FEU develops faculty capacity for gender and development
- bcapati
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
Far Eastern University (FEU), through its Gender and Development and Diversity (GADD) Office, recently held a two-day workshop last March 26 and 27, to deepen faculty members' understanding of gender issues, feminist thought, and LGBTQIA+ identities in education. Led by GADD coordinator Ameerah Milano, the sessions aimed to align FEU’s academic environment with its evolving mission and vision highlighting diversity, inclusion, and belongingness.
“There is always training for [GADD] every year, but not as comprehensive as this,” she said in a combination of English and Filipino.
Attended by General Education faculty, the workshop consisted of four sessions, each focusing on key themes in gender studies and their application in research, teaching, and community engagement.
The first day introduced participants to fundamental gender concepts and policies, including the Yogyakarta Principles, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) memorandum order outlining the framework for integrating gender and development principles in higher education, and materials from UN Women. Milano led the morning session which focused on defining gender and discussing institutional responsibilities.
“This was just an introduction—an introduction to gender, what the policies are that we have on gender, what is said in the CHED memo,” she said.
The afternoon session, facilitated by Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Maria Teresa Trinidad P. Tinio, explored gender ideologies using Mary Wollstonecraft’s “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman.” Faculty members examined Wollstonecraft’s arguments on women's education and societal roles.
“It was more about the context of that time,” said Milano, “why women are important in society.”
The second day shifted focus to gender representation in research and the intersections of gender identity. Dr. Juanito Anot Jr. from the University Research Center led the morning session, guiding participants through Luisa Camagay’s “Working Women of Manila in the 19th Century.”
“They talked about the gaps in understanding women and representation in research, including what we can do here at FEU,” said Milano, emphasizing how research should address gender disparities.
In the afternoon, Milano returned to facilitate discussions on LGBTQIA+ identities using Roland Barthes’s “Toys.” They analyzed how societal expectations shape gender expression from childhood and this extended to broader discussions on gender inclusivity in education.
“From understanding what gender and development is, to understanding feminism, the main goal of day two was to figure out how you are going to align it with what you are doing in the university,” said Milano.
A key takeaway from the workshop was the need for faculty to align their understanding of gender and sexuality with students’ perspectives.
“Some faculty members may have a different understanding of gender and sexuality, and even gender equality, because of the time they grew up in and the kind of information they had access to. But now we need to revamp that because the spectrum of gender and even development is expanding more and more,” said Milano.
Milano added that a learning environment that is truly student-centered requires faculty members to be more attiuned to contemporary gender discussions.
“Once [we] are inside the classroom, it is unavoidable that we will have students who are more aware of what is happening on the ground, so [part] of it is ensuring that the definitions our faculty members have align with the definitions that our students have,” she said.
According to Milano, the GADD Office will hold other training sessions for the series throughout the semester, particularly during Independent Learning Week, to further engage faculty in discussions on gender sensitivity and inclusive pedagogy.
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