Scarsdale Adult School Catalog Fall/Winter 2024-25
Author Visit: Danielle Friedman, Let’s Get Physical: How Women Discovered Exercise and Reshaped theWorld (2022) Meet Danielle Friedman, whose book, Let’sGet Physical: How Women Discovered Exercise and Reshaped the World (2022), chronicles the entrepreneurs who pioneered the barre method, Jazzercise, city marathons, modern yoga studios, and other fitness trends. Today, working out is an accepted, and even expected, part of women's lives. But before the mid-twentieth century in mainstream America, sweating was considered unladylike, and girls grew up believing that too much physical exertion could be harmful to their health. Learn how trailblazing fitness pioneers marketed a vibrant range of commercial programs to enhance women’s mental and physical health, and ponder how successful they have been in transforming fitness from an upscale privilege into an essential right. Friedman’s discussion of her research will spark your nostalgia for past fitness fads and bring you up to date on the latest movements in staying strong.
Author Visit: Ava Purkiss, Fit Citizens: A History of Black Women’s Exercise from Post-Reconstruction to Postwar America (2023) Meet Ava Purkiss, Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan, as she shares insights from her groundbreaking book about historical figures including W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells, and Michelle Obama, who championed fitness for Black women and children alongside broader efforts for racial equality. Amidst the struggle against segregation and political oppression, Black women devised new approaches to the battle for full citizenship and social justice. Through exercises such as calisthenics, gymnastics, and nature walks, Black women demonstrated their physical and moral fitness for national belonging. Purkiss explores how physical activity was not merely a path to individual health but also a way for Black women to uplift their race and, over time, to ensure that citizens of all races have access to recreational spaces, including YMCAs, beaches, parks and playgrounds.
DANIELLE FRIEDMAN is an award-winning journalist who specializes in telling stories at the intersection of health, gender, and culture. Friedman contributes regularly to the New York Times Well section, where she often explores the connection between
AVA PURKISS is an assistant professor of women's and gender studies and American culture at the University of Michigan. Her research and teaching interests lie at the intersection of race, gender, health, and the body. Purkiss earned her PhD in history from the University of Texas at Austin and has received numerous fellowships and grants supporting her research. She is the recipient of the 2017 Organization of
movement and mental health. She holds a BA in English from Duke University and an MS from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. LORI ROTSKOFF (see bio for “Author Visit: Vicki Valosik, Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water (2024)”). Thursday, September 26 • 1:00pm-2:15pm • Zoom • Course 12817 • $35
American Historians Lerner-Scott Prize for best dissertation in U.S. women’s history and the 2018 Letitia Woods Brown prize for best article in African American women’s history from the Association of Black Women Historians. LORI ROTSKOFF (see bio for “Author Visit: Vicki Valosik, Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water (2024)”). Thursday, October 17 • 1:00pm-2:15pm • Zoom • Course 12818 • $35
For an optimal experience, pair these two author visits and register for both at once using Course 12725 to save $15. Sessions will be recorded and made available to registered students for two weeks of viewing on demand.
www.ScarsdaleAdultSchool.org • (914) 723-2325
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