Leandra Preston-Sidler, Ph.D.

• Senior Lecturer
• Leandra@ucf.edu
• 4078236502
• Office Hours: By appointment (available for phone, chat, email, and f2f meetings)
• Campus Location: TCH348H
• View CV

Leandra Preston-Sidler began teaching English and Composition at UCF in 2002. In 2004, she accepted an opportunity to teach Women's Studies, which is now Women's and Gender Studies. In 2007, she founded a non-profit organization, Animal Safehouse of Brevard, a network of volunteers who foster pets for women in domestic violence shelters. She earned her PhD in Spring 2015 in Texts and Technology, focusing on beauty technologies, gender, and virtual communities. She is now Senior Lecturer in Women's and Gender Studies and was the first full-time Women's and Gender Studies Instructor at UCF.  

Education

• Ph.D. in Texts and Technology from University of Central Florida (2015)
• M.A. in English / Literature from University of Central Florida (2002)

Research Interests

• Gendered Bodies and Technology
• Virtual Communities
• Feminist Activism
• Masculinities
  
• Domestic Violence

Recent Research Activities

• Gendered Bodies and Technology
• Virtual Communities (esp. related to gender, bodies, identity)
• Girls Studies
• Body-Based Activism
• Third Wave Feminisms
• Masculinities
• Domestic Violence

Selected Publications

Articles/Essays

• “A Space of Our Own: MySpace and Feminist Activism in the Classroom,” Radical Teacher. Cambridge, MA: Boston Women's Teachers' Group, Inc., April 2008. 

Book Sections/Chapters

• Forthcoming “Third Wave Library Activism: The Dynamic Possibilities of a Women’s and Gender Studies and University Library Partnership.” Gender Studies in the Library: Case Studies of Innovative Programs and Resources. Jefferson, NC: MacFarland and Co., 2016. 
• “From Cyborgs to Cybergrrrls: Redefining ‘Girl Power’ Through Technology and Media.” Difficult Dialogues about Twenty-First Century Girls. Eds. Donna Marie Johnson and Alice E. Ginsberg. New York: SUNY Press, November 2015. 
• “From Mamma to Mine: Constructing Feminist Homes on the Border(land)s of Italian America.” Olive Grrrls: Italian North American Women & The Search For Identity. Ed. Lachrista Greco. Olive Grrrl Press, 2013.
  
• The Women's Movement Today: An Encyclopedia of Third-Wave Feminism. Ed. Leslie Heywood. Greenwood Press, November 2005. terms: academic feminism, single-sex education, women’s colleges, third-wave pedagogy, Carol Gilligan

Creative Publications

• “Counting Breaths.” Communal Table. 5.1 Online Journal, 2016.

Awards

• Promotion, Senior Lecturer, 2020
• Teaching Incentive Program Award, College of Arts and Humanities, 2013; 2018
  
• UCF Center for Success of Women Faculty Women’s History Month Recognition, 2017
• Outstanding Dissertation Award, UCF College of Arts and Humanities, 2015
• Professional Development Leave Grant, UCF College of Arts and Humanities, 2014
• Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award, College of Arts and Humanities, 2014
• Teaching Incentive Program Award, College of Arts and Humanities, 2013
• Spirit of Philanthropy/Community Hero Award, Health First, Brevard County, 2010
• Outstanding Faculty Achievement Award, UCF, College of Arts and Humanities, 2008
• Excellence in Teaching at UCF Award, student-nominated, 2006

Activities

Senior Lecturer, Women's and Gender Studies at UCF
Founder/Director, Animal Safehouse Program of Brevard
Chair, Curriculum Committee, UCF Women's and Gender Studies
Faculty Advisor, UCF Planned Parenthood Generation Action
Faculty Advisor, UCF National Organization for Women
Faculty Advisor, The Women's Network at UCF
Faculty Advisor, Girl Up at UCF
Member, Domestic Violence Task Force of Brevard County
(not comprehensive)

Courses

• Spring 2023
• Fall 2022
• Summer 2022
• Spring 2022
• Fall 2021
• Summer 2021