Dear Sociology Majors and Minors,

Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Amir Locke. We recognize the deep impact these traumatic events have on our community, particularly our Black students, faculty, and staff. We encourage you to access University resources available to you as needed and seek out communities that best support you. Links are provided below for your convenience. 

For Students

For Faculty and Staff

For All

Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action

Holding Space in Response to Community Grief:

 SSW faculty Ceema Samimi and Malaika Eban will be holding a brief circle training followed by processing circles for any students and faculty interested in joining. Circles will be held on Thursday 2/10 from 5:00-6:25 and Saturday 2/12 from 10:00-11:30. We’ll begin with a brief grounding in the fundamentals of restorative practices, then move into an experiential community circle, and close with time for debriefing. Folks who attend will leave with a copy of the circle guide used during the training so that they might hold similar spaces for community members in their field placements or lives. Thursday’s circles will happen both virtually and in-person (Peters Hall 155). Saturday’s circles will happen virtually. Feel free to contact Malaika or Ceema with questions.

Upcoming Events & Programs

#ImmigrationAnd Scholar Series

The #ImmigrationAND Scholar Series invites you to continue intersectional learning & imagination this March. We will focus on how immigration intersects with Black Lives Matter (Mar 1), AAPI Justice (Mar 7), and Health Justice (Mar 21). RSVP today to receive the Zoom links!

  • Mar 1 at 12pm: #ImmigrationANDBlackLivesMatter. RSVP at tinyurl.com/immigrationandBlackLivesMatter
    • Haddy Gassama | UndocuBlack Network
    • Breanne J. Palmer | Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
    • Karla McKanders | Vanderbilt Law
    • Tsion Gurmu | Black Alliance for Just Immigration
  • Mar 7 at 12pm: #ImmigrationANDAAPIJustice. RSVP at tinyurl.com/immigrationandAAPIjustice
    • Erika Lee | University of Minnesota Twin Cities
    • Gisela Perez Kusakawa | Asian Americans Advancing Justice
    • Naznin Saifi | Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center
    • Ellen Wu | UI Chicago
  • Mar 21 at 12pm: #ImmigrationANDHealthJustice. Yael Cannon from the Georgetown University Health Justice Alliance will be moderating this discussion. RSVP at tinyurl.com/immigrationandhealthjustice
    • Asad L. Asad | Stanford University
    • Asees Bhasin | Solomon Center for Health Law and Policy
    • Medha Makhlouf | Penn State Law
    • Mara Youdelman | National Health Law Program

This discussion is part of the #ImmigrationAND Scholar Series. #ImmigrationAND is a justice-oriented program (open to everyone) exploring interdisciplinary topics within immigration with a focus on collective liberation. Learn more about #ImmigrationAND at bit.ly/ImmigrationAND.

This program was started and is run by one of our alumni, Prashasti Bhatnagar, who graduated with a SOC General BS major with a sub-plan in Health Care and Careers major in 2018.

Carlson School of Management’s Specialty Master’s Programs

The Master of Marketing program is designed for recent grads and early professionals (0-3 years of prior work experience). Here are a couple of highlights, to see if they might be of interest:

  • Courses with top-ranked faculty
  • 9 month program
  • Coursework in Digital Marketing, Marketing Management and Buyer Behavior
  • Intensive, client-facing, resume-boosting experiential learning
  • Career coaching and job placement support
  • Merit scholarships available
  • GMAT/GRE waivers available
  • Work experience not required for admission

May Term Study Abroad with Sociology graduate student Brooke Chambers

Call for Applications: NextGenPop undergraduate program in population research

Deadline: Tuesday, February 15, 2022

NextGenPop is a new undergraduate program in population research that aims to increase the diversity of the population field and nurture the next generation of population scientists. The program includes a 2-week, in-person, on-campus summer experience and subsequent virtual components focused on research and professional development. This summer 2022, 15 undergraduate students will be hosted by the University of Wisconsin–Madison, May 31 through June 14. Participants will receive a $1,000 stipend and all travel and living expenses. Classroom instruction and hands-on applications will address contemporary social issues in population research, including race and income inequalities, health disparities, immigration, and family change. For more information, see the attached flyer, website and application. Please share this opportunity with your undergraduates, particularly students from underrepresented groups.

