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In colleges and universities across the nation, women’s studies programs allow students to investigate issues of gender and sexuality through scholarly research and debate. These programs first began to emerge in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the rise of the women’s liberation movement, and many feel this relatively new field of study is well suited toward new types of degrees, like distance learning programs. Women’s studies programs have flourished in American institutions of higher learning, taking root almost everywhere. The discipline’s popularity could be tied to growing awareness of gender equality issues in our society.

Women’s studies programs aren’t closed to men, and yet they remain largely dominated by women. Female students, or those with alternative lifestyles, are generally considered to be the most open to gender-related political discourse. Male interest in women’s studies is, however, growing.

Jill Bystydzienski, chairwoman of the Department of Women’s Studies at Ohio State University, points out that: these days, more male students than ever are interested in women’s studies. She tells the OSU student newspaper, The Lantern, that when she began teaching women’s studies in the late 1970s, there were few male students and no male scholars of the discipline. Today, OSU’s Department of Women’s Studies boasts 13 male students pursuing majors, minors or postgraduate degrees. One in five of the students in its lower-level and undergraduate classes are men.

Students and professors women’s studies agree that women’s studies are relevant to men. Bystydzienski says, “The classes give them an opportunity to learn about how our world shapes who we are as females and males, how gender and other inequalities — social, class, sexual, age-based — are re-perpetuated in visible as well as subtle ways.”

Crystal Kile, a professor at Tulane University, shares her personal experiences with male women’s studies students in a 1997 forum discussion with colleagues at universities around the country. Kile writes, “There is a significant portion of the rising generation of men who really want to figure out how not to oppress and contribute to the ongoing oppression of women, and figure out how to live more satisfying lives as men.”

Many of her own male students, she reveals, used what they learned in her classes to empower the women in their lives. She continues, “These guys were particularly concerned with learning how to encourage their wives, girlfriends and daughters: When one guy’s fiancee wanted to drop out of school because ‘I’m going to be your wife and you’ll take care of me,’ he talked her out of that notion using essays about women and poverty and the economics of sexism from the reader!” (Image)

Indeed,women’s studies may remain relevant for both genders because sexism continues in the 21st century. A recent article in the U.S. News reports that many men remain unnerved by female professional success; qualified women remain less likely to be hired than men for the same positions; and the wage gap remains significant. As barrier continue to breakdown and become antiquated, a thorough look at these changes to the status quo is in order to ensure that the progress continues in a methodical and logical manner in order to avoid unrest and stave off setbacks.

Drew Hendricks is a social media and SEO enthusiast that spends his free time browsing the internet and playing frisbee golf.

It is that time of year, for those of you who don't know: Mother's Day is Sunday, May 13. In honor of this special day, we are featuring a new infographic from Internet Exposure. Here you will see just how tech savvy moms have become, as well as what they really want for Mother's Day.

Not Yo Mama’s Mama – a Digital Mom Infographic by Internet Exposure

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There are few things more valuable in life than being a good leader. With this skill, you can rise to the top of your profession, take charge in difficult situations and be admired by friends and peers alike. Many people feel that leadership is an innate quality – in other words, something that you are born with. This is true in some ways. Extroverted, gregarious people are somewhat more likely to become leaders. But it is also true that you can learn to be a leader. Like anything else, leadership is a skill that can be improved, often times with something as simple as online graduate education, which is becoming more common everyday.

Contrary to what you may think, one of the best ways to learn how to be a leader is to go to school and major in a leadership field. With the availability of online graduate certificate programs, it is entirely possible to hone your leadership skills in your free time. For example, Drexel University in Philadelphia has an award-winning online degree program and a specific series of what the university refers to as online leadership degrees. As Drexel rightly points out, in order to be totally effective, a leadership degree must relate to the field you are interested in leading. Therefore, Drexel offers a wide range of online degrees related to leadership, including a Master of Science in sports management, and a certificate in retail leadership. Therefore, as Drexel demonstrates, there are a wealth of beneficial online graduate degree and certificate programs available.

