February 2026
Service and Leadership
Thanks to an idea about hosting a student-led unconference from Ally Tippery, Asif Mahmud, Clover Javurek-Humig, Max Fassnacht, and Iris S. De Lis (all Sociology graduate students), PSU’s College of Engineering decided to include the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in an interdisciplinary conference in the Smith Ballroom during the Spring 2026 term (PhD Day). Details to come and the team hopes to host the Sociology Unconference too!
Emily Shafer (Sociology faculty) is starting a three-year term (2026-2028) on the editorial board of Gender & Society (ranked 3rd out of 217 journals in the category “Sociology”).
Aaron Roussell (Sociology faculty) is serving on the PSU-AAUP Grievance Committee again.
Jenny Lunte (Sociology undergraduate) planned and moderated the PSU Sociology Panel on Careers featuring panelists Abigail Cook (PSU Sociology alum), Brittany Montana (PSU Academic Coach), Christine Bjornstorm (PSU Sociology graduate), Frank Najar (Oregon Department of Justice Investigator and University of Oregon Sociology graduate), and Louise Paradis (PSU Career Center), with support from Dara Shifrer (Sociology Undergrad Committee Chair).
Shirley A. Jackson (Sociology faculty) is serving as Interim Chair for the PSU Department of Sociology for the Spring 2026 term.
Shirley A. Jackson (Sociology faculty) served as a panelist on the American Sociological Association's Section on Sociological Practice and Public Sociology webinar, “Applying Cultural Capital to the Job Search.”
Iris S. De Lis (Sociology graduate student), Jenny Lunte (Sociology undergraduate), Winter Ohara-Frantz (Sociology undergraduate), and Ally Tippery (Sociology graduate student) facilitated the relaunch of the SOC Club!
Michael Persinger (Sociology undergraduate)
Mila Bodina (Sociology undergraduate)
Presentations
Gabrielle Mota’s (Sociology graduate student) submission of “Examining the Role of Parents’ Education in Income Attainment among American Indian and Alaska Natives” [co-authors: Kimberly R. Huyser, Sofia Locklear, Madi Lou Abel (Sociology graduate student), Dara Shifrer (Sociology faculty), Ned Tilbrook (Sociology PhD from PSU), Allison Laing, and Mary G. Jessome] was accepted to be presented at a critical dialogue session at the 2026 annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Social Problems, New York, NY.
Career Progression
Asif Mahmud (Sociology graduate student) was selected as an International Student Mentor by PSU’s International Student Office. Asif will be mentoring new incoming international students from April 2026 through December 2026. Asif states: “I will try to the best of my ability to help them navigate a new change in their life and get accustomed to life in Portland. Upon completing, I will receive a one time 600 USD scholarship and certificate.”
Sandra Lane (Sociology undergraduate - transferred to PSU in Fall 2025) was accepted into PSU's Summer 2026 Honors Kenya Study Abroad program, a “dream come true”!
Natalie Cholula (Sociology PhD at PSU in 2025) is now at Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative as a research associate, continuing her work on evictions and housing stability with the Evicted in Oregon project.
Awards
Amy Lubitow’s (Environmental Science and Management faculty) funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in collaboration with the University of Washington, has been re-instated and renamed: "The Northwest RISA Program: Building State and Local Preparedness to Save Lives and Secure Livelihoods from Extreme Weather and Environmental Risks." The team, which currently includes Gabby Mota (Sociology graduate student), Rachel Springer (Sociology graduate student, and other PSU students (and formerly included Clover Javurek-Humig (Sociology graduate student)) are hoping to rebuild momentum and start data collection on the project this Spring. They will be conducting interviews and focus groups with wildland firefighters in Oregon and Washington, focusing on incarcerated firefighters and seasonal/contract firefighters.
Madi Lou Abel (Sociology graduate student) submitted their thesis, Understanding t4t: Contemporary Conceptions of Trans for Trans Connections, to the Alpha Kappa Delta, International Honor Society of Sociology, Graduate Student Paper Competition.
Publications
A Korean-language edition of Sociology faculty Daniel Jaffee's book Unbottled: The Fight Against Plastic Water and for Water Justice was published in South Korea by Arles Publishing.
One of Natalie Cholula’s (Sociology PhD at PSU in 2025) dissertation papers, entitled "'Me Siento Mal': Mexican and Central American Immigrants’ Narratives on the Emotional Costs of Extended Parental Separation," has been accepted for publication by the Journal of Family Issues.
Public Scholarship
Natalie Cholula (Sociology PhD at PSU in 2025) was invited by the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to be featured on their website to showcase her research as an example of impactful, socially oriented scholarship, as a result of dissertation research she presented at the 2025 annual meeting of SSSP.