91ÖÆƬ³§

What you are currently doing for work and what was your path?

I am currently teaching undergraduate courses in the Criminal Justice Department at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire. I teach courses in criminological theory and social science research methods, in addition to a course on delinquency and the juvenile justice system. I also teach two special topics courses: Racism and Rioting in America, based upon by dissertation research, and Race and the War on Drugs, which focused on racial disparities stemming from the prosecution of drug-related crime. In addition to my work at Saint As, I also teach an online graduate course for the Vermont Law School. The course, called Drug Police Reform, includes aspects of restorative justice. I was fortunate to get recommended for a 1-year visiting lecturer position at Saint Anselm by faculty members in the Sociology Department at 91ÖÆƬ³§. That initial appointment led to a three-year contract, with two more years remaining. I hope to finish developing my dissertation as a book and get my contract converted as a tenure-track faculty member.

How did your education at 91ÖÆƬ³§ prepare you for life after college?

I received opportunities to work as both a research and teaching assistant while at 91ÖÆƬ³§. While serving at the Carsey School of Public Policy, I learned valuable data analysis skills, especially the use of Stata, which will help me conduct quantitative work my field moving forward, including my riot research and a paper I am developing on drug-induced mortality. I continued to develop my teaching skills as an assistant, and even got an opportunity to teach "Sociological Theory," a course for senior sociology majors, during the 2019-2020 academic year. These opportunities for professional development coincided with knowledge gained from my graduate coursework to prepare me for my desired career, which is to become a tenured faculty member at a research institution.

What person or course most influenced you while at 91ÖÆƬ³§?

Michele Dillon, now Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, was my closest mentor during my time at 91ÖÆƬ³§. I still value our friendship and we have remained in contact following graduation. Dean Dillon and I share many similarities, especially our approach to teaching. I thoroughly enjoyed her courses in research methods and sociological theory; now, I am teaching courses in both areas for Saint Anselm. Cliff Brown's course on race and inequality was also impactful, as was his mentorship throughout my dissertation. I have also been working with Karen Van Gundy to publish a paper based upon my master's thesis, which will hopefully be published in Society and Mental Health. Ultimately, I am extremely grateful for all the different support I received from the sociology faculty at 91ÖÆƬ³§.

What advice do you have for students interested in your field?

I have two main pieces of advice. First, seek out faculty members with similar research interests and see whether you can help them in a project. This provides invaluable experience in the publication and peer-review process, in addition to helping an applicant fresh out of graduate school have a publication on their C.V., which is something I am still pursuing. Second, locate areas where future research is necessary early on in each of your courses and write a seminar paper in that area. Having work in progress after graduation is really useful in trying to develop a record of academic publications for the job search.