Carol A. Ferrara

Carol A. Ferrara is an Assistant Professor in the Marketing Communication Department at Emerson College's School of Communication, where she has been teaching since 2020. Her academic work bridges sociocultural anthropology with marketing communication, encouraging students to explore how social sciences can make marketing and business more socially and environmentally responsible. She also serves as the Graduate Program Director for Strategic Marketing Communication and as a Lead Instructional Development Ambassador at Emerson's Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning.

Dr. Ferrara's educational background includes:

• PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology from Boston University (2019)
• Dual MA in Middle East & Islamic Studies and International Affairs from the American University of Paris
• BS in International Business from the Rochester Institute of Technology

Her research focuses on religion in secular societies, particularly examining how Muslims and Catholics navigate faith, plurality, ethics, and national identity in secular France. Her debut book, "Muslim and Catholic experiences of French national belonging: rethinking boundaries, inequities, and faith in the Republic" was published by Bloomsbury Academic in September 2024. Dr. Ferrara's work explores the intersection of religious identity and republican values, investigating how minority religious communities negotiate belonging within France's secular framework while challenging assumptions about religious expression in public life. Her scholarship emphasizes the importance of understanding religious diversity for developing more inclusive marketing practices and business models.

Dr. Ferrara's recent publications reveal a consistent focus on religious education in France, secularism, and the experiences of Muslim communities within the French republican model. These works collectively examine how religious identity intersects with national identity, education policy, and social inclusion. Her scholarship spans academic journals, public scholarship in outlets like The Conversation, and book publications that contribute to broader discussions about religious pluralism in secular societies. The trend across her work shows increasing attention to how marketing and business practices can be informed by anthropological understandings of religious and cultural diversity.

Dr. Ferrara has received numerous scholarly recognitions:

• Fulbright-EHESS Post-Doctoral Award in Social Sciences (2019)
• Faculty Advancement Fund Grant from Emerson College (2023)
• Mellon-Council for European Studies Dissertation Completion Fellowship
• Boston University Women's Guild Katherine Conner McLaughlin Scholarship
• Muslim Studies Fellowships (2015, 2011)
• Graduate Research Abroad Fellowship from Boston University (2013)
• Class Valedictorian at the American University in Paris
• Presidential Scholarship at the American University in Paris (2009)

At Emerson College, Dr. Ferrara teaches courses including Human-Centric Marketing & Social Responsibility (DD603), Global Cultures: Applied Anthropology and Sociology for Marketing (MK665), Communication, Media and Society (MK120), and The Responsibility Ladder: People, Power & Policy (BC609). Her teaching philosophy emphasizes critical thinking about how marketing affects communities, cultures, and the environment, encouraging students to develop more responsible business practices. She has also taught courses on Islam and Religion and secularism in contemporary societies. Dr. Ferrara has received research grants supporting her fieldwork in France, including the Fulbright-EHESS Postdoctoral Fellowship for 2019-2020 academic year, which enabled new ethnographic research about independent private schooling in France.

Dr. Ferrara is actively engaged in academic service as Co-Chair of the American Academy of Religion's "Religion in Europe" Program Unit and has served on the Research Editorial Committee for EuropeNow Journal. Her field research has been conducted primarily in France across multiple sites including Paris, Lille, and Lyon, focusing on religious education, national identity, and secularism. She is fluent in French with advanced Spanish and intermediate Arabic language skills, which support her international research and teaching. Dr. Ferrara regularly presents her work at major academic conferences including the American Academy of Religion and Council for European Studies, and has been featured in media outlets including BBC Radio 4 and France24 Television as an expert on French secularism and Muslim communities in France.