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faculty
Kristen McHenry, PhD she/her/hers
Assistant Professor
Political Science
Director
Health & Society
Education
| 2013 | UMass Amherst | PhD |
Teaching
- Women's Health
- Environmental Health
- Health & Society
Programs
Programs
Courses
Investigates aspect of human health and well-being, social and cultural determinants of health, and/or population health disparities. Topic to be determined by instructor.
Investigates aspect of human health and well-being, social and cultural determinants of health, and/or population health disparities. Topic to be determined by instructor.
Semester-long internship in community-based organization that addresses an aspect of human health and well-being. Work is supervised by on-site sponsor as well as instructor. Students gain and reflect on work experience and prepare themselves for next steps in defining and achieving their career goals.
Semester-long internship in community-based organization that addresses an aspect of human health and well-being. Work is supervised by on-site sponsor as well as instructor. Students gain and reflect on work experience and prepare themselves for next steps in defining and achieving their career goals.
Topics will be determined by the faculty member and will therefore vary.
Online and Continuing Education Courses
Study under the supervision of a faculty member in an area covered in a regular course not currently being offered. Conditions and hours to be arranged.
Register for this course.
Study of ecofeminism as systems of oppressions based on race, class, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity that stem from a cultural ideology that enables the oppression of nature. The course explores ecofeminist theories, literature, and practice, including ecofeminist ethics, and the applications of ecofeminism to the lives of individual men and women, as well as cultural institutions and organizations. Cross listed as PHL 307.
Study of ecofeminism as systems of oppressions based on race, class, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity that stem from a cultural ideology that enables the oppression of nature. The course explores ecofeminist theories, literature, and practice, including ecofeminist ethics, and the applications of ecofeminism to the lives of individual men and women, as well as cultural institutions and organizations. Cross listed as PHL 307.
Cross-disciplinary debates about health, wellness and health care. The course challenges students to look critically at health care practices and understand the complexities of health policy; understand the impact of culture and historical change on understandings of health, illness and the body; and see how globalizing economies and structures of inequality shape illness, health care, and individual well-being.
Register for this course.
An overview of women's health through an international perspective. Various women's health issues such as cancer, fertility, maternal mortality, STI/STD, HIV/AIDS, and violence against women are researched and analyzed. The investigation of health issues through a feminist political lens is crucial. The relevance and importance of understanding women's health through a human rights framework will be explored. The aim is to understand how gender inequity impacts women's health. Socioeconomic status, nation, gender and race all play a crucial role in women's health. Most importantly, an investigation into the various political, institutional and activist responses to women's health issues around the world will be undertaken. The level of political commitment to women's health will be analyzed by focusing on key strategies implemented by international institutions like the United Nations, and look at particular government strategies in countries such as Haiti, India, China, and Ghana.
Register for this course.
How governments at the federal, state and local levels cope with threats to the public's health, such as AIDS, lead poisoning, toxic waste, tuberculosis. We will evaluate the effectiveness of government interventions, identify ethical and political pitfalls of present strategies and assess the prospects for eradicating our most pressing health problems.
Register for this course.
Research
Research interests
- Environmental Health
- Feminist Science Studies
- Women's Health
- Cancer
Professor McHenry's research interests center upon American Politics, with a focus on the politics of health and environment. Her work has paid particular attention to the environmental links to cancer, fracking, and women's health advocacy. She is author of the book The Green Solution to Breast Cancer: A Promise of Prevention (Praeger Press), which conducts an analysis of the politics of US healthcare policy and breast cancer activism. Her work has also appeared in Signs: Journal of Women and Culture in Society and Energy Research & Social Science. Her upcoming book Don’t Frack Your Mother: Women’s Health and Activism will be published by the University of Washington Press.