Sociology Newsletter - Union College Blogging

FALL
2015
The
Sociology Newsletter
New Year, New Editors
Erin Ostheimer ‘16
Editor in Chief
Ashley Tolento ‘16
Editor
Laura Schaffer ‘17
Editor
Daniella Batarseh ‘18
Editor
Sociology students and Professor Hill-Butler met with
filmmaker Rel Dowdell after the screening of his film
Changing the Game on October 1st, 2015.
Message from the Chair
This year kicked off, sociologically, by the return visit
of Michael Kimmel, a leading sociological scholar
studying masculinity, on the first day of first year
orientation. Imagine the whole first year class was
assigned a book by a sociologist and then got to see
that renowned sociologist speak. This only happened
because one of your former classmates got interested
and got him invited to campus last year! More good
things are happening this fall. Stephanie Coontz – an
historian and sociologist – is coming as part of the
Minerva Inequality course. She is an expert in the
changing form and function of the family (she’s cited
in the recent Supreme Court decision on marriage
equality). Keep an eye out for many more
sociological happenings! And, if there's someone
you'd like to bring, or something you'd like to do let
me know so we can try to make it happen!
FALL 2015
PAGE 2
Faculty Updates
Dr. Ilene M. Kaplan
Prof Ilene M Kaplan, PhD, Joseph C Driscoll Professor of Sociology and Marine Policy,
was recently asked to serve on the highest level review panel for research grants under
consideration by URI Sea Grant. The panel makes decisions regarding which research grants in the
area of marine studies get financial support from state and federal funds.
Prof Kaplan has also been asked to review new marine policy under consideration by NOAA
(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) on the groundfishery of New England. She is
actively pursuing her research on marine policy effectiveness and comanagement as well as on
conservation and aquaculture policy.
Timothy Stablein
This fall Professor Stablein is teaching Introduction to the Sociology and Juvenile
delinquency. This summer he traveled to the annual meeting of the American Sociological
Association in Chicago, where he organized a research paper session, on "Peer cultures of
children and youth" as part of the section on Children and Youth. In addition, he published
two papers based on his recent research of health care interactions among stigmatized groups
and perceptions of data gathering and technology.
Janet Grigsby
Professor Grigsby has been busy this fall gathering the next Community Service Miniterm class. The class will return to New Orleans and to Dulac over December break for two
weeks of study and service. She is excited to have Bridget Graham UC’09 joining as her coleader this year. Bridget is an assistant director at the Becker Career Center. Watch for the class
symposium at the end of January.
Another SRS and a great section of SOC100 are finishing up in a few weeks. The Intro
class has worked their way through Paula Rothenberg’s White Privilege, learning much more
about race in the US than we usually have time for in Intro. Along with 2 other SRS classes, the
SRS class will present posters of their projects at the Wold Atrium during common hour
on Friday, 11/13. Please stop by and admire what these talented sophomores have
accomplished!
Winter term, Prof. Grigsby will teach SOC284: The Sociology of Women and Health, a
course she hasn’t offered in 4 years. We’ll consider how race, class and age affect women’s
access to good health and also take an ‘outside the box’ look at things like breast cancer, heart
disease, beauty norms and childbirth.
David Cotter
This summer, Professor Cotter continued work on his project on the stalled gender
revolution. He was assisted this summer by Maeve Williams (class of 2016) who worked on
measuring women’s movement organizational density by coding entries from the Encyclopedia
of Associations from 1970 to 2015. He also traveled to New York and Boston for training to
take on his role as Mentor to Union Posse 10. For fun, he and his family traveled to Oregon
(hiking at Crater Lake, rafting the Rouge River), and he and his son joined one of his college
friends’ families for a bike tour from here to Burlington, VT.
FALL 2015
PAGE 3
Faculty Updates
Melinda Goldner
Professor Goldner is teaching her social movements course and an introductory course for
Leadership in Medicine students this term, as well as advising a few students on various research
projects. She had a productive summer working with Matt Wu, a Sociology major, examining prior
research on electronic health records.
Deidre Hill-Butler
Prof. Deidre Hill Butler is curating a photo exhibit, "Revitalized Community: Bordeaux since
the 2010 Flood,” at the Bordeaux Branch of the Nashville, Tennessee Public Library. The exhibit will
run from October 30, 2015 to January 15, 2016. The exhibit is the first exhibit for the newly renovated
public library branch. The exhibit is part of a larger manuscript project which focuses on black
women’s community rejuvenation.
Prof. Deidre Hill Butler’s, Introduction to Africana Studies class and Biology Professor Barbara
Danowski’s, Cancer Cells class came together to read and discuss the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, a
riveting story of the collision between ethics, race, and medicine. Prof. Deidre Hill Butler was a
panelist with other directors of Africana Studies programs at the 100th Annual Conference of the
Association for the Study of African American Life and History in Atlanta, Georgia. Philadelphia
based filmmaker, Rel Dowdell, screened his film Changing the Game with Prof. Deidre Hill Butler’s
Sociology of the Family: Cross Cultural Perspectives class. Prof. Deidre Hill Butler continues to work
on her manuscript African American Stepmothers. She continues to learn a lot from her Sociology senior
thesis students and is looking forward to teaching Sociology 230 Sociology of the Black Community
during the winter term.
