as east/west, north/south? 6. Whose agency is privileged or obscured within “motherwork”? 7. How do global discourses shape local “motherwork,” and, how, in turn, do local issues and frames shape global discourses around “motherwork”? This Call For Papers signals the important sociological and anthropological shifts taking place in the field of motherhood as it relates to wo/men – mothers, father, and caretakers – who are marginalized through “motherwork.”

We welcome submissions from scholars, students, activists, artists, community agencies, service providers, journalists, mothers and others who work or research in this area. Cross-cultural, historical, and comparative work is encouraged. We also encourage a variety of types of submissions including individual academic papers from all disciplines, proposals for panels, creative submissions, performances, storytelling, visual arts, film, music, audio, and other alternative formats. 

Submissions must include a title and a maximum 50-100 word abstract for individual papers, panels, and other submission types (e.g. performance, media, music). Panel submissions must include short abstracts (50-100 word) for each individual paper that will be included in the panel. Please submit ONE presentation proposal only.

Submissions are due by December 15, 2015. Details on submitting are at this website: http://mommuseum.org/conference-submissions/. All submissions will be peer reviewed with responses by Jan 30th. The conference will be held in NYC. 

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A peak at last year's event with notable guest speakers:

A Better Balance is coming to TC! November 20th 3-5pm.

Join  A Better Balance to discuss their new book BABYGATE: How to Survive Pregnancy & Parenting in the Workplace. They will also discuss their new report THE PREGNANCY PENALTY among other many interesting topics related to maternal and reproductive health!

  • Teachers College, Columbia University
  • 525 West 120th St., NY, NY
  • Thursday, November 20th
  • 3:00-5:00pm, Room 281 Grace Dodge

Contact info: swgproject@tc.columbia.edu

Read the NYT article Doctor Says No Overtime; Pregnant Worker's Boss Says No Job here.

The Pregnancy Report

A Better Balance is pleased to present their latest report, The Pregnancy Penalty: How Motherhood Drives Inequality and Poverty in New York City. Their report names, explains and offers solutions to the pregnancy penalty: bias and inflexibility towards women in the workplace that starts when they become pregnant and snowballs into lasting economic disadvantages.

BabyGate

Moms-to-be get tons of advice on strollers, sleep training, and post-baby workouts. What they don't get is straight talk about navigating the workplace during pregnancy and new parenthood--factors that put many women's jobs in jeopardy. That's why BABYGATE is essential: the first and only guide to supply parents with the tools they need to keep their jobs.

BABYGATE breaks down the laws on topics across the parenthood spectrum in clear, conversational language, and includes a state-by-state guide so readers know exactly how they're protected (or not) in their hometowns. Best of all, Babygate includes a road map for confronting family-responsibilities discrimination, and a concrete plan for creating a more family-friendly nation.

Dina Bakst, Phoebe Taubman, and Elizabeth Gedmark are attorneys with A Better Balance, a national authority on work-family policy. A Better Balance's legislative advocacy--paired with litigation, research, public education, and technical assistance to state and local advocates--has generated new protections for millions of workers across the country.

To attend the event, feel free to prepare by reading:

Dr. Riddhi Sandil featured in Yahoo! Style

High School Students Are Crossdressing for a Cause

Students dressing as the opposite sex at White Pass Junior and Senior High School (King5.com)

Students dressing as the opposite sex at White Pass Junior and Senior High School (King5.com)

 “Now with changing times we pride children and adolescents on being individuals and demonstrate their individuality,” Riddhi Sandil, a psychologist and lecturer at Teachers College, Columbia University, tells Yahoo Style. “Sometimes dress codes can oppress that. It’s a very complex issue. It’s a mixed message to the child to say be creative and be yourself, but only within these certain constraints and restrictions.” 

Read more here.

Responding to Sexual Assault: A Teach-In

The Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality Announces:

IMPORTANT ROOM CHANGE: Jerome Greene Annex at the Columbia Law School

Speakers will include:

Christina Brandt-Young, Legal Momentum

Jill Hill, Ph.D, Licensed Psychologist

Monica Pombo, LCSW, Crime Victims Treatment Center

Saswati Sarkar, Center of Excellence for Prevention of Sexual Assault

Current Columbia students

Event Co-Sponsored with:

 

Movie Screening with Director: A JIHAD FOR LOVE

A JIHAD FOR LOVE

5:30 pm, Thursday Oct. 16

Location: Milbank Chapel 
In a time when Islam is under tremendous attack-from within and without, 'A Jihad for Love' is a daring documentary-filmed in twelve countries and nine languages. Muslim gay filmmaker Parvez Sharma has gone where the silence is strongest, filming with great risk in nations where government permission to make this film was not an option. After the movie screening, there will be a panel discussion with the director, Parvez Sharma.

Co-sponsored with the SALGANYC: serving the South Asian LGBTQ community for over 20 years.