Cornell’s Department of Sociology explores human social organization, institutions and groups. The department is known for the cutting-edge research of its faculty and for its exceptionally strong graduate and undergraduate training programs. It has a long-standing tradition of engaging and valuing theoretically driven empirical research. This approach to sociology uses sophisticated theoretical reasoning and rigorous methodological tools, many of which are developed by Cornell faculty, to answer fundamental questions about the social world, how it is organized and how it is changing. The department’s focus on basic science is complemented by a deep commitment to informing public and educational policy, particularly on issues related to gender and racial inequality, income inequality, poverty, drug use, economic development, school funding, organizational practices and race and ethnicity.
The sociology department also has close ties with the many other research centers on campus. Interdisciplinary research touches on subjects such as inequality, economics, social sciences, nonlinear systems, politics and social dynamics.
Department websiteDan Hirschman
Associate Professor
Departments and programs
Links
Alexandra Cooperstock
Ph.D. date: May 2024 (expected)
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Alvarado, Steven and Alexandra Cooperstock. 2023. "The Echo of Neighborhood Disadvantage: Multigenerational Contextual Hardship and Adult Income for Whites, Blacks, and Latinos." Forthcoming in City & Community.
Cooperstock, Alexandra. 2023. "The Demographics of School District Secession." Social Forces 101(4):1976-2012.
- David Lee Stevenson Paper Award, Education Section, American Sociological Association, 2023
- Population Section Paper Award, American Sociological Association, 2023
- Maureen T. Hallinan Paper Award, American Educational Research Association, 2022
- Brooks School of Public Policy Paper Award, Cornell University, 2022
- Robin M. Williams Jr. Paper Award, Department of Sociology, Cornell University, 2020
- Abridged version prepared for the School Diversity Notebook
McCauley, Erin and Alexandra Cooperstock. 2022. “Differential Self-Reported COVID-19 Impacts Among U.S. Secondary Teachers by Race/Ethnicity.” Frontiers in Education 7:931234.
Alvarado, Steven and Alexandra Cooperstock. 2021. “Context in Continuity: The Enduring Legacy of Neighborhood Disadvantage Across Generations.” Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 74:100620.
Book Chapters
Sassler, Sharon and Alexandra Cooperstock. 2023. “The Various Roles of Cohabitation in the United States.” Chapter 18, pages 388-418 in The Oxford Handbook of Family Policy Over the Life Course, edited by Mary Daly, Birgit Pfau-Effinger, Neil Gilbert, and Douglas Besharov. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Manuscripts Under Review
Tach, Laura, Emily Parker, Alexandra Cooperstock, and Sam Dodini. “Shifting Foundations of Inequality in U.S. Federal Place-Based Policy.” Minor Revise and Resubmit at Social Forces.
Education
M.A. Sociology, Cornell University
B.A. with High Distinction and High Honors in Sociology and Women’s Studies, Phi Beta Kappa, University of Michigan
Departments and programs
Links
Marcus May
Accounts Coordinator
Tristan Ivory
Assistant Professor of International and Comparative Labor
Publications
- Ivory, Tristan (2018). “STEM and Underrepresented Populations: What’s at Stake” in New Directions of STEM Research and Learning in the World Ranking Movement Eds. Reiko Yamada, John Hawkins, and Aki Yamada. Palgrave MacMillan
- Ivory, Tristan. 2017. “Strategic Ethnic Performance and the Construction of Authenticity in Urban Japan.” Ethnic and Racial Studies (http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2016.1206587)
- Ivory, Tristan. 2015. Review of Transpacific Antiracism: Afro-Asian Solidarity in 20th Century Black America, Japan, and Okinawa. Social Science Japan Journal, 18(1), pp.124-127.
- Ivory, Tristan & Carter, Prudence L. 2012. “Cultural Reproduction,” encyclopedia entry for Encyclopedia of Diversity in Education, ed. James A. Banks. Sage Publications.
Education
Ph.D. in Sociology, 2015, Stanford University
Departments and programs
Paulina Velázquez Solís
Communications and Programming Assistant
Lisha Liu
Ph.D. Candidate
Education
M.A., Sociology, Cornell University, September 2017
B.A., double major in Sociology and Economics, with Distinction, Renmin University of China, 2014
Departments and programs
Links
Emily Sandusky
Ph.D. date: May 2023
Education
MA, Sociology, Cornell University, 2018
MS, Urban Policy Analysis and Management, The New School, 2009
BA, Women’s Studies, Boston University, 2004
Departments and programs
Links
Matt Hall
Professor of Public Policy and Sociology, Director of the Cornell Population Center
Education
Ph.D., Sociology & Demography, Pennsylvania State University
M.A., Sociology & Demography, Pennsylvania State University
B.S., Sociology, Western Washington University
Departments and programs
Links
Paul Muniz
Visiting Assistant Professor of Sociology, Bucknell University
Education
2019 Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
2016 Master of Arts in Sociology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
2012 Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, State University of New York, College at Geneseo, Geneseo, NY