You all know I love the F-word. And I could not be more excited to use it over and over as I highlight the many accomplishments of my favorite Feminist, Professor Berebitsky. You may know her as the former director of Women and Gender Studies department and one of the forces behind the newly available WGS major here at Sewanee, or maybe as the inspiration behind a heavenly combination of berry and lemonade green tea at Stirlings.
Originally from Lodi, California, Dr. Berebitsky bounced from art to English major until she discovered her passion for Women and Gender Studies her junior year. She later earned her Ph.D in 1997 in American Women’s History—a field with only seven total job opportunities throughout the country. In her eighteen years at Sewanee, University acceptance of feminist issues— that includes subjects regarding gender, sex, sexuality, LGBTQ+, race, and socioeconomics—has drastically increased, and Dr. Berebitsky has played no small part in this growth. “When I started at Sewanee, the Women’s Center was teaching female students how to make crème brulee…REALLY,” Berebitsky exclaimed. “Everyone joked that Sewanee had no gay students, but a lot of gay alums!” Since then, with the help of Dr. Berebitsky’s infectious energy and passion for the feminist movement, the Women’s Center engages continually with both feminist and social issues, and many more students are comfortable talking publicly about their sexual/gender orientation.
Dr. Berebitsky with her first women’s studies class
But Sewanee’s evolution hasn’t come without its obstacles; Dr. Berebitsky has quite the repertoire of war stories from her crusade to bring feminism to Sewanee. “There were professors who thought Women’s Studies was a joke; there were alumni who thought I was destroying Sewanee womanhood. There was even a campaign to send checks to the development office in my name made out to the amount of zero dollars and zero cents to let the administration know what they thought about me!” Good thing Professor Berebitsky is never one to back down. “If people are upset it means you are pushing them to think about things in new ways…I care deeply about these issues, and I know they are controversial; opposition is just part of the process.” Forget Beyonce— it’s obvious who the real Queen B is here.
The perseverance that Professor Berebitsky has in her efforts to educate Sewanee about relevant feminist and social issues is one of the most inspirational aspects of her personality. Just sitting in her Women’s and Gender Studies 101 class, her energy is contagious, and it shows in the tremendous impact she has made on this university. However, always determined, Dr. Berebitsky says her work is still not close to done. “Everything needs work! We always need to ensure that we are relevant, that we are engaged with the larger world and aware of what’s going on. That’s our job: to make sure Sewanee students understand the world in which they live.” And she is certainly doing her job well; as the university’s resident bada** and every Sewanee feminist’s spirit animal, Berebitsky constantly pushes the men and women of Sewanee to try new things and look at the world in a new way, or in her words, “stay fresh.” So stay fresh, Sewanee, and stay feminist. YSR.
“My three favorite things: my husband, my dog, and my yard.”