Jenny Denning, Bookstore Manager

Wichita Falls born, Jenny Denning has managed MSU’s book store for 23 years.  She graduated from Wichita Falls High School and graduated from Midwestern State University with a degree in secondary education.  She continued her career in retail, which she has been a part of for 40 years.  She has a son named Matthew Bailey, who is also an MSU alum and serves the community in our police force.

One of the aspects Dennings enjoys about retail is the efficiency needed in everything and believes everyone has something to learn from that management style: “I think everyone should work retail, because you never have everything that you need, you never have enough help, so I think working retail makes you very efficient in every step that you take.

While Dennings values a smooth sailing book store, she also believes foremost in the interpersonal dimension of retail: “Retail is really about following the golden rule: treat others as you would like to be treated… treating everyone like family.”

She loves the Midwestern State University community for its family environment and its ability to provide a job that “doesn’t really feel like work”.  She values the Midwestern State people and the connection she’s made with their diverse and wide range of stories they bring into the book store: “[I love] the people I work with, our faculty, our staff, our students… This is a great place to be… and I feel I’m in the best spot on campus”

Elizabeth James Schertz Lewandowski, Professor of Costume and Makeup Design

Elizabeth James Schertz Lewandowski is the professor of costume and makeup design at MSU. Her family settled down on a family farm in Metamora, Illinois after a series of moving around when she was younger. Though she successfully looks after numerous students every day, Lewandowski claims she does not have as much luck looking after potted plants. She is not the first one in her family to teach. 

“I’m a third generation teacher. My grandmother taught K-8 in a one room schoolhouse […] My mom was a botanist and high school science teacher. My dad is a retired college professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences,” Lewandowski said. 

Her favorite factors about MSU are the collegiality, class sizes, and alumni involvement. Lewandowski loves to use Women’s History Month as a time to read about the history of Black women’s hair and the Women’s Liberation Movement. The woman that inspires her most is her mother, who had the motto, ‘Some people are put on this earth to comfort the afflicted. I’m here to afflict the comfortable!’ Lewandowski admired her mother’s perseverance and willingness to challenge others. 

“Until the end of her life, Mom pushed everyone she met to make a positive difference in the lives of others.  I try to live up to her example,” Lewandowski said.  

She hopes to model the life of an independent, honest woman even in hard times. 

“Society has trained women to suppress our emotions in the professional world which sometimes leads us to avoid any form of conflict, especially when the stakes are high. All people should feel safe to speak and be heard,” Lewandowski said. 

Sarah Cobb, Chair of the Math Department

From Salt Lake City, Utah, Sarah Cobb is the Chair of the Math Department at MSU. In addition to an extensive knowledge on mathematics, Cobb can share about any Elvish fact as she has read the Lord of the Rings trilogy around 15 times. Her love of being a teacher stems from her joy of math. She also loves the opportunities that being at a university provides. She greatly appreciates her students, colleagues and the collaborative atmosphere she shares with them. Cobb finds value in the time that is spent highlighting the accomplishments and experiences of women.

“Every year during this month, I read or hear something about a woman that I knew nothing about—it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to encounter their stories,” Cobb said.

A woman that she admires is eighteenth-century Italian mathematician, Maria Agnesi.

“She was also the first woman to be appointed as a mathematics professor at a university. […] I find her inspiring in her insight into mathematics, her determination to follow her own path, and her work in helping others.”

Cobb wants to emphasize the importance of genuine listening in order to build a community.

“This is true for anyone of any gender, and many women are particularly good at it,” Cobb said.

Hillary Coenen, Assistant Professor of English

Originally from Vernon, Texas, Hillary Coenen is an assistant professor of English. She began her master’s degree in 2009, connecting her with MSU. Coenen worked in the English and honors department before she went to Oklahoma State to earn her PhD in English focusing on feminist rhetoric and composition. In 2019, she was offered a position as a visiting assistant professor in the English department. 

Coenen became interested in feminism in eighth grade when a friend shared Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “Herland.” The novel was a spark for her in terms of understanding the possibilities of feminism. During her thesis project, a film adaptation of “Herland,” she worked with Kristen Garrison, associate vice president of academic affairs, who helped her realize feminist rhetoric is what she needed to pursue for her PhD. 

“Much of the reason that I study feminist rhetoric is that it makes space for the exploration and prioritization of intersectional aspects of identity. The reason I got so passionate about feminist rhetoric specifically was that it informed me, prepared me to try to do anti-racist work. Feminist rhetoric isn’t just reclaiming rheteric from a gendered perspective and reclaiming it for women,” Coenen said. “It is also about seeking equity and seeking justice for individuals and groups that have been marginalized and excluded not only from discourse about rhetoric, but society and academia and the right to have someone’s voice heard more broadly. That is the reason that I stayed the course with feminist rhetoric it enabled me to begin to understand they way that women and people in general experience oppression differently depending how the world sees and understand who they are.”

There are many women that Coenen looks up to in her life, such as Garrison and Melissa Nivens, associate professor of English and writing program administrator. One of the women that inspires her the most is her sister.

“My youngest sister [is a woman that inspires me], she has worked so very hard and is so persistent in pursuing her goals even in the face of many obstacles. She found a path that really suits her and in which she is thriving, supporting children and loving her job. She’s also a really loving force in our family.” Coenen said.

Women have been excluded from history for years, which is why women’s history month is important, according to Coenen.

“Women have been actively excluded from history for the majority of our history, particularly in the eurocentric historical narrative. Women’s History Month, while it might seem not as powerful now as it used to be because we have many more narratives of strong powerful influential innovative women in our public discourse now. That’s because of the efforts of primarily women to reclaim the narratives of women who have helped to shape the world, society, policy and science,” Coenen said.

Marcy Brown Marsden, Dean of the McCoy College of Science, Math and Engineering

Marcy Brown Marsden is the dean for the McCoy College of Science, Math and Engineering. She was inspired to explore the science field after getting to see the first US space shuttle landing in Edwards, California. As a first-generation college student, Marsden earned a Ph.D. at Purdue, going on to teach for 18 years at a private university, then coming to MSU in 2015. She has worked her way up from faculty to chair and now to dean. Marsden was inspired by two Sally’s along the way. Sally Ride, the first American woman in space and an advocate for women in STEM, and Sally Hicks, a physicist who acted as a mentor and friend to Marsden. Marsden tries to help her students by being present in decision-making moments.

“I’ve been in a lot of rooms where I’ve been the only woman leader and it requires coming forward and really, really standing up,” Marsden said. “It’s as much as a vulnerable position as it is a strength position.”

Marsden says women’s history month is important for recognizing the different ways women can lead. She finds it celebrates progress made for and by women while still addressing present issues.

“With the recognition of all the good that’s happened, we also have to recognize some of the challenges still being faced by women in terms of pursuing their path,” Marsden said. “It takes a moment to say ‘what do we need to do?’ to remove those barriers to progress and achievement for women.”