One of the best ways to find the leadership program right for you is to visit the U.S. News and World Report’s website on best online master’s programs. You can also find information about all of the accredited online masters programs available, for example: Creighton University out of Omaha, Nebraska, offers an online degree in IT Leadership. You will also see that the Catholic University of America has a Master of Science in leadership. The list of available programs lets you find your perfect fit, and then you can get more information to see if it really fits you. (Image 2)

Finally, when you are looking for great leadership programs, it is important to make sure they are accredited. While you may be taking the leadership courses to learn more about leading, the degree or certificate you receive after completion of the program will also be useful, in terms of giving you access to more jobs and higher pay. And if the degree comes from a non-accredited institution, or an institution that is not accredited with the proper oversight board, then potential employers will not consider your training valid. So make sure to be careful because different specialities have different prevailing accreditation boards. A good place to start is to visit the U.S. Department of Education’s Database of Accredited Post-secondary Institutions and Programs. From there, you should get an good idea of whether the program that interests you is accredited.

In the end, leadership is learned, just like anything else. If you have the desire to be a strong leader, you can fulfill your dream by getting an online graduate degree or certificate.

Drew Hendricks is a social media and SEO enthusiast that spends his free time browsing the internet and playing frisbee golf.

As people use the Internet more frequently and provide more personal information via social media sites such as: Facebook, Foursquare and Twitter, there is an increasing tension between a United States citizen’s right to privacy and freedom of speech, and the government’s desire to monitor its citizenry to protect against unlawful actions.  With this tension only growing, those in the legal field must be aware of these concerns and prepared for future instances where public sentiments and proposed government legislation could potentially clash.  With the Internet already established as a medium to provide higher and vocational education, attaining suitable knowledge and certification is easier than it was in the past. Individuals with a desire to enter the legal field now have outlets to study for their online paralegal certificate or even their online Juris Doctor.  As social media networks and other social Internet outlets grow into ubiquity, having individuals suitably educated can only aid in the effort to not only reach consensus with governing bodies when privacy concerns are on the table, but ultimately to ensure that the rights of free speech and individual privacy (as stated in the First and Fourth Amendments) are protected.

One recent example that has many advocates of the First and Fourth Amendments worried is reporter James Bamford’s article for Wired magazine, in which he details the United States government’s construction of $2 billion dollar monitoring facility in Bluffdale, Utah. The facility (called the Utah Data Center) is being built under the aegis of the National Security Agency (NSA) for the purpose of tracking American’s online activity, cellphone calls, emails, and other electronic communications in the name of cybersecurity. However, such monitoring is ripe for abuse and may violate the Fourth Amendment, which states that citizens are free from unreasonable search and seizure. Most distressingly, according to Bamford, the NSA has succeeded in developing a crytanalyzation technique (the ability to break encrypted computer code) that will allow the NSA to monitor civilians’ encrypted banking transactions, as well as discover civilians’ passwords.

Because social media and the internet are relatively new phenomena, there are few laws that protect users’ privacy and freedom of speech. The most applicable is the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), which was passed in 1986 and which limits the degree to which law enforcement can obtain and used stored electronic communications and data, though the ECPA, due to its age and the manner in which is was written, has a number of loopholes and is sometimes difficult to apply to modern-day electronic usage.

The PATRIOT Act, passed in 2001 by President George W. Bush, allows law enforcement agents more freedom than the ECPA to investigate and monitor electronic communications, including personal records such as medical and financial documents, even if the person being monitored is not necessarily a suspected terrorist (the act was passed shortly after the September 11 Attacks, with the stated goal of protecting the United States against further terrorist attacks).

Recently, there have been a number of examples of American citizens being expected to give up their right to privacy. Currently some employers ask potential hires to provide their user name and password for their Facebook account, so that the employer can assess and monitor the potential hire’s behavior online. While this practice has been likened to employers demanding that potential hires allow the employer access to their home to search their belongings, there is currently no known law prohibiting this practice, despite the seemingly obvious violation of First and Fourth Amendment Rights.

However, since this revelation came to light, MSNBC has reported that Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) have asked Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate whether the practice is in fact a violation of Federal Law. As of this writing, the outcome of this investigation has not been determined, though Facebook has stated that it does not permit sharing of passwords, and such demands by an employer of a potential hire violate Facebook’s user policy. As of now, the line between privacy and monitoring is still being drawn.

