Jon Shefner

Jon Shefner is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He directs the Community-University Research Collaborative Initiative (CURCI), fostering collaborations between UT and the Knoxville community to address social needs, particularly for disadvantaged groups. His research spans social movements, labor organizing, the informal economy, immigration, globalization, austerity, and civil society, with fieldwork in Mexico, Ecuador, New Orleans, and Knoxville.

• Academic Leadership: Served as Department Head of Sociology for ten years.
• Research Focus: Democratic representation, material prosperity, organizing tactics in the U.S. South, and cross-national comparisons of austerity policies.
• Community Engagement: Advocates for university roles in urban state development through CURCI.

Scientific Awards:

• Fulbright grant
• Distinguished Lectureship from the Southern Sociological Society
• Honorable Mention by the Society for Social Problems’ Global Section (2009)

His work, including nine books and over $1.3 million in external grants, emphasizes applied sociology and political activism. Shefner has also been actively involved in labor organizing, including leadership roles in United Campus Workers—Communication Workers of America 3865.