Welcome to the Division of Sociology and Anthropology
Dear Alumni, Friends and Students,
As I enter my fourth year as Chair of the Division of Sociology and Anthropology, I am excited about our continued growth and change. The transformations in our Division are connected to significant interest in our undergraduate majors and graduate program. We continue to offer a Master's degree in Sociology and two undergraduate majors within our Division: a broad major in Sociology and Anthropology and a more concentrated major in Criminology and Investigations. Our pre-majors and majors have increased from 215 in the Fall 2002 to 785 in 2009. We now enroll one of the highest number of students in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. We hired a new criminologist and sociologist during the 2008-2009 school year to help teach these students.
Faculty in our Division are active in teaching and researching a variety of societal issues that affect the state, region, nation, and the globe. Some of these issues are community policing, terrorism, poverty, economic development, racial segregation, victimization, hate crimes, and environmental issues. Our sustained commitment to systematically studying and understanding human behavior, interactions, and societies is critical in successfully interpreting and navigating a social world filled with rapid economic transformations, globalization, radical technological innovation, and international war. We have retained our student-centered focus and continue to provide high quality instruction, interaction, and mentoring. Our courses are innovative and allow students to integrate and apply what they have learned. Our applied Master’s graduate program provides employees for state agencies and students for advanced degree programs. We consistently earn sizable research grants and product a steady annual stream of publications in strong academic journals. We will continue to document our progress and change, so please continue to visit our website. We appreciate your support of our program.
With regards,
Melissa Latimer, Chair of the Division of Sociology and Anthropology