Drew Hendricks is a social media and SEO enthusiast that spends his free time browsing the internet and playing frisbee golf.

If you haven’t heard, Pinterest is the latest internet hit. Part social media, part photo swapping – the new social sharing site has the potential to go strong for quite some time. But what should parents know about Pinterest? Is it harmless for children? Teens? What does Pinterest really do? What is it for? I will attempt to give you some understanding into the new and exhilarating world of pinning.

To begin with, you can’t just sign up for Pinterest. You have to either be invited or request an invite. At this early stage, neither one is very problematic. If you request an invite it typically gets to you within a day or two. If you know somebody already on Pinterest, then it is just a matter of connecting an email link and creating a user name.

Once you’re on and able to create a user name, you routinely get a few ‘boards’. This is where you will store your pins. What is a pin? A pin is simply Pinterest’s form of a save button. When you sign up, you will get a tool button to place on the top of your internet browser. This button is named ‘pin it’. Now, any time you are cruising blogs and websites and come across a picture you love, you can simply hit the pin it button and save that snapshot, complete with the url to one of your boards.This means no more misplacing those recipes you loved, no forgetting where you found that delightful baby video, and no more losing track of your friend’s baby shower pictures.

When you pin, you pick what board to place it in. You can alter the names, but they normally start out with names like ‘Fashion’, ‘Places I Like’, ‘People’, ‘Adorable Animals’, etc. You just categorize where you want your pinned picture to go, and presto. Saved forever.

You can even add a subtitle to the pins you make: a description, information, call to action, or merely the word pretty. That’s all there is to it. You can also repin other people’s pins by topic or by person, making this an excellent method of sharing.

Now, that leads us into the security matter. There are a few things that parents should be aware of when it comes to Pinterest. For one, there is practically no moderation. That means that any image can be pinned. Even naked photos. It is infrequent, but it does happen. Even the photos that do not have full nudity can still be pretty indecent, and not appropriate for young children. Language is also a concern, as subtitles are not censored. 

One of the wonderful things about Pinterest is also one of the hazards. When you double click on a picture it will take you to the original site it came from. That’s great for recipes and the like, but even inoffensive photos can occasionally lead to pornographic sites.

Since all information entered on Pinterest is voluntary, i.e. they do not take information from your Facebook, etc, it is pretty benign as far as personal information goes. However, your pins will expose where you surf the web and what you are viewing, so be mindful.

Pinterest is an enjoyable, easy to navigate, and a pretty entertaining and useful site. It is beneficial in many ways. But if your children are on it, make them cognizant of the hazards and make sure they are mature enough to use it responsibly.

Happy Pinning!

Jenny Ellis is a freelance writer, and a regular contributor for aupair jobs. She welcomes your comments at: ellisjenny728 @ gmail.com.

Last week, Medical Billing launched their latest infographic on Health Care. What I like the most about this infographic is that it does not make me feel like I need to choose a side. I feel no matter how much I try to educate myself on ObamaCare, I get so many different views rather than just a clear answer. I understand that no one method is going to be flawless, I really just want to know if it is better than what we have – a step in the right direction. So to all of you readers out there like me, I hope this helps to lead you to a more clear answer. They also have built-in A.D.D. moments so, you will get a laugh out of it, believe it or not.

© 2012 Medical Billing

Every busy mom knows what it is like to struggle between serving food that is healthy versus serving food that is quick to prepare.  When you’ve had a stressful day, it is very appealing to pick up that box of instant dinner and serve it to your family.  It is not as appealing to ignore the mystery ingredients that make up those types of quick meals.  Every mom wants to serve food that is healthy to their families, but there is just not enough time to research which foods are really healthy and which foods are not.  Luckily, like everything else, there is an app for that.

Real Food Moms has developed an app available for purchase in the iTunes store.  It’s called Real Food Moms Recommendations and it’s only $0.99.  If you are not familiar with the site, it is an organization dedicated to healthy foods and healthy diets.  They have researched and reviewed many different food companies to determine which ones pass the healthy, tasty, and convenient real food test.  Many products already carry their seal of approval to let mom’s know which products are healthy for their family.  How do they know it’s real?  They use three main clues from the nutrition label to immediately determine whether or not a food is real.   They look at the amount of Bad Fats: trans-fats, hydrogenated oils, the amount of sugar and Chemical and artificial ingredients, which are the ingredients you typically cannot pronounce.

