History instructor and Women’s Studies faculty member Teriann Bengiveno started the Women Studies program at Las Positas College in 2001. At the time of her hiring, LPC did not have a program, and Bengiveno was hired for her experience in teaching women’s history.
“Once I got to LPC, I realized there weren’t many women studies courses,” Bengiveno said. “There was no Women Studies department.” She said that LPC was a much smaller campus at the time, and while several community colleges may have had “isolated coursework,” not having a Women’s Studies program wasn’t “uncommon.”
As the program and enrollment in its courses increase, Bengiveno said that courses like these have become integral in the face of anti-DEI rhetoric, federal funding cuts and the rollback of reproductive rights as President Donald Trump and his allies seek to dismantle similar programs nationwide. LPC will only offer two Women’s Studies course next year: Introduction to Women’s Studies and Global Perspective of Women. No student has declared a major in Gender Studies since the Fall of 2023.
“One student in my Women’s Studies class last semester said he was the father of daughters, and he was just appalled at what was happening,” Bengiveno said.
Since his inauguration, Trump has sought to limit reproductive rights and protections for women across several means, including through drastic cuts to federal funding for programs, such as Medicare and other social services. Bengiveno said that due to California’s large population, these cuts will affect women the most. For context, women make up 53% of the state’s population eligible for Medi-Cal. In addition, she stated that marginalized women, including transgender women and those of color, will experience disproportionately negative health outcomes as a result of legislative decisions and other rulings, such as the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 and the proposed elimination of the Department of Education.
Bengiveno also noted a pro-life group’s presence on campus recently, contending that while she believed the messaging was “offensive,” the campus has rules allowing for free speech and students are able to protest against them if they wish.
“Every two years or so, we get these anti-choice demonstrators on campus with incredibly offensive posters and rhetoric,” she said. “Because of free speech (policies), they have to be allowed to be on campus.”
Stephanie McManus, a second-year Political Science major, expressed similar beliefs to Bengiveno. While her experience at LPC has been “an overall positive” one, and the college’s staff and faculty have been supportive of its female students, she noted that there have been instances, such as the pro-life group’s Project Truth’s presence on campus on March 10, that have made her uncomfortable.
“I was told that they were approaching women, specifically, and handing them flyers with really graphic images of, like, aborted fetuses,” McManus said. “I just think it’s so reprehensible. I don’t think a group with clearly malicious intentions should be allowed to approach students on a college campus.”
Francesca Richmond-Buccola, a biology major, said that the group’s presence “frustrated” her, and she wished the campus could have done something to prevent them from demonstrating on campus. She noted that they were displaying graphic posters with “bloody fetuses” on them.
“I was like, ‘Do you at least feel ashamed or, like, inconsiderate at the fact that you could trigger somebody to have an anxiety attack or a panic attack?’”
McManus also said that although her experience at LPC has been positive overall, she knows that several of her female classmates have experienced objectification and other types of harassment on campus. Additionally, she said that she has also experienced male-dominated spaces, such as the History Club, where she is an officer. McManus noted that the club has been accepting overall, and she is able to introduce and present on topics based on women’s history.
Despite attacks on the federal level, Bengiveno said that the staff at LPC has been supportive throughout her time at the college and of the efforts she has made in popularizing and promoting the Women Studies program. She said, unlike other institutions across the nation, she does not expect to see decreased enrollment or funding the ethnic and women studies programs across the California Community College System as these courses often meet several requirements in the California State University System’s general education pattern for transfer — known as IGETC— including Humanities and Social and Behavioral Science requirements.
McManus also said that she believes courses and pathways, such as the Women and Ethnic studies majors, are necessary to combat Trump and the policies being pushed by his administration.
“I think that having education that combats (and) actively informs people about the history of marginalization and all of these different groups that have been marginalized in our history is essential,” McManus said.
McManus said she believes it’s hard to predict what will happen in the next few years.
“I don’t know. It’s scary because when you think back to (Ronald) Reagan and his policies, we’re (still) suffering the damage that he caused,” McManus said. “And with somebody like Trump, who is very comparable not only in rhetoric and personality, but also in the policies that he’s pushed and supported, I do think that it will take a lot to reverse the damage that is currently being done, not only like to our constitutional stability or like set of laws, but also our culture. “
Bengiveno noted that despite the fact that California has a Democratic majority in the government, decisions made at the federal level will continue to impact people in the state. She also noted that more Californians voted for Donald Trump in the past election than in 2020.
The reality is that we live in a very racist, sexist, trans(phobic) and homophobic country,” Bengiveno said. “While I think the Harris campaign did everything right and had incredible momentum, there’s, unfortunately, a lot of people in this country that won’t vote for a woman of color.”
Bengiveno noted that she isn’t “immediately” hopeful for the state of the country and that she believes would “take a long time to bounce back” from the impact of his policies.
“I think that Donald Trump is a cult leader, and he’s got a cult following,” she said.
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TOP PHOTO: Teriann Bengiveno, a woman’s study professor at LPC, believe women — especially those with low incomes — will be most affected by Trump policies but all women are in for a long haul with this president. (Photo by Ian Kapsalis/The Express)
Raina Dent is a Staff Writer for The Express. Follow her on X, formally Twitter, @_rainasafiya
