Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies analyzes how and why gender and related institutions of inequality have been created and are being transformed in our local-to-global society. It examines the ways that gender as a social institution is one of the major ways in which society is organized and particularly focuses on understanding women's lives and status in society, attending to the ways that they are shaped by the major interlocking institutions of difference: gender/sexuality, race/ethnicity, class, and global inequality. Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies considers women and their contribution to society and the various disciplines. Viewing knowledge as empowering, Women's Studies has the goal of integrating theory and practice to redefine cultures and material relationships so as to eliminate gender inequality and other forms of hierarchy. In the classroom, Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies faculty members foster an interactive learning environment and encourage students to consider their own experiences in relation to course content. Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies classes are relevant to women and men because an understanding of gender benefits everyone.