New year, new directions: The Clayman Institute welcomes new associate director
The Clayman Institute welcomes Alison Dahl Crossley as the new associate director, bringing new leadership and a fresh focus on research. In her new position, Crossley leads the Institute's strategic focus, operations and academic and community relations. "I am thrilled to work with the team at the Institute,” she says. “Such a talented and energetic group! I’m excited to join them in advancing gender equality in collaborative and forward-thinking ways."
“We are thrilled to have Alison join the Institute leadership team” adds Lori Nishiura Mackenzie, Institute executive director. “I’m excited to see where Alison takes us.”
“Excited” is a word Crossley uses often when describing her new role, her colleagues and the opportunity to influence the Institute’s vision and future. She is passionate about continuing to connect the Institute to the broader university community and in particular, to students on campus. “There are many different ways people can be feminists,” she explains. “I want to reach out to students to show them how they can be involved, and also to help us learn from them. Gender issues are relevant to everyone. I hope students will see that joining the conversation can provide an important facet to their education.”
Crossley already has a head start in connecting with students and young feminists. She came to Clayman in 2013 as a post-doctoral research fellow, with a special focus on contemporary feminism, particularly on how young feminists fuel the movement. She was instrumental in organizing the Institute’s groundbreaking Online Feminism Conference, held in October 2014, which looked at the challenges and possibilities of Internet activism. She is currently completing a book manuscript, "Finding Feminism: College Students, Feminist Mobilization, and the Unfinished Gender Revolution," and has published scholarship about women's movements, online feminism and social movement continuity. “I’ve always had a deep appreciation for the foundation and continuity of feminism,” Crossley says. “As feminists today, we are building on the collective merit and accomplishments of all those who have gone before us.”
Crossley’s dedication to the importance of research and building new relationships extends to communities off-campus as well. “I hope to expand our circle of influencers to a larger public,” she says. “I want to explore the variety of ways we can be change agents and how we can use both on- and off-line communication to engage new communities.”
From her first day at Clayman, Crossley recognized it was the ideal place for her to follow her passions. “I knew right when I got here that this was exactly the kind of work I wanted to do,” she concludes. “The energy, the environment and the incredible staff all add up to getting the job done!”
