Social Sciences

SOCIOLOGY - Professor Jessica Vasquez-Tokos' new book "Burdens of Belonging: Race in an Unequal Nation" explores how race shapes the everyday experiences of individuals and what it means to be a “so-called problem” in the predominantly white state of Oregon in the 21st century. "How does racial status inflect one’s sense of belonging in the nation?” Vasquez-Tokos said.

SOCIOLOGY - Fear of deportation among people in the United States without permanent legal status declines with age, according to a study recently published by University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences researcher Isabel Garcia Valdivia. The project is the first to examine how those concerns diminish after age 50 because relationships, families, work and communities change with time.

POLITICAL SCIENCE - Voters are in a way acting as lawmakers, as some states see an increase in ballot measures, spanning from county or city-level ordinances to state constitutional amendments, according to research by Madison Schroder, a political science PhD candidate at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences.

Celebrate the class of 2025 with a slideshow featuring some of their favorite moments!

FOOD STUDIES, GLOBAL STUDIES - For more than 30 years, College of Arts and Sciences scholar Stephen Wooten's research has focused on Mali, a landlocked country in West Africa. His new book explores the role that women have in rural Mali.

HISTORY - Julie Weise’s research on temporary migrant work policies is one of many projects around the country to lose NEH funding, but she remains focused on her work. Her upcoming book, "Guest Worker: Lives across Borders in an Age of Prosperity, 1919-1975," looks at how this type of international policy agreement evolved during the mid-20th century, with a focus on the experiences of temporary workers in more economically prosperous countries: Mexicans in the US, Malawians in South Africa and Spaniards in France.

SCHNITZER SCHOOL OF GLOBAL STUDIES AND LANGUAGES - After announcing a landmark $25 million commitment, Portland developer, philanthropist and alumnus Jordan Schnitzer shares his thoughts on living in an ever-globalizing world—and his hopes for the Schnitzer School of Global Studies and Languages.

SOCIOLOGY - For some CAS students, a class inside Oregon’s prisons is an experience that current and past students say has provided them with meaning and a drive for life. And for the adults in custody—referred to as inside students—it’s a way to break up the clamor and routine of life in lock up.