Tamar Westphal (she, her) is a graduate student and Graduate Teaching Associate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at The Ohio State University, focusing on femme theory and performance studies.  She is particularly interested in femme identity formations, community-building practices, and values. 

Tamar previously spent over a decade in non-profit communications, working on domestic/sexual violence policymaking and promoting gender equity, LGBTQ+ rights, and public health.  She received a BA from Mount Holyoke, where she developed curricula on trans-inclusive college housing.  Tamar has published peer-reviewed work in Sexualities, with public scholarship in Slate, Ms., and oral history archives.  She sits on several WGSS departmental committees and is a long-serving board member of Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College committees, the Mount Holyoke Club of Chicago, and the Women’s College Alliance.

Publications:

• Westphal, T (2024). "Sexy but frightening": Femme worldbuilding and feminist revenge. https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/IE9XJ5UWBXJ6DVFCSCFS/full