Anne Fausto-Sterling papers (MS.1UF.F1)

Biographical note

Anne Sterling was born in Queens, New York on July 30th, 1944 to Philip and Dorothy Sterling. As a self-named "red-diaper baby," Fausto-Sterling became an activist early in life, primarily involved with peace, civil rights and women's liberation movements. After graduating from high school, she attended the University of Wisconsin with a major in zoology. Following college graduation in 1965, Fausto-Sterling moved to Providence, Rhode Island to become a doctoral student in developmental genetics at Brown University. In 1972, she became Assistant Professor in Medical Science at Brown, primarily teaching courses in embryology. Six years later, Fausto-Sterling was promoted to Associate Professor, and in 1986, was granted full professorship. She is now Professor of Biology and Gender Studies and holds the Nancy Duke Lewis Chair.

Over the past thirty-seven years, Fausto-Sterling has developed numerous courses such as, "The Biology of Gender," "Vertebrate Embryology," "History of Embryology and Genetics in 20th Century US," and "Social Issues in Biology." In 2002-2003, Fausto-Sterling directed the Pembroke Center's research seminar on "Theories of Embodiment." Fausto-Sterling has been a visiting faculty member at many institutions, including Harvard University/Radcliffe College, Stanford University, Northwestern University, Mount Holyoke College, and the University of Amsterdam.

In 1985, Fausto-Sterling published Myths of Gender. The book drew great attention from both the academy and the mainstream media and a 2nd edition was released in 1992, translated into multiple languages. Fausto-Sterling's 1993 article, "The Five Sexes," published in Sciences again drew great amounts of attention and an Honorable Mention in The Best American Essays of 1994. Sexing the Body, released in 2000, won the Robert K. Melton Award from the American Sociological Association and the Distinguished Publication Award from the Association for Women in Psychology. Fausto-Sterling was the general editor of the series, "Race, Gender, and Science" from Indiana University Press and has published numerous book chapters, journal articles, and book reviews in both academic journals and mainstream publications.

Fausto-Sterling has served on the editorial boards of NWSA Journal, Signs, Journal of Homosexuality, Women's Review of Books, Perspectives on Biology and Medicine, and Journal of Gay and Lesbian Psychotherapy. She has been an external reviewer for tenure committees around the country and a manuscript reviewer for both journals and book publishers. Fausto-Sterling has lectured and participated in conferences around the country and in Europe, as well as participated in a number of documentary films. She is a member of a number of associations such as, The Association for Women in Science, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Society for Developmental Biology, International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology, and National Women's Studies Association.

Throughout her life, Fausto-Sterling has also been involved with many activist organizations around Rhode Island, the country, and the world - primarily around issues of peace, non-nuclear proliferation, women's rights, LGBT issues, and Latin American revolutionary movements and human rights.