Heather Reel

Heather Reel earned a PhD in Childhood Studies from Rutgers University, an M.A. in Developmental Psychology from Columbia University, and a B.A. in African American Studies from Wesleyan University. Her research and teaching interests include history of youth; histories of medicine, health and the body; and cultural histories of reproduction, childbirth and childrearing. Broadly, her work examines the figure of the child as a historically critical site of celebration and anxiety in twentieth century America and a driving force of political, social, and cultural formation. In particular, she is interested in the intersections of gender and age, and the ways in which girls have been made carriers of an enormous range of social and cultural meanings and ideological investments. Other scholarly interests include visual and material culture, “the popular” in American history, Black cultural studies, and critical approaches to motherhood within gender, sexuality and women’s studies.

Education & Training

PhD, Childhood Studies - Rutgers University
MA, Developmental Psychology - Columbia University
BA, African American Studies - Wesleyan University

Courses Taught at Pitt

GSWS 1130 - Gendered Bodies
GSWS 0500 - Intro to Feminist Theory