Charlotte Kunkel
Identity Studies Department Head
Biography
Education:Â Ph.D., Sociology, University of Colorado-Boulder; B.A., Summa Cum Laude, St. Cloud State University
Charlotte Kunkel has been a professor in the sociology department since 1995, focusing on the topics of gender, stratification and visual sociology. Some of her course topics include Introduction to Sociology, Sociology of Gender, Constructs of Race and Racialization, Social Psychology, and Seminar: Gender, Globalization, and Development. She is active in community anti-bias education and has been a long time volunteer for diversity education and the elimination of domestic violence. Her current research interests include the intersections of immigration and systems of race and gender stratification.
During January Term 2013, Professor Kunkel led a course in which students explored the theory and method of visual sociology and had the opportunity to pursue their own projects.
One of her current projects is The Stories webpage.
SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology
Introduction to theoretical perspectives and foundational principles of “thinking sociologically.” Key concepts include: culture, inequality/poverty, deviance/crime, gender, social construction of reality, social change, and social structure.
SOC/WGST 242 Sociology of Gender
Examines the gendered structure of our everyday lives; makes gendered assumptions and practices explicit; and uncovers the impact of gender in the social world. Emphasis on historical and cross cultural constructions of gender that provide alternatives to gender inequality and a basis for social change.
SOC 290 Visual Sociology
In this course students will explore the theory and method of visual sociology and have the opportunity to pursue their own projects. As a group and individually, we will explore the social milieu from a visual perspective to answer such questions as: What does the visual world tell us about our society? What meaning and importance do we attach to the visual? What can we learn about human behavior by examining visual culture? Students will collect their own data, analyze it, and report their findings. Camera needed (of any type).
SOC 345 Constructs of Race and Racialization
This course examines the social construction of race as a concept and the racialization of US society. An assessment of how racialization has changed over time and has created various interactions between groups from Whites and enslaved Africans, Mexicans and Native Americans to present day race relations. We also examine how racialization both determines and impacts social structures and the attainment of societal honors, rewards and power in modern society.
SOC 358 Social Psychology
A study of the relationship between the individual and society and the interactions produced. Emphasis on research in the areas of self, identity, symbolic interaction, and social movements.
SOC/WGST 468 Seminar: Gender, Globalization, and Development
In this course we will examine the phenomena of globalization and development from a sociology of gender perspective. We will focus on the global intersections of contemporary societies and cultures, and the gendered dynamics therein. Questions we will raise include: How does globalization affect women’s and men’s lives? How is power distributed, and how does this impact development processes? What impact do gender dynamics play in the social institutions of development: economic, political, and cultural?
SOC 472 Seminar: Social Institutions and Inequalities
An examination of selected major social institutions in American society (family, education, religion, politics, or industry), as well as their intersections and maintenance in social life.
- Ph.D., Sociology, University of Colorado-Boulder, 1995
- B.A., Summa Cum Laude, St. Cloud State University, 1988