Margaret Robinson is an Associate Professor at Dalhousie University, holding dual appointments in the Department of English and Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology within the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. She is a bisexual two-spirit scholar from Eski'kewaq, Nova Scotia, and a member of the Lennox Island First Nation. Her interdisciplinary work bridges Indigenous studies, queer theory, and intersectional feminism, with a focus on decolonizing methodologies and Indigenous oral traditions. Robinson’s research explores representation of Indigenous peoples and sexual/gender minorities in creative works, including fanfiction and popular culture. She holds a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Reconciliation, Gender, & Identity (2019-2023) and leads the Mi’kmaw Cultural Research Lab funded by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (2021-2024). Her education includes a BA from Saint Mary’s University and MA/PhD from the University of Toronto. Key research areas include Indigenous New Wave literature, Mi’kmaw spirituality, and Two-Spirit feminism. Recent grants focus on reconciliation frameworks and LGBTQ2S+ health equity. She has published widely on topics like queer mental health, animal personhood in Mi’kmaw cosmology, and decolonizing pedagogies.
Lady Rojas Benavente is an Associate Professor in the Department of Classics, Modern Languages and Linguistics at Concordia University, where she has been teaching since her appointment as Assistant Professor in 1996, with promotion to Associate Professor in May 2003. Prior to joining Concordia, she served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa and as a lecturer at the Faculty of Education at The University of Western Ontario, where she taught second language methodology, French and Spanish. Dr. Rojas Benavente received her PhD in Hispanic Literature from the University Laval in 1991, following an MA in Spanish Literatures (Cum Laude, 1985) and BA in History and Spanish (1983), both from the University of Ottawa. She also holds a Diploma qualifying as a Secondary School teacher specializing in Spanish Language and Literature, Psychology and Philosophy from the National Pedagogic University of Women in Lima, Peru (Cum Laude, 1968). Her research focuses on Critical Feminism in Peruvian & Latin-American Women Writers, with special emphasis on contemporary Peruvian and Mexican narrative, drama, poetry and essay. Her work encompasses Cultural Studies and Literary and Critical Theories, Latin American History, Post-colonialism, Human Rights, Women Studies, Feminist Theories, Gender Issues, Latin America Black History, Indigenous and Minorities Studies, and Comparative Studies in Education. She has published nine books (two poetry collections and seven critical interpretations) and over 50 refereed papers in Latin American Women's literary work, particularly focusing on Peruvian and Mexican authors. Dr. Rojas Benavente's scholarly output demonstrates consistent engagement with themes of gender, ethnicity, and power structures in Latin American literature. Her recent publications explore the works of contemporary Peruvian women writers, examining how they address issues of violence, racism, and gender in post-independence national contexts. Her research trajectory reveals a deepening focus on decolonial perspectives, indigenous resistance, and the intersection of gender with other social categories. Hispanic Literary and Cultural Institute's Honor Diploma (2010) Publication Award from the University of New Brunswick for the Anthology, Constructing Memory: Latino-Canadian Women Writers in the New Millennium Recognition by Mouvement Desjardins in celebration of International Women's Day (2008) As president of the Society for Literary Criticism of Spanish American Women Writers' work (CCLEH), Dr. Rojas Benavente has facilitated connections between Concordia colleagues, local artists, international writers, and the Latino-Montreal community. She serves on the editorial boards of Alba de America, a literary magazine from the United States, and Voces, a Peruvian cultural magazine. Her leadership extends to organizing numerous conferences on Latin American women writers across Canada, Latin America, and Montreal, including multiple meetings of Hispano-Canadian Women Writers and events commemorating significant figures in Latin American literature.