Winter Course Offerings
Title
Professor
Date
Intro
Cotter
MWF 9:15- 10:20
Intro
Goldner
TTH
10:55-12:40
Social Work & Human Services
Acker
TTH
1:55-3:40
Social Psychology
Morton
MWF 10:30-11:45
Sociology of Black Community
Hill-Butler TTH
Sociology of Women & Health
Grigsby
MWF 1:50-2:55
Population and Society
Grigsby
MWF 11:45-12:50
History: Sociological Thought
Goldner
TTH
1:55-3:40
TBD
TBD
Environmental Services and Policy Kaplan
Time
10:55-12:40
FALL 2015
PAGE 4
Sociology News on Campus:
Campus C.A.B.
By Daniella Batarseh
The first few weeks of school can be
a challenging time for many, especially
for first years who have never
experienced college life before. Whether
you are coming back from a relaxing
summer vacation filled with beaches
and sunshine or a busy summer of
internships and jobs, returning to late
night study sessions and nonstop library
stints is no easy feat. To make this
transition a little smoother and to
familiarize new faces on the Union
College campus, Jason Benitez,
Director of Multicultural Affairs,
decided to work to unify the campus.
Mr. Benitez stated that he got the
idea for this event from a TEDxTalk
titled, “Everyone around you has a
story that the world needs to hear”.
Benitez noted that he wanted to, “create
connections among people in a moving
mobile way,” and coined the idea
Connecting Across Boundaries
(C.A.B.). This two-week-long event
featured a golf cart, decorated to look
like a cab, with black and yellow
checkerboard taxi signs hung all over it.
The cab picked up any two people who
wanted a ride to class, back to their
dorm or anywhere else on campus. The
only catch: the two people had to be
strangers. Equipped with icebreaker
conversation starters, the C.A.B. was
useful in helping to create connections
and foster interactions among people
who might not normally interact.
Reactions to this event were extremely
positive. Alumni who visited campus
during this event emailed Benitez with
encouraging words, affirming that they
wished this was present during their time at
Union. Catherine Nakato, a first year
student, met a fellow first year student on
her ride, and stated that now when she sees
this student she waves and says,
“Remember when we took that cab
together? That should happen again”.
Nakato also noted that she, “wished it
[C.A.B.] were something that was
continually happening throughout the
year,” because it was great getting to know
other first years on campus, especially being
new to the college scene.
When asked about future events such as
this, Benitez confirmed that he will explore
logistics and consider the feedback he has
gotten, in deciding to bring this event back
to campus for more unity opportunities.
FALL 2015
PAGE 5
Editor Abroad!
Junior Sociology Newsletter
Editor, Laura Schaffer is
studying abroad in Figi this
fall.
Bula vinaka, Union!
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is
Laura and I am a junior sociology major. This fall, I am
spending the term in Suva, Fiji along with eight Union students
and Professor Brison (in the anthropology department). In my months of living
here, I have found Suva (Fiji's capital city) to be a welcoming, happy, and interesting place to live.
The people here are incredibly friendly and seem to take a genuine interest in my reason for being in
Fiji and my life. I have found myself in endless conversation with people at bus stops, outside the
Vodafone store, at the flea market, and at the sea wall.
As part of our academic program, we have been studying kinship (and religion) and education here
in Fiji. We are incredibly lucky to have been given the opportunity to experience this firsthand. Each
of us nine students live with different Fijian families throughout Suva. I, personally, am based in an
area called Tamavua. While I am outside Tamavua village, I have spent many evenings running
through the village - watching the daily rugby or volleyball games, exchanging friendly smiles and
waves, or jokingly being animatedly frightened by the kids who wait for me to pass by and pop out
to surprise me. I have been living with a wonderfully hospitable host family (which consists of my
host mom and host dad, my host dad's parents, two younger host brothers and a very young host
sister). My host dad is an indigenous Fijian and host mom is of Routman descent. Rotuma is an
island of Fiji but is culturally distinct). I have been able to meet and interact with both (very very
large) sides of the family at celebrations, family prayer, or other gatherings.
I have spent the majority of my weekdays working in Class 1L at Yat-Sen Primary School. The
school community was immediately and incredibly welcoming and my students showed excitement
about my presence and learning everyday. My teacher, Ms. Lagilagi, is incredibly talented and
experienced so my role was not that of the primary teacher. Rather, I spend a great deal of time
helping the students with their English reading and writing. I have also been able to get to know
each of my students personally so I have been lucky to hear them each share parts of their lives with
me (in a very excited and adorable way).
Sadly, it is coming to the end of my term. Leaving such a special place with people I have developed
such great relationships with will certainly be difficult. This experience has been phenomenal on
both an academic and a personal level. I encourage students of sociology to use their interest
in/passion for social issues and society as a motivation to seek a better understanding the vast world
around them. Although, I have found that it is equally important to allow your perspectives and
understandings to be malleable in order to be influenced by people/communities outside of my own.
This single experience has allowed for a more nuanced and deeper understanding of
societies/humanity and I have certainly appreciated every moment of it!
Vinaka vakalevu! Looking forward to returning back to campus in the winter!