News & Events
Present Tense / Future Possibilities Conference
Present Tense / Future Possibilities: The 4th Annual WGSS Interdisciplinary Conference
The USF Department of Women鈥檚, Gender, and Sexuality Studies will host the Present Tense / Future Possibilities Conference on February 13, 2026, at the USF Tampa campus. Students, staff, and faculty from the USF community, along with students, staff, and faculty in Florida-based WGSS programs and those doing related, relevant work in the State of Florida are invited to attend.
Date, Time, & Registration
Friday, February 13, 2026
9:00am-6:00pm
Marshall Student Center, 3rd Floor
USF Tampa Campus
4103 Cedar Circle, Tampa, FL 33620
In a moment that feels as if it is defined by fear, vulnerability, and chaos, we celebrate
ways in which artists, academics, and community members work against these dark themes
to imagine, create, and live worlds that offer more.
Aimed at exploring, developing, and implementing feminist, queer, crip and other politics
of refusal, this conference explores what Lauren Berlant described as their commitment
鈥渢o the political project of imagining how to detach from lives that don鈥檛 work and
from worlds that negate the subjects that produce them鈥 and to create possibilities
鈥渢o live beyond survival, toward flourishing not later but in the ongoing now.鈥
This conference is funded by the USF Department of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; the USF College of Arts and Sciences; and USF ResearchOne. The conference is free to attend.
Conference Overview
Full schedule available as a PDF.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 9:00am | Conference Check-In Opens |
| 9:30am-10:45am |
Session 1 Panels |
| 10:55am-12:10pm |
Session 2 Panels and Poster Session |
| 12:10pm-12:40pm |
Lunch Break |
| 12:40pm-1:40pm |
Lunch Keynote: 鈥淚f You Want a Village, Be a Good Villager: Futures Built in the Now鈥 with Bior Guigni and Dr. Byron Green-Calisch of St Pete Pride |
| 1:50pm-3:05pm |
Session 3 Panels |
| 3:15pm-4:30pm |
Session 4 Panels |
| 4:40pm-5:20pm |
Closing Keynote: "In the Meantime..." with Dr. Amy Reid of PEN America |
| 5:20pm-5:50pm |
Reception |
Conference Keynote Events
The conference will feature two keynote events.
Lunch Keynote: 鈥淚f You Want a Village, Be a Good Villager: Futures Built in the Now鈥 with and of St Pete Pride
Closing Keynote: "In the Meantime..." with of PEN America
Conference Details
- All attendees, including presenters, must .
- The full conference schedule is available in our conference app, , upon registration. An abbreviated schedule is also available for download as a PDF.
- Guest parking is available near MSC in Lots 3A, 3B and 3C with additional parking in Crescent Hill Parking Garage (CHG). For maps and visitor parking info, visit the USF Parking site
- Some local suggestions for out-of-town attendees - hotels, places to eat, and outdoor sites to visit
- Questions? Please email us if you have any questions or concerns.
