Holcomb’s gender and sexuality course is anything but dull

Women's studies has been weaved into Professor Kimberly Holcomb's life as she makes the subject known to the students through a refreshing teaching style. Her gender and sexuality class is never a routine with Holcomb, as students experience her personality intertwined with the course material.

Holcomb is a Colorado native, but got transplanted to a "painfully" small town in Michigan at the early age of two.

"It took me 12 years to get back, but I made it! And all I got was this lousy Midwestern accent," said Holcomb. "I took my first women's studies course here with Dr. Abby Ferber, and the class was so amazing, I switched my major to sociology (this was before WEST had a major of its very own)."

Holcomb finished her Bachelor's degree at UCCS before taking a brief hiatus to Vancouver, Canada for a bit of graduate school before transferring back to UCCS to finish her MA.

"I missed UCCS and realized only after leaving how lucky I had been to have the amazing professors and experience I did here," said Holcomb.

However, she never originally planned for the path she is currently on.

"Teaching was something that had never really been on my radar screen of dreams. I just sort of fell into it after I graduated, and I immediately fell in love. Now I can hardly imagine doing much else – save for a recording contract, you understand."

But what does the gender and sexuality course entail?

"Everything in the entire world," she said. "Everything. In. The. World." Given that, she said she absolutely loves to teach the class.

"Well, as you can imagine given the course content, class is never boring!" she elaborated. "Gender and sexuality are ubiquitous, and yet often go unexamined, like the water none of the fish are talking about."

"We (most Americans) consume enormous amounts of media each day, which tell us stories about gender and sexuality – up to 3,000 ads per day – and yet we rarely take the time, or have the opportunity, to delve deeper into these issues.

"We can only benefit by developing a more informed

and critical eye in this regard. The gender and sexuality course helps with that. Plus, there's a field trip!"

Aside from the obvious reasons to join the course, Holcomb offers knowledge and understanding to the topic that few professors can rival.

"In all seriousness, gender and sexuality (and the myriad other topics we cover that

aren't encompassed by the title) affect the lives of virtually everyone," she said. "There are few college courses that apply so unilaterally to the inner lives of students."

"I feel incredibly grateful to be paid for doing something that brings me immense joy and satisfaction, and I can say with complete veracity that my students teach me at least as much as I do them."