ISRDI Diversity Fellowship

The Institute for Social Research and Data Innovation is recruiting undergraduate and graduate students for ISRDI’s Summer Diversity Fellowship program. Please share this opportunity with your students and those in your networks. A flyer for the program and a PowerPoint slide that can be included in upcoming lectures are attached. 

The Diversity Fellowship at the Institute for Social Research and Data Innovation at the University of Minnesota is designed to help recruit diverse undergraduate and graduate students to work with MPC and LCC member faculty and with its U.S. or international demographic data resources. Projects with openings include: 

  • Municipal Zoning and Segregation in Minnesota – Research with Assistant Professor Evan Roberts, Assistant Professor Ying Song, and Data Analyst Kate Knowles
  • Using MEPS to Study Maternal and Child Health – Research with Associate Professor Susan Marshall Mason, Professor Susan E. Short, and Research Scientist Julia Drew
  • Social Determinants of Health – Research with Associate Professor Rui Zhang and Assistant Professor David Haynes
  • Exploration of Newly-Public 1950 Census American Indian Reservation Data- Research with Dr. Cathy Fitch, Associate Professor Carolyn Liebler, and Kari Williams
  • Fifth project TBA

This is an excellent opportunity for both undergraduate and graduate students, at any point in their career, interested in sharpening skills and exploring interests in quantitative data analysis, data processing, statistical software packages, etc. 

We provide more detail about the project details and application instructions at https://isrdi.umn.edu/diversity-fellowship-program. Application deadline Feb 28, 2022. 

Please contact Alex Lunde (isrdi-jobs@umn.edu) if you have any questions regarding the program or application.

Employment, Research, & Volunteer Opportunities

Student Admin Support

The Epidemiology Clinical Research Center (ECRC), in the Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, School of Public Health seeks 1 part-time Student Administrative Support Specialist (2222) beginning February 2022 to provide customer service and administrative duties for 10-20 hours per week during the school year (20-40 hours during the summer). This position reports to Audra Gaikowski, Associate Clinic Manager.

The job ID is 345958. Link :https://hr.myu.umn.edu/jobs/stu/345958

Research Opportunities

The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) provides grants of up to $1,500 for undergraduate students to do research with a faculty mentor. Undergraduate research is an excellent way to learn about research methods and to develop core competencies that will prepare students for future jobs or graduate programs.

  • Deadline for Summer or Fall 2022 projects: February 21, 2022
  • Additional deadline for Fall 2022 projects: June 27, 2022
  • To find out more about undergraduate research and the UROP program, visit the UROP site.
  • Application materials for UROP grants are available on our page.
  • Contact CLA UROP Coordinator Wendy Nicholson-Kotas with questions about the program.

OR Research Assistant Program

The OR Research Assistant Program is a fellowship program that was developed for graduating undergraduates (May/June 2022 graduates may apply) and recent graduates (including December 2021 graduates) who are interested in spending 2-4 years in the Office of Research working alongside Ph.D. researchers (which include economists, research psychologists, and behavioral science researchers) on substantial and rigorous data-oriented policy projects.  Ideally, the candidates’ time with our office would prepare them for future graduate programs such as Ph.D. programs in economics and finance, Master of Public Policy, and other graduate fields.  Successful candidates will have a proven track record of academic excellence in one or more of the following areas: economics, mathematics, statistics, computer science, or decisionmaking and cognitive research.  Experience in R, SAS, or Stata programming is also key.  Strong written and verbal communication skills are a must, as is the demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced multidisciplinary environment.  To learn more about the Office of Research please visit the CFPB’s Data and Research page.

How to apply to the OR Research Assistant Program:

Visit our website: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/careers/current-openings/research-assistant-interdisciplinary-22-cfpb-81-x/. 

  • Posting is open February 4, 2022 – February 18, 2022 (please apply early, since we may have an application cap)

Components of the application include (check job posting for official requirements):

  • Resume (required)
  • School transcripts showing progress toward degree (required – unofficial okay – we can take recent graduates as well as those expecting to graduate in December 2021 or May/June 2022)
  • Short questionnaire (required – administered on the application website)
  • Cover letter (strongly recommended)

Other Opportunities & Resources

Survey: Alternatives to Religion in College Students 

Hello,

Our names are Ava Allroggen and Matthew Pierce and we are undergraduate students at the University of Minnesota Morris campus. We are conducting research as a part of our Empirical Investigations in Psychology course that is supervised by Dr. Heather J. Peters, Ph.D., LP. We invite you to take this survey if you are 18-24 years old, are an enrolled student on any UMN campus, and are interested in answering questions about secularism/atheism in your life. This is a voluntary research study. If you agree to join, you will participate in a survey and will be asked questions related to your background as an atheist/ secular/ nonreligious/ agnostic college student. This survey should take you between 2-5 minutes to complete. You will also have the opportunity to indicate if you would like to participate in a focus group about the same topic. As a thank you for your response, you can choose to be included in a random drawing for one $50 prepaid debit card. If 100 people enter the drawing, you will have a 1% chance of winning the prepaid debit card. Individuals who participate in a focus group will also receive compensation in the form of $10 in cash.

