Adapting to Survive or Back to Core Values? Teaching Sociology in Times of Political Upheaval, Technological Change, and Public Distrust

Session Submission Type: Preconference

Description

Amid ongoing political pressures, shifting student expectations, and the day-to-day demands of teaching in a time of backlash, this Preconference Workshop offers a rare chance to step back from the immediacy of the classroom and consider the broader horizon of sociological education. It is an invitation to pause, take stock, and think strategically about the future we want to build–one in which our pedagogy not only withstands the challenges of the moment but helps shape the classrooms and communities we aspire to build. Through roundtables, presentations, and networking conversations, participants will explore how technological change, political polarization, threats to academic freedom, and questions of disciplinary legitimacy are reshaping our work. Together, we will share concrete strategies for designing supportive learning environments, sustaining our teaching labor, and demonstrating sociology’s public value. Our goal is for attendees to leave with renewed clarity, practical tools, and a sense of collective purpose—ready to move from retrenchment toward possibility in the teaching of sociology.

Sub Unit

• Preconferences

Presenters

• Brian Powell, Indiana University-Bloomington

• Evan Wilson Lauteria, University of Florida

• Diane Zablotsky, Univ of North Carolina-Charlotte

• Martha A. Martinez, DePaul University

• Benjamin Gallati, Indiana University-Bloomington

• Eleanor Townsley, Mount Holyoke College

• Lindsay Hamm, Purdue University

• Stephanie L Bradley, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

• Danielle V. Schoon, The Ohio State University

• Ann M. Beutel, University of Oklahoma

• Stephanie Medley-Rath, Indiana University-Kokomo

• Myron T. Strong, Community College of Baltimore County

• Sarah K.S. Shannon, University of Georgia

• Diana Graizbord, University of Georgia

Session Organizers

• Michel Estefan, University of California-San Diego

• Brandon James Moore, California State University-San Marcos

• Claudia E. Lavenant, University of California-Irvine