Dorothy L. Espelage is the William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, affiliated with the School of Education's Applied Developmental Science and Special Education (ADSSE) department. She holds joint appointments in Human Development and Family Science (HDFS) and School Psychology, and leads the Diverse and Resilient Educators Advised through Mentorship (DREAM) initiative. Her research focuses on translating empirical findings into prevention programs targeting bullying, teen dating violence, and school safety. Dr. Espelage advises U.S. Congress on anti-bullying legislation and has secured over $15 million in external funding. Education: Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology (1997), Indiana University M.S. in Clinical Psychology (1993), Radford University B.S. in Psychology (1991), Virginia Commonwealth University Research Interests: Prevention science, social-emotional learning interventions, bullying and cyberbullying prevention, school-based suicide prevention, and addressing violence against educators. Her work emphasizes policy development and community engagement, with a focus on marginalized youth such as LGBTQ+ adolescents and students with disabilities. Key Contributions: Developed evidence-based programs like Sources of Strength and DIAL (Disability Anti-Bullying Training). Authored influential books including Bullying in North American Schools and Handbook of Bullying in Schools . Her recent studies explore racial disparities in bullying-suicidality links and violence against school staff. Awards & Recognition: Lifetime Achievement Award (APA Division 17, 2023) 2023 BRNET-WABF Career Award Invited speaker at White House Bullying Summit (2011) Advising & Grants: Mentor for early-career researchers through the DREAM program. Current grants focus on school climate improvement, anti-bullying teacher training, and mental health equity initiatives. Collaborates with CDC, NIH, and NIJ on dissemination efforts. Labs & Teams: Leads transdisciplinary teams at UNC and previously at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Gutgsell Professorship) and University of Florida. Engaged in global anti-bullying advocacy through organizations like the World Anti-Bullying Forum.
Ruth Greenwood is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Law and Director of the Election Law Clinic at Harvard Law School, Harvard University. She specializes in election law litigation, voting rights advocacy, and training future election lawyers. Her work focuses on challenges to partisan gerrymandering, minority vote dilution, and legal strategies to reform redistricting processes. Education: LL.M., Columbia Law School (2009) LL.B./B.Sc., University of Sydney (2005/2003) Research Interests: Election law federalism, voting rights enforcement, redistricting commission design, and combating racial gerrymandering through litigation and legislative advocacy. Her work emphasizes state-level voting rights acts as critical tools for addressing federal law shortcomings. Professional Affiliations: Board Member and Secretary of PlanScore (2019–present), former roles at the Campaign Legal Center, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and the DNC’s Voting Rights Institute. Admitted to multiple federal courts including the Supreme Court of the United States. Courses Taught: Election Law Clinic and Seminar series, Writing Group on Voting Rights (2024–2025).
Dr. Ali Kassem is a Lecturer in Sociology and Anthropology at the National University of Singapore (NUS), Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. His academic work spans multiple disciplines, focusing on decolonial approaches to understanding power dynamics, knowledge production, and social formations across the Arab-majority world and beyond. Dr. Kassem received his PhD from the School of Law, Politics, and Sociology at the University of Sussex. He completed postdoctoral research at the Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Edinburgh and was an early career fellow with the Arab Council for Social Sciences funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. His academic journey includes teaching and research positions at Ludwig-Maximillian University in Munich, EHESS in Paris, American University of Beirut, and Lebanese American University. Dr. Kassem's research examines contemporary coloniality across questions of power and knowledge. His work spans anti-Muslim racism within Arab-majority contexts, transformations in Islamic educational institutions, dehumanization of Syrian refugees, and urban transformations in Lebanon. His transdisciplinary approach engages ethnic and racial studies, sociology of religion, social psychology, migration studies, and urban studies, working alongside anticolonial thinkers including Frantz Fanon, Ali Shariati, and James Baldwin. His recent publications reveal a strong focus on decolonial theory applied to education, urban studies, and Islamic contexts. Dr. Kassem's work consistently challenges Eurocentric frameworks while exploring alternatives emerging from the Global South. His research demonstrates particular attention to Lebanon and the eastern Mediterranean region as sites for theorizing global coloniality. Dr. Kassem has authored the book "Islamophobia and Global Coloniality: the Lived Erasure of Visibly Muslim Women in Lebanon" (Bloomsbury Academic, February 2023) and is currently editing "Decoloniality and Arabo-Islamicate Worlds" (Bristol University Press, 2025). His scholarly contributions appear in journals including Ethnic and Racial Studies, Globalizations, Contemporary Religion, and Review of Middle East Studies.
