Student Accomplishments

RECENT STUDENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

We are proud of our current and former students’ impressive work! We highlight some recent successes of our students and alumni below.

Send us your accomplishments! sociology@txstate.edu 

AWARDS, SCHOLARSHIPS, AND HONORS

• 2019 Outstanding Graduate Student in Sociology and the COLA Outstanding Graduate Student: Charley Henderson (MA Sociology 2018)
• Graduate Program Award for Outstanding Contribution: Rachel Phillips (MA Sociology 2019)
• Graduate College Merit Fellowships: Brianna Brown (MA Sociology), Alyssa Loveday (MS Sustainability Studies), Dezerae Reyes (MA Sociology)
• Graduate College Scholarship: Aspen Navarro (MS Sustainability Studies), Alexia Gutierrez (MS Applied Sociology)
• Spring 2019 Texas State University System Foundation Scholarships: Amanda Standlee (MS Sustainability Studies)
• Delorean Wiley (MS Sustainability Studies 2019), many news mentions
• Douglas Laws (MSDA 2019), Internship training to be a Volunteer Ombudsman for a local nursing home.
• Shameka Henson (MS Sustainability Studies): Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Program (MLEIP) in the Water Quality Division of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
• Geoff Wood Memorial Scholarship: Kenzie Nasser
• Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Sociology: Jeffrey Sanchez
• Charlotte McCord Sociology Scholarship for Non-Traditional Students: Brenda Sanchez
• Clarence Schultz Sociology Scholarship: August Kutac
• Newsom/Matlock Sociology Scholarship: Samantha Smothermon
• Geoff Wood Memorial Scholarship: Kenzie Nasser
• Shelby Renee Newman Sociology Scholarship: Brittany Bailey
• A.A. Grusendorf Award for the Outstanding Sociology Senior: Jeffrey Sanchez
• 2019 College of Liberal Arts Academic Excellence recipients: Mary Blackburn, Danenhauer (Dani) Blalock, Jordan Duran, Aydee Gonzalez Gallegos, Lauren Guzman, Mckinsey Kuehn, Emily MacDonald, Iliana Medrano, Ali Mumbach, William Pinteric, Austen Ramsey, Kendall Richardson, Morgan Ryman, Jeffrey Sanchez, Samantha Smothermon, Ashley Thomas
• Herman Spirit Award: Hannah Thomas (MA Sociology)

• AKD 2018-2019 Inductees: Brittany Bailey, Mary Blackburn Brianna Brown, Anne Marie Callahan, Ruth Carpentier, Audrie Cortez, Tiffany Gitre, Lauren Guzman, Margrethe Blain Johnsen, Alyssa Koelemay, Callaghan McCarthy, Nicholas McCollum, Dylan DeHaven McConnell, Iliana Medrano, Taylor Mireles, Michelle Myers, William Pinteric, Morgan Ryman, Priscilla Segovia, Ashley Thomas, Darius Wiley

CONFERENCE PARTICIPATION, PUBLICATIONS, AND SCHOLARLY ACTIVITIES

• Delorean Wiley (MS Sustainability Studies). Low gravity on the rise: A sociocultural examination of low alcohol beer in the United States, Beer Geography, Vol. 2 (In Review).; From grain to glass to plate: a self-review of operating a startup grain upcycling bakery, “Saving Food Special Issue”, Gastronomica Vol. 19 Issue 3 (Submit Jan. 20, 2019).; Beer Social: Mixed methods for creating spatial and temporal trends in the craft beer industry, S.W.A.A.G. 2018.; Net Impact and Microsoft Community Impact Pitch-off Competition: People’s Choice Winner (Upcycling brewer’s grain research).; Virtual Pub Crawl: Methods in beer geography: A.A.G., Apr 2019.
• Joshua Warren (MA Sociology). "Queer Commodification and Consumption: A Photo-Ethnography of London." Presenting at Southern Sociological Society conference, 2019.
• Dr. Michelle Edwards (faculty), Briana Luna (undergraduate student), and Hannah Edwards (MA Sociology), "Environmental Injustices in Immigrant Detention: How Absences Are Embedded in the NEPA Process." Paper to be presented at the American Sociological Association meetings, 2019.
• Dr. Michael Lengefeld (MA Sociology from Texas State; PhD Sociology from Washington State University)  is a Visiting Assistant Professor at Goucher College in Towson, Maryland. As part of the Center for People, Politics, and Markets and the Center for Natural Sciences, he teaches courses in Environmental Studies and Sociology, with an emphasis on environmental justice and global development. 
• 2019 Texas State 3MT competition: Rachel Phillips (MA Sociology 2019), Delorean Wiley (MS Sustainability Studies 2019)
• College of Liberal Arts Summer Research Expo Presentation, Spring 2019:

Jeffrey Sanchez—Sociology

The Skeleton and the Rainbow: Understanding the Relationship between the Queer

Community and Santa Muerte

Mentor: Dr. Joseph Laycock, Philosophy

Jen Cardenas—English

"To Affinity and Beyond": A Qualitative Exploration of Tandem Learning and Empathy

Mentor: Dr. Rachel Romero, Sociology

William Pinteric—Sociology

Who is the American Gun Owner?

Mentor: Dr. Seoyoun Kim, Sociology

Mason Villarreal—Sociology

Food Marketing and Gender: A Content Analysis

Mentor: Dr. Deborah A. Harris, Sociology

• Lorenzo Carrillo (MS Sustainability Studies), completed an internship during summer 2019 with the National Park Service in Alaska. He developed a historical interpretive tour which talked about the native peoples of Alaska, the environmental impacts of the Klondike Gold Rush, and climate change in Alaska.
• Charles Hinkley (MS Applied Sociology), published 2nd edition of his book, Moral Conflicts of Organ Retrieval: A Case for Constructive Pluralism
• 11th Annual International Research Conference for Graduate Students, Fall 2019:
  • Taylor C. Mireles and Destinee Leyva: A Small Burst of Euphoria: A Critical Analysis of Queer Theory Presented in HBO's Euphoria
  • Samantha Smothermon: Student Attitudes Towards Offender Reintegration
  • Kimberly Hartfield, Alejandra Lemus, and Hannah Edwards: A Quantitative Analysis on Internet Access and Postsecondary Enrollment in the United States
  • Cindy Mays: The Influence of Paternal Parentification, Anxiety, and Locus of Control on Self-Reported GPA in Female College Student
• Graduate student in Dementia and Aging Studies (MSDA), Brenda Fagan, has been selected to attend the 2020 Mind & Life Summer Research Institute. This year’s theme is “Cultivating Prosocial Development Across the Lifespan: Contexts, Relationships, and Contemplative Practices.”