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Welcome to Fall Semester!

Welcome to fall 2022 and a new academic year! Whether you are returning to UIC or are brand new to the campus, we look forward to being in conversation with you over the year.

For us at WLRC, we are starting the year in a new space: Suite 1700 in the Student Services Building at 1200 W. Harrison. Please bear with us as we unpack the boxes and get ourselves settled. We are certainly looking forward to your participation in our virtual and in-person programs!

Stop by our Open House on September 21! More information forthcoming.

Help us welcome our newest member of staff—Jamey Arnold, CAN’s Education and Outreach Specialist! Jamey comes to UIC with a wealth of experience in gender-based violence prevention, sexual and reproductive health education, as well as mental health. We are excited to have Jamey on board as she works to build robust programming that engages various audiences in meaningful conversations about how we can create a violence-free campus.

The academic year has started off with issues that are important to WLRC. Even as President Biden’s decision about student debt forgiveness did not go as far as it could have, scholars Sekile Nzinga and Tressie McMillan Cottom remind us that student loan debt is a Black feminist issue and a racial justice issue that we need to continue to fight for.

As legal battles over anti-abortion laws ensue in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s decision, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade, WLRC will be collaborating with other campus units this fall to educate the campus about how scholars, activists, advocates, and abortion care providers are responding to the changing landscape.

A few “save the dates” that you should note:

  • September 14 and 21: A 2-part series on disability and reproductive justice, in collaboration with Planned Parenthood, Disability Leads, and others.
  • September 19: A discussion with WBEZ’s Natalie Moore and Chicago Abortion Fund, cosponsored with IRRPP and GWS.
  • September 29: Virtual lecture by Dr. Monica McLemore, scholar-activist whose work focuses on birth equity for Black birthing people, in collaboration with College of Nursing, Family and Community Medicine, and Center for Excellence in Maternal and Child Health.

There will be more to come, of course, as we share our initiatives and programming that are currently being planned. As always, we are interested in what issues or types of programs you want to see more of. Let us know: wlrc@uic.edu.

Finally, we are still in the COVID-19 pandemic, and as such, observe a masking policy inside the office suite that will be in effect for the academic year.

See you soon!