Mustafa B. Ozturk is a Professor of Human Resource Management at Queen Mary University of London's School of Business and Management, affiliated with the Department of People and Organisations. He holds roles as Programme Director for the MSc International Human Resource Management and coordinator for the International Foundation Programme and Pre-Masters. His academic journey includes a BA in Economics and Politics from New York University, followed by MA and PhD studies at the University of Chicago, focusing on the political economy of human capital. Dr. Ozturk's research emphasizes workplace equality, diversity, and inclusion, particularly addressing systemic disadvantages related to gender identity, sexual orientation, race, and ethnicity. He is a member of the Centre for Research in Equality and Diversity (CRED) and actively supervises doctoral students exploring themes like gender inequality in finance, ethnic minority entrepreneurship, and global diversity management. His teaching includes BUS269: Organisational Behaviour. Research interests span both developed and developing regions, including Turkey, China, and the UK. He has published widely on topics such as racialized incivility, LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion, and gender equality in global contexts. Supervision expertise includes doctoral projects on intersectionality in talent management, corporate socio-political activism, and gender disparities in finance.
Heather A. Jones, Ph.D., serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology within Virginia Commonwealth University's College of Humanities and Sciences, holding joint appointments with the Department of African American Studies, Department of Pediatrics, and Institute for Women's Health. As a licensed clinical psychologist in Virginia, she maintains an active research program focused on reducing mental health disparities through culturally responsive interventions. Ph.D. in Psychology, University of Maryland at College Park (2006) Dr. Jones' research centers on three interconnected pillars: Black children and families' mental health, maternal mental health across the perinatal spectrum, and training culturally competent clinical psychologists. Her work specifically examines ADHD manifestations in Black youth, impacts of racial discrimination on adolescent mental health, and integration of behavioral health services within primary care settings. She employs mixed-methods approaches to address systemic barriers in mental healthcare access for underserved communities. Analysis of her 2023-2025 publications reveals consistent emphasis on health equity through studies of cultural competence in cancer survivorship, ADHD treatment representation gaps, and digital interventions for perinatal depression. Her methodological approaches span latent class analyses of service utilization, content analyses of historical research biases, and clinical trials of integrated care models, all contextualized within structural determinants of health. Dr. Jones has received significant recognition for her contributions: VCU College of Humanities and Sciences Distinguished Teaching Award (2023) VCU Department of Psychology Outstanding Mentoring Award (2023) Elizabeth Fries Young Investigator Award (2016) Clinical and Translational Research Award (2016) She actively mentors students, particularly supporting Black graduate trainees in pediatric psychology as evidenced by numerous student co-authorships. As Principal Investigator, she directs the $1.4M HRSA-funded Primary Care Psychology Training Collaborative providing pro bono services to urban Richmond and rural Virginia communities, recently expanded through an additional $1.1M grant serving Latinx immigrants and refugees. Her federally funded work consistently bridges research, clinical service, and community engagement. Dr. Jones co-directs the Families and Mental Health Research Lab and Primary Care Psychology Training Collaborative, leading interdisciplinary teams comprising psychology graduate students, pediatric residents, and community health workers. These initiatives operate within VCU's integrated primary care clinics, focusing on implementation science to scale evidence-based practices for underserved populations while training the next generation of healthcare providers.
