Toward A Feminist Analysis of “Impact”: Sondra Hale’s Scholarship and Activism in and beyond the University

Feminist activist and scholar Sondra Hale has made significant contributions to Sudan studies and politics through her research and her participation in Sudanese women’s rights advocacy and other progressive political movements. An analysis of Hale’s professional record as an academic shows a strong relationship between her personal commitment to social justice and her intellectual contributions to the field of gender politics in Sudan, the Middle East, and Africa. Using data from Hale’s teaching, research, and activist networks, this study presents both a narrative assessment and a visual map of her career impact. We contrast conventional academic bibliometrics with an alternative mapping of influence through an examination of her participation in Sudanese and other women’s networks. The article makes use of feminist theory to review Hale’s negotiation of a public life that interrogates power and privilege in the American academy, as well as in Sudanese society.