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If you are looking for a convenient way to decide what’s for dinner tonight, the Real Food Moms Recommendations app is perfect for you.  It provides a list of healthy and quick foods that your family is sure to love.  All the foods have been kid tasted and kid approved.  They are conveniently categorized for easy searching.  Under each category is a list of Real Food Moms approved products.  With each product comes a description of why it is recommended by Real Food Moms.  If you want to try something new, just shake the device and a food will pop up that you may not have picked on your own.  Letting your kids do the shaking makes trying new foods fun.

Real Food Moms has done all the research for you.  They have determined which products are real and affordable.  All you have to do is pick something from the list that sounds delicious!

Math is not always the easiest subject for kids to grasp, but luckily a teacher from Massachusetts has discovered a little secret.

“As a teacher, I have taught many math lessons.  But, perhaps the most successful and well-received lessons were always the ones that involved food,” says Spoonful of Math creator Rochelle Cooper.

From the moment I was informed of the program and looked through how it was set up, I thought it was a wonderful idea. It is a way for you to spend fun, quality time with your child, they get to play with food, and can explore mathematics according to their age. I asked for the the pre-k – 1st grade kit and had it personalized for my cousin, Jack. As soon as I walked in the door, I said “are you ready to cook good food and learn some math!?”, he replied with an unbelievable amount of excitment, “Yeah!”

We unwrapped his personalized kit, which consisted of: a blue pot holder, measuring cups and spoons, a wooden spoon, apron, and recipe cards. I also printed out two worksheets from the site for him to work on while we were waiting for our soup to cook. I let him pour in the ingredients asking him what 1 cup looked like and explaining what half meant by drawing out a pizza. We then went through shapes – the shape of the can, the chicken bouillon cube, the box of pasta, the veggies, etc. He caught onto cylinders and cubes quickly, but had trouble remembering the word sphere.

I put his stepping stool in front of the stove, and made sure he had his apron on, and then we went over safety. He was very excited to stir the soup, and I had to tell him to stir slowly and not splatter, which he eventually started doing on his own. We then discussed what it means when the soup starts bubbling – it means boiling, it is very hot, but now we can put the cylinder pasta in the pot, and then turn the heat down.

After we added all the ingredients, we waited. He worked on his worksheets and successfully matched all the shapes to the correct words. Even though he could not remember the word sphere he used the process of elimination to get the answer. After the worksheets, he was very interested in playing with his cups and spoons, and wanted to pour things into them – mostly the red tomato sauce, luckily I got it out of his sight and more interested in pouring the uncooked pasta into the cups.

Finally, it was time to eat. Let me just say, the soup was delicious, and he was excited to move on to dessert, where we reviewed our shapes. Overall, I found the kit very fun and I think Jack will continue to remember his shapes thanks to this activity, he also has a stronger appreciation for cooking.

Sometimes it is hard to imagine a time before the internet and social networks - even as new as they are. These avenues of communication have completely changed the course of business, and thus, the businessman. Business MBA recently launched an infographic that takes us back to a time when prehistoric man made survival his business, we meet the poets of the renaissance, the discoverers of new worlds, and eventually a generation with the world at their fingertips who has proven to be unlike any other.

From: Business MBA

If you are a fan of Ty Pennington, or of daytime talk shows, or of living a better life – this is your chance to be front and center. ABC is offering free tickets to be a part of their new show’s live studio audience. This is a wonderful opportunity.

I am very impressed with the entire premise of the show. Here on Social Media Mom, we often talk about living a better and more balanced life, which is the idea behind The Revolution. When it comes to style, adventure, health, and fitness – The Revolution is doing its part to make people happy in their own skin, and ready to live their lives fully and with a positive outlook.

If you are interested in going to New York for the taping, register to win your free tickets today. Let us know if you make it to the show and how wonderful it is in person.