Meghan Conley

Meghan Conley is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at The University of Tennessee, where she also serves as the Director of Community Partnerships. She holds a Ph.D. from the same university and organizes collaborations between the department and Knoxville-area organizations to advance community-based research aligned with the department’s social justice mission.

• Education: Ph.D., The University of Tennessee

Her research focuses on structural inequalities affecting Latinx immigrants, including crimmigration systems, immigrant rights organizing, and resistance against enforcement policies. She employs participatory action research and analyzes social movements in the New South. Her work bridges academic scholarship with community activism.

Recent publications explore topics like immigration enforcement during the Great Recession and legal disparities for Hispanic communities. These studies span disciplines such as immigration studies, legal sociology, and political science. Her book project, Immigrant Rights in the Nuevo South, is under contract with Temple University Press.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Choice Outstanding Academic Title, American Library Association

As Director of Community Partnerships, Conley facilitates research opportunities that empower community groups to use sociological methods for addressing critical issues. She has contributed public scholarship on topics like zero-tolerance immigration policies and anti-white nationalism efforts in Knoxville.