Alesha Doan


Alesha Doan
  • Professor
  • Associate Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Contact Info

200 Strong Hall
Lawrence

Biography

Alesha E. Doan is Associate Dean in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Kansas. She also holds a joint appointment in the School of Public Affairs & Administration and the Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies Department. Professor Doan's interdisciplinary research program is situated at the intersections between gender, public policy, and organizations, with a substantive focus on reproductive health, sexual violence, and gender & the military. She has been awarded more than $7 million in external funding, and her publications include articles in a variety of journals. She is the co-editor of Managing Sex in the U.S. Military: Gender, Identity, and Behavior (2022), as well the author or co-author of Abortion Regret: The New Attack on Reproductive Freedom (2019), Organizational Obliviousness: Entrenched Resistance to Gender Integration in the Military (2019), Opposition and Intimidation: The Abortion Wars and Strategies of Political Harassment (2007), and The Politics of Virginity: Abstinence in Sex Education (2008).

Education

Ph.D., Political Science, Texas A&M University

M.A., Political Science, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

B.A., Sociology, University of New Mexico

Research

Teaching Interests

  • Public policy
  • Reproductive policy
  • Feminist methods
  • Research design
  • Reproductive justice
  • Diversity and equity in public organizations

Research

Alesha Doan is Professor in the School of Public Affairs & Administration and the Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies Department. Professor Doan’s interdisciplinary research is guided by her broader interests in public policy, organizations and gender/social equity, with a more specialized focus on the development, adoption and implementation of reproductive policies. Her publications include articles in a variety of journals as well as two books: Opposition and Intimidation: The Abortion Wars and Strategies of Political Harassment (University of Michigan Press 2007), and The Politics of Virginity: Abstinence in Sex Education, (co-authored, Praeger 2008). Professor Doan is currently collaborating on a book, For Their Own Protection: Abortion Regret and the Attack on Women’s Reproductive Freedom. Professor Doan also continues to work with a collaborative research team investigating gender integration and equity in the military; and she is the lead researcher on a three-year grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health to develop and implement policies and prevention programs addressing the issue of sexual assault on college campuses.

Selected Publications

Doan, A. Costa Candal, C. & Sylvester, S. (2018)."We Are the Visible Proof: Legitimizing Abortion Regret Misinformation through Activists' Experiential Knowledge." Law & Policy, 40(1). DOI:10.1111/lapo.12094

Doan, A. & Ehrlich, S. (2017). Teaching Morality by Teaching Science: Religiosity and Abortion Regret. In . (Ed.), New Challenges and Conversations in Reproductive Ethics.

Doan, A. & Portillo, S. (2017). Moving Beyond Separate but Equal: The Flaw in the Boy Scouts New Policy, Huffington Post.

Doan, A. & Portillo, S. (2017). Not a Scandal: Nude Photos, Business as Usual for Marines. Huffington Post. 

Doan, A. & Portillo, S. (2017). Not A Woman, But A Soldier: Exploring Identity through Translocational Positionality. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 76(3), 236-249 . DOI:10.1007/s11199-016-0661-7

Portillo, S. & Doan, A. (2016). Porcelain and Privilege: Gender Oblivion, Bathrooms and the Push for Equity. Huffington Post. 

Doan, A. & Portillo, S. (2016). Project Diane: Integrating Military Women into Combat Roles. Huffington Post

Doan, A. Murphy, A. Cole, M. Doerr, J. Halling, E. Mabachi, N. McMillian, J. Thomas, N. Walzel, R. Rayburn Yung, C. & Carlson, J. (2015). University of Kansas Chancellor's Sexual Assault Task Force Final Report. April 2015. Prepared for the University of Kansas. For more information about the task force and to access the final report, visit the Chancellor's Task Force on Sexual Assault website.

Doan, A. E., & Kirkpatrick, K. (2013). Giving Girls a Shot: An Examination of Mandatory Vaccination Legislation. Policy Studies Journal.

Doan, A. E., & McFarlane, D. (2012). Saying No to Abstinence-Only Education: An Analysis of State Decision-Making. Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 42(4), 613-635.

Doan, A. E. (2011). What's Wrong with Sexy? Why Political Science Needs to Get Serious about Sexuality. PS: Political Science and Politics, 44(1), 31-34.

Doan, A. E., & Haider-Markel, D. (2010). The Role of Intersectional Stereotypes on Evaluations of Political Candidates. Politics & Gender, 6(1), 63-91.

Doan, A. E. (2009). [Review of Sin, Sex and Democracy: Antigay Rhetoric and the Christian Right]. Perspectives on Politics, 7(3), 657-659.

Doan, A. E., & Williams, J. C. (2008). Politics of Virginity: Abstinence in Sex Education, Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

Doan, A. E. (2007). Opposition and Intimidation: The Abortion Wars and Strategies of Political Harassment, Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Doan, A. E., & Wood, B. D. (2003). The Politics of Problem Definition: A Theory and Application to Sexual Harassment. American Journal of Political Science, 47(3), 640-653.

Doan, A. E. (2002). [Review of the book Is the Fetus a Person? A Comparison of Policy Across the Fifty States]. American Political Science Review, 96(4), 832-833.

Doan, A. E., & Leighley, J. E. (2000). Women's Participation in Electoral Politics: Myths and Realities. In D. Vannoy (Ed.), Gender Mosaics: Social Perspectives. Los Angeles, CA: Roxbury Publishing Company.

Selected Presentations

Doan, A. & Portillo, S. (11/10/2016 - 11/13/2016). Gender Oblivion and Military Integration. National Women’s Studies Association. Montreal, Canada. Available on the NWSA website.

Doan, A. & Schwarz, C. (11/10/2016 - 11/13/2016). Women Can’t Consent to Abortion: Expanding State Surveillance through Crisis Pregnancy Centers. National Women’s Studies Association. Montreal, Canada . Available on the NWSA website.

Awards & Honors

Higher Education Award

Dialogue Institute Southwest

2015

University of Kansas Woman of Distinction

Emily Taylor Center for Women & Gender Equity, University of Kansas

2013 - 2014

Outstanding Young Professional Award

Population, Reproductive and Sexual Health Section of the American Public Health Association

2012

Grants & Other Funded Activity

Doan, Alesha , (Co-Investigator), Portillo, Shannon, (Principal), Project Diane, Women's Foundation of Greater Kansas City, $24,973, Submitted 04/03/2015 (01/01/2015 - 12/31/2015) . Foundation. Status: Funded.

Doan, Alesha, Institute of Advanced Study, University of Warwick, United Kingdom, University of Warwick, Submitted 02/01/2014 (02/01/2015 - 03/31/2015) . Foreign (company, govt, agencies, etc.). Status: Funded.

Doan, Alesha, (Principal), Portillo, Shannon, (Co-Investigator), Haider-Markel, Don, (Co-Investigator), Gender Integration in Special Force Community: Effects on Unit Cohesion and Task Cohesion, ARO Contract W911NF-11-1-0035, Army Research Institute, $93,000, (08/01/2013 - 03/31/2014) . Other. Status: Funded.