The Sociology program at the University of Northern Iowa is committed to the principles of a liberal arts education.  As faculty serving the program, we are dedicated to teaching excellence grounded in active research agendas and involvement in community or professional service.  Our mission as instructors is to provide our students with educational experiences and intellectual skills that will enable them to understand how their everyday lives and actions are influenced by broader social structures, contexts, and processes.  In this process, we encourage students to develop a comprehensive understanding of the nature and applications of sociological theory and methods. We also promote a learning environment where students are taught to value cultural diversity and pluralism and to engage in critical analysis of structures of power and inequality.

As scholars, we  seek to be active contributors to sociological knowledge and to enhance sociological understanding of a range of social, political, and historical issues, both locally and globally. We also seek to engage in interdisciplinary research endeavors and to foster student involvement in scholarship through collaboration and mentoring.

Beyond the classroom and the academy, we strive to raise social and political awareness, to encourage active civic engagement, and to offer expertise to a range of local, national, and transnational organizations.

Our main research areas revolve around the following topics:

• Inequality
• Race/Ethnicity and Immigration
• Gender, Culture and Identity
• Family and the Life Course

Announcements

UNI is the editorial home of the Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, a flagship journal in ethnography. It provides an international and interdisciplinary forum for research that analyzes social life in natural settings.

Megan Tesene

Recipient of the 2009 Mid-South Sociological Association Graduate Student Paper of Distinction, Lafayette, Louisiana, for her paper:
"A Critical Analysis of Queer Theory as Sociological Theory"

The Purple and Old Gold Award is awarded anually by the faculty to the most outstanding graduating senior in each major.

2009 Purple and Old Gold Award - Sociology

Through studying sociology at UNI, Angela Brown developed a passion for confronting inequalities specifically regarding same-sex relationships and LGBTI injustices. She currently attends St. Cloud State University and is pursuing a Masters of Science in the Social Responsibility Program.

NATALIE TURNER
Winner of the Steve Wieting Award,
Iowa Sociological Association Meeting, April 2009.
This award is given to the student that best combines theory and research in their work.
“Feminism Hits the Mainstream: Gender, Sexuality, and Comic Book Sheroes”

SAC Mission Statement

Sociology Undergraduate Program

Sociology Major description

Sociology Minor description

Sociology Program
Certificates description

Sociology Graduate Program

Sociology Faculty

Undergraduate SLOs

Graduate SLOs

Undergraduate SOA Plan

Graduate SOA Plan