by College of Liberal Arts and Sciences January 6th 2026 Share Facebook Twitter Madi Lou Alexander (Sociology PhD) successfully defended their thesis, "I'm strictly t4t": Trans for Trans Connections in the Contemporary”. In addition, Madi Lou was invited back to serve on PSU’s Race and Ethnic Studies Requirement (RESR) Committee as the student representative for the ‘25-26 academic year!Ahmed Almousa (Sociology PhD) successfully defended his dissertation, “A Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of Workplace Challenges Experienced by Women”.Erika Campbell (Sociology PhD) successfully defended her dissertation, "I Wish We Had Something in School For That": Exploring Youth Perspectives on LGBTQ+ Inclusive Sex Education and School Climate.Heather Costa (Sociology MA’25) successfully defended her thesis, “Controlling the Curriculum: A Content Analysis of PragerU’s Children’s Educational Material”.Heather Costa (Sociology PhD) is teaching CHLA 303U Chicana-Latina Experiences for PSU.Natalie Cholula (Sociology PhD) successfully defended her dissertation "A Mixed-Methods Study on Extended Parental Separation among Mexican and Central American Immigrants: Insights from Legal Violence and the Stress Process Model," with the support of her committee chair Melissa Thompson (Sociology faculty) and committee members Alex Stepick (Sociology faculty), Aaron Roussell (Sociology faculty), and Jessica Vasquez Tokos (University of Oregon).Iris S. De Lis (Sociology PhD) was asked to join the leadership team of the national SCIENCE Collaborative Alternative Grading Community of Practice.Hannah Sean Ellefritz (Sociology PhD) compiled a wealth of resources for graduate students (and all students) at PSU in a visually accessible and attractive webpage for PSU’s Sloan Center for Systemic Change, an effort funded by the Sloan Foundation aimed at increasing the recruitment and retention of Black, Indigenous, and Latine students in PSU’s doctoral programs in mathematics and the natural and physical sciences.Hannah Sean Ellefritz (Sociology PhD) successfully defended her dissertation proposal, Between Fulfillment and Employability: Understanding the Paradox of STEM PhD Student Motivations and Career Preparation in a R2 Institution.Anne Johnson (Sociology PhD) successfully defended her dissertation “Significant Bodily Intrusions”: Investigations into Law Enforcement Phlebotomy,”.Emmanuel Legarreta (Sociology PhD) secured a full-time position as a data manager for two databases (OSECE and OCEACT) in PSU's Regional Research Institute.Gabby Mota (Sociology MA ‘25) successfully defended her thesis, “The Social and Political Identities of Latine Republicans in the U.S."Bodhi Norton (Sociology MA’25) successfully defended their thesis, “An Evaluation of Therapeutic Harm Reduction and Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Within Oregon's Measure 109.”Nahal Rastegarpour (Sociology PhD) successfully defended her thesis, “This Revolution Been Televised”: Media as a Tool of Justice and an Apparatus of State Violence,”.Wynn Strange (Sociology PhD) successfully defended their dissertation, "'I like the idea in theory': Experiencing necropower within the imperial matrix through legal gender marker and gender-affirming name changes."Katlyn Viers (Applied Psychology PhD) passed their doctoral comprehensive exams. education community impact Return to all news