Laia Becares is a Professor of Social Science and Health at King's College London, part of the School of Global Affairs and the Department of Global Health & Social Medicine. She previously held roles at the University of Sussex (2018-2022) and the University of Manchester (2010-2018), where she maintains an Honorary position. She serves as an Editor of Sociology of Health and Illness and on the Academic Reference Group of the NHS Race and Health Observatory. Her work is funded by organizations such as the Nuffield Foundation and the Health Foundation. Laia holds a PhD in Social Epidemiology from University College London (UCL) and a Master's in Public Health from Boston University School of Public Health. Her research employs an interdisciplinary approach, collaborating with sociologists, psychiatrists, geographers, and demographers to understand how discrimination and marginalization perpetuate social and health inequities. Key areas include racism, homophobia/heterosexism, LGBTQ+ inequalities, and the impact of systemic oppression across life stages. She co-developed the Queerantine Study on pandemic impacts on LGBTQ+ communities and leads the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health, fostering student mentorship in health inequality topics. Her scientific awards include ESRC/MRC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (2010-2012), Hallsworth Research Fellowship (2012-2016), and ESRC Future Research Leader Fellowship (2012-2015). Recent work focuses on ethnic healthcare disparities in multimorbidity and longitudinal studies of racism's effects on health outcomes. Ongoing projects include LGBTQ+ policymaking networks and the GHSM Anti Racism Steering Group, addressing structural inequities in academia and healthcare. Laia’s grants include Nuffield Foundation funding for ethnic inequalities in later life and Health Foundation support for healthcare equity studies. She advocates for integrating lived experiences into research design, particularly through the Evidence for Equality National Survey (EVENS). Her lab affiliations include Queer@King’s and the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health, emphasizing collaborative, community-driven approaches.
Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Masoud Movahed conducts research at the intersection of social stratification, economic sociology, and political sociology using advanced computational and quantitative methodologies. Education: Ph.D., University of Wisconsin–Madison M.A., New York University Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of Pennsylvania His research program integrates spatial econometrics, machine learning (including unsupervised clustering and supervised algorithms), and comparative-historical methods like event structure analysis to investigate income/wealth inequality across national contexts and within the United States. Recent work examines neighborhood dynamics related to gun violence, intergenerational mobility through racial-spatial lenses, and the relationship between political power structures and economic inequality. Publications appear in leading journals including Social Science Research , Journal of Industrial Relations , and Spatial Demography , with additional commentary featured in Foreign Affairs , World Economic Forum , and Al Jazeera . His methodological approach consistently bridges computational rigor with sociological theory. Scientific Awards: Mathematical Sociology section award, American Sociological Association Political Economy of the World-System Section award, American Sociological Association Sociology of Development section award, American Sociological Association Sabina Avdagic Early Career Scholar Prize, Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics Dr. Movahed teaches advanced statistics courses including Social Statistics and Capstone in Data Analysis, while directing collaborative projects involving survey experiments and computational text analysis. His research program examines institutional determinants of inequality through both U.S.-focused and cross-national comparative frameworks.
Ari Schlesinger is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the University of Georgia (UGA), directing the Socially Responsible Tech Lab. She holds a PhD from the School of Interactive Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology. Her research focuses on anti-discriminatory computing, technology policy, and equitable sociotechnical systems. She advocates for reducing computing-enabled harm to advance justice in technology. Education : PhD in Human-Centered Computing (HCC), Georgia Tech Affiliations : ACM's U.S. Technology Policy Committee Her work spans Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and broader CS applications. Key interests include addressing algorithmic bias, inclusive design, and policy frameworks for ethical computing. She has developed strategies to mitigate discrimination in technical systems through frameworks like anti-discriminatory computing. Awards include the 2021 Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award and a Best Paper Award at CHI 2018. Her research has been featured in venues like CSCW and CHI, focusing on topics from chatbot ethics to decentralized social networks. Lab : Socially Responsible Tech Lab at UGA Grants/Advising : Advises graduate student Eddie Alexander Gomez Schieber. Active in policy advocacy and academic leadership roles.
