Alumni

WGSS Recent Placement: Anna Ziering

Posted on by and

About Dr. Anna Ziering (she/her)

Education 

  • Ph.D. in English (UConn 2022), with a Graduate Certificate in American Studies and a
    Graduate Certificate in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  • MA in English (UConn 2017)
  • MFA in Poetry (Boston University, 2015)
  • BA in American Studies (Barnard College 2011)

Post Graduation

  • Assistant Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, affiliated with African American Studies

Anna Ziering

Testimonial

"Completing the UConn WGSS Graduate Certificate made my interdisciplinary work legible and contributed to my being hired by a WGSS program. My engagement with WGSS at UConn included TAing, teaching as Instructor of Record, and serving as a program assistant. I also received awards including the Wood/Raith Gender Identity Living Trust Fellowship (2021), the Excellence in Graduate Teaching in Women’s Studies Award (2021), and the Susan Porter Benson Graduate Research Award in Feminist Studies (2020). I am grateful to the faculty in the UConn WGSS program who served as mentors and advisors both during my time at UConn and beyond."

WGSS Alumni Spotlight: Amber Sagan

Posted on by and

About Amber Sagan (she/her/hers)

Education

  • Graduation Year: 2021
  • Major: Biological Sciences
  • Minor: Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Community Involvement

  • Hayley Petit Violence and Injury Prevention Fellowship through the Connecticut Children's Hospital
  • Internship at the CT Harm Reduction Alliance

    Post Graduation

    • Master's of Public Health at UConn
    • Prevention Specialist at Wheeler Clinic, working on the Change the Script statewide campaign

    Testimonial

    "Taking courses in WGSS expanded my awareness of various social injustices and inequities. I became inspired to try to make a change on these issues, similar to how my WGSS professors had. I discovered the Hayley Petit Injury and Violence Prevention Fellowship my junior year, a fellowship for college women in STEM. After this fellowship, I pivoted my career goals from healthcare to public health. During my Master's of Public Health education, I further strengthened my WGSS skills by analyzing how social determinants of health such as race, gender, and income lead to inequities in health. I attended the 2022 Annual Public Health Association conference, where I learned about innovative WGSS research from experts in the field such as Loretta Ross. I graduated with my MPH in 2023, and I am currently a Prevention Specialist at Wheeler Clinic. I work on the Change the Script campaign- a statewide campaign to rewrite the narrative around substance use and prevent overdoses. I engage in community outreach to educate individuals about safe substance use, storage, and disposal and the opioid reversal drug, naloxone.


    The knowledge and skills I gained through my WGSS coursework transfer into my current position in various ways. For example, I am able to view public health issues through an intersectional lens, such as how an individual's race, gender, and sexuality may create a unique experience when struggling with a substance use disorder. I have also developed skills in communicating with the community, by using gender-affirming care and creating a safe, respectful environment for meaningful discussions. My WGSS education has aided me in every step of my academic and professional career."