Teaching Philosophy & Interests

Beyond introducing students to the various insights provided by the sociological perspective, I hope to use my courses as a means to develop in students the ability and desire to critically analyze their social world. In the classroom I strive to make the material engaging and ensure that students are active participants in the classroom experience by incorporating hands-on learning, student-to-student interaction and engagement with course material, and accessible real-world examples. In designing my courses I like to give students some agency and ownership over the course. Assignments are built to ask students to bring in their own personal interests and course content is often determined in part based on student interest.

Throughout my career I have had the opportunity to teach both methodological and substantive classes.  These experiences have helped me to refine my ability to engage students (particularly in topics with which the students are uncomfortable or lack confidence) and to teach sociological and methodological concepts in a way that highlights their real world implications and uses to students.

In line with my research interests, my substantive teaching interests are in the areas of stratification, race and ethnicity, globalization, economic sociology, identity and conflict, theory, and methods/statistics. I have taught courses that cover a wide breadth of sociological fields of research.  In addition to presenting course material, I enjoy using my teaching and mentorship as an opportunity to introduce students to the research process and to guide them in developing projects to answer their own research questions.

I am also a strong believer in the value of service-learning and am excited to provide students with the opportunity to benefit their local community while linking the concepts discussed in the classroom with their service experiences.

Awards

 2015 Service-Learning Graduate Instructor Award, Indiana University Service-Learning Program