We truly appreciate your time and assistance in helping us learn more about these important topics concerning secular students on all five University of Minnesota campuses For any additional information about this research, please feel free to email us at allro001@morris.umn.edu (Ava), pierce549@umn.edu  (Matthew) or Dr. Peters at petersh@morris.umn.edu . Thank you.

Link to survey: https://umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3RaiOPNokH5wPXg

Food Resources

Boynton’s Health’s Nutritious U Food Pantry will continue to be held during the last week of every month for 3 consecutive days (Tuesday – Thursday, 12-6 pm) at Memorial Union near Room 210 on the second floor. 

Food Pantry dates for the Spring 2022 semester: 

  • (January 25-27th)
  • February 22-24th
  • March 29-31st
  • April 26-28th

Boynton’s Nutritious U Food Pantry is an on-campus, free food pantry available to any graduate and undergraduate student attending the University of Minnesota.

Other food resources available to UMN students this spring include: 

  • Boxed, prepared meals to-go. Swipe Out Hunger is distributing boxed to-go meals prepared by the Campus Club. These are available to all students at no cost; no proof of need is required. Vegetarian options are always available. This is a plentiful resource, and students who could benefit from these meals should come to Room 210 on the second floor of the Student Union (same location as Nutritious U) every Thursday from 3:00 – 6:00 pm. Email swipes@umn.edu for more information.
  • GrubHub gift cards (limited resource). Swipe Out Hunger is still offering $20 GrubHub gift cards to students who could benefit from this resource. To request a card for a student, please email swipes@umn.edu and include the student’s name and email address. Students can also request a card for themselves by emailing swipes@umn.edu.
  • Swipe Out Hunger meal cards. Swipe Out Hunger’s dining hall meal program will continue this semester. A limited number of meal swipes are already available for students who need them. Staff or faculty can request that 5 dining hall meal swipes be loaded onto a student’s Ucard by emailing swipes@umn.edu and including the student’s name, email address, and ID.
  • St. Paul Campus Mobile Food Shelf (Foodmobile). Free groceries & household items are available to any University of Minnesota student and their family on the 2nd Thursday of every month from 12-2 pm in the Commonwealth Terrace Cooperative Housing north parking lot. This program is operated by Keystone Community Services and will run through the spring semester.
  • Mobile Market. This market on a bus is available once per month this semester, located at the Student Union. It offers affordable and fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy, grains, and other high-quality groceries. Students can pay with cash, card, or their EBT card (SNAP benefits). The Market will be open on the south side of Memorial Union and will run for two hours each time on the following Wednesdays from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm:
    • February 2nd
    • March 2nd
    • April 6th
  • SNAP Screening. Students can self-screen for SNAP eligibility by completing the survey located on our webpage. The Second Harvest SNAP Outreach Team will contact them to confirm eligibility and assist them with their application.

Let’s Talk 

Let’s Talk is a program originally developed by Cornell University that provides informal drop-in consultations both virtually and at various locations around campus for any U of M (graduate and undergraduate) students throughout the academic year. No appointment is necessary, so students can drop in during the scheduled times, all appointments are first come first served, free and confidential. Let’s Talk counselors can listen to specific problems (such as stress, relationships and academic performance), provide support, help explore solutions and give information about other resources.

Let’s Talk is now offered 5 days a week across East and West Bank and through Zoom. Students are able to pick which location works best with their schedule and select which counselor aligns with their personal/professional identities/areas of expertise.

When considering what students to refer to Let’s Talk vs. other on campus mental health resources please note that Let’s Talk is NOT a substitute for formal counseling or a crisis resource and does not constitute mental health treatment. Visit here if you are in need of crisis resources.

Thank you for reading! As always if you have any questions or concerns email us at socadvis@umn.edu

Best, Clare