Stephen M. Rich serves as the Maurice Jones, Jr. – Class of 1925 Professor of Law and Vice Dean for Academic Research and Intellectual Life at the University of Southern California's Gould School of Law, where he teaches employment discrimination law, constitutional equality law, and civil procedure. His educational background includes: JD from Yale Law School MA and BA in African American Studies from Yale University Rich also received a Fulbright Scholarship to study music in Fes, Morocco, and was awarded the A. Bartlett Giammati Fellowship during his undergraduate studies. Rich's research critically examines antidiscrimination law through interdisciplinary lenses, blending statutory and constitutional analysis with sociology and social psychology. His work challenges conventional approaches to racial classifications, prejudice, and diversity frameworks, arguing for nuanced understandings of social injustice and the practical limitations of legal enforcement. Recent scholarship focuses on reimagining diversity beyond affirmative action to advance equal opportunity. His publications from 2011-2016 reveal consistent thematic evolution: early work analyzed social psychology's role in discrimination enforcement ( Against Prejudice , 2011), progressed to examining textualism's impact on employment law ( A Matter of Perspective , 2014), and culminated in reconceptualizing diversity's relationship to equal opportunity ( What Diversity Contributes , 2016). Rich's accolades include: William A Rutter Distinguished Teaching Award (first junior faculty recipient at USC Gould) Fulbright Scholarship and Reginald Lewis Fellowship Yale prizes for senior essay and master's thesis Olin Fellowship at Yale Law School As Vice Dean, Rich shapes academic research initiatives while maintaining an active scholarship profile. His career trajectory—from Ninth Circuit clerkship to Cleary Gottlieb litigation practice before entering academia—infuses his work with practical legal insight. Though specific current grants aren't detailed, his Reginald Lewis Fellowship supported race and political equality research at Harvard Law School.
Marcel Lubbers is a Professor of Interdisciplinary Social Science: Relations between groups and cultures at Utrecht University's Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. He leads the European Research Centre on Migration and Ethnic Relations (ERCOMER) and serves as a board member of the Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology (ICS). As associate editor of the European Sociological Review (ESR), he significantly influences academic discourse in migration and political sociology. His work represents Utrecht University in the focus area Migration and Societal Change, connecting research with broader societal implications. Professor Lubbers' research program centers on migration's societal impacts, particularly examining how immigration influences nationalism, Euroscepticism, and voting behavior. His work adopts both macro-level perspectives on societal cohesion and micro-level analyses of immigrant integration processes. Recent publications reveal his focus on political extremism, interethnic relations, and the psychological mechanisms behind public attitudes toward migration. His methodology combines large-scale survey analysis, comparative European studies, and longitudinal approaches to track attitude changes over time. Lubbers' scholarly output shows consistent engagement with contemporary political challenges, including analyses of radical right voting patterns, the workplace as a setting for interethnic contact, and the impact of national nostalgia on political attitudes. His research demonstrates methodological sophistication through meta-analyses, mixed-methods approaches, and innovative survey designs like the Dutch Parliamentary Election Study and Dutch Ethnic Minority Election Study. Through web publications on platforms like Stukroodvlees.nl and contributions to the Migration Advisory Council, Lubbers actively bridges academic research and public policy debates. His work provides evidence-based insights on migration policy, electoral behavior, and societal integration that inform both scholarly and policy discussions in the Netherlands and beyond.
Joe Feagin is the Ella C. McFadden Professor and Distinguished Professor of Sociology at Texas A&M University, College of Arts and Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University (1966) and has held prominent roles such as President of the American Sociological Association (1999-2000). His research focuses on systemic racism, racial and ethnic relations, and anti-racist education. Feagin has authored over 30 books and numerous articles, including seminal works like White Racism: The Basics and The White Racial Frame . He has received prestigious awards such as the W.E.B. Du Bois Career of Distinguished Scholarship Award (2013) and the Arthur Fletcher Lifetime Achievement Award (2013). Feagin's academic journey includes positions at the University of Texas, University of Florida, and Texas A&M. He served as Scholar-in-Residence at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (1974-1975). His courses at Texas A&M include the Sociology of African Americans, Classical Social Theory, and Racism and Anti-Racism. His research spans racial discrimination, gender relations, urban sociology, and systemic racism’s impacts. He has pioneered theories like systemic racism and the white racial frame. Feagin’s work emphasizes societal transformation through critical sociology and anti-racist practices. Key awards and recognitions include the Cox-Johnson-Frazier Scholarship Award (2018), Soka Gakkai International Social Justice Award (2012), and multiple fellowships. His grants and administrative roles include leadership in diversity initiatives at Texas A&M and national sociological organizations. Feagin’s legacy includes fostering anti-racist education, leading interdisciplinary research teams, and advocating for social justice. His work continues to influence policy, education, and public discourse on race in the U.S. and globally.
Professor Heejung Chung is Professor of Work and Employment at King’s College London and Director of the King's Global Institute for Women's Leadership. She is based in the HRM & Employment Relations department within King’s Business School. Her research focuses on flexible working, gender and racial inequalities, work-life balance, and comparative labour market policies. Institution: King’s College London School: King’s Business School Department: HRM & Employment Relations Role: Professor and Director Her research interests include human resource management, gender inequalities at work, remote and hybrid working, work-family conflict, division of domestic labour, and advanced quantitative and qualitative methods. She employs large-scale longitudinal datasets and digital diaries to examine how flexible working affects marginalized groups and shapes social policy. The most recent articles reflect a strong trend toward investigating the social implications of remote and hybrid work, particularly focusing on gender and racial equity, flexibility stigma, and policy impacts. Her work increasingly emphasizes intersectionality, national policy contexts, and organizational change. Short-listed for the Rosabeth Moss Kanter Awards for Excellence in Work-Family Research Long-listed for the Cambridge University Press Excellence in Social Policy Research Named in Onalytica’s Top Voices in Future of Work 2023 Named in HR Magazine's 'Most Influential' list Professor Chung has secured over £10 million in research funding as PI or Co-I from ESRC, ERC, Nuffield, NORFACE, and others. She actively supervises PhD students and contributes to editorial boards of journals such as Gender & Society and Work, Employment & Society. She is a member of the executive boards of the European Social Policy Analysis Network and the Work and Family Researchers Network. She leads the King's Global Institute for Women's Leadership, where she promotes research and policy initiatives on gender equality, including the Gender Equality Index UK. Her work has directly influenced the European Commission’s Work-Life Balance Directive and ongoing discussions about the 'Right to Disconnect'.
Richard Hornbeck is the V. Duane Rath Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He is an economic historian and applied-micro economist whose research focuses on the historical development of the American economy, examining why some places and people have become wealthier while others have remained poorer. Hornbeck is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, affiliated with programs on the Development of the American Economy, Development Economics, and Environmental and Energy Economics. Hornbeck's research spans multiple critical areas of economic history, with particular emphasis on slavery and emancipation economics, environmental history (especially the Dust Bowl migration), gender dynamics in 19th-century manufacturing, railroad development, and agricultural economics related to the Ogallala Aquifer. His work frequently utilizes newly digitized historical data to provide fresh insights into longstanding economic questions, connecting historical events to contemporary economic issues of wealth distribution and regional disparities. His publication record shows strong trends in American economic development research, with recent work focusing on the economic impacts of emancipation, historical manufacturing patterns by gender, and urban economic development. Many of his papers have been published as lead articles in top journals including the Journal of Political Economy, American Economic Review, and Review of Economics and Statistics. Hornbeck has received several prestigious honors including the Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship in 2014 and selection for the 2009 Review of Economic Studies Tour. His NBER affiliations demonstrate his standing in multiple subfields of economics research. Prior to joining Chicago Booth in 2015, Hornbeck was the Dunwalke Associate Professor of American History in the Economics Department at Harvard University. He received his PhD in economics from MIT in 2009 and a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Chicago in 2004. His teaching includes courses on applied microeconomics in economic history and business in historical perspective, with course schedules extending through 2026.
