Sociology Newsletter - October 2024

You might have heard that there will be a Presidential Election in November. But have you registered to vote? Do you know where to vote? CU Denver’s Election Hub has you covered. The website has information on voting and events on campus related to the election. Of note is that Monday, October 28 is the last day for an individual to submit a Colorado voter registration application and still receive a ballot in the mail for the 2024 General Election. Individuals can register to vote in Colorado in-person at a polling station as late as election day, Tuesday, November 5.

We know this Presidential Election will be heavily contested. Many are worried that their votes will not count. The Election Protection coalition is here to help. The coalition consists of more than 300 national, state and local partners that work year-round to protect all voters’ right to vote. Election Protection provides comprehensive information and assistance at all stages of voting–from registration, to absentee and early voting, and to casting a vote at the polls. The coalition relies on volunteers. If you’re interested in volunteering and protecting this election, visit their website.

Hands of Hope AmeriCorps provides care for infants and children up to age six who are at risk for abuse and neglect in Houston, TX. The organization is seeking members to work with these vulnerable children over a 12-month commitment, living in a private, gated community (at no cost) and receiving a living allowance. Hands of Hope AmeriCorps Members work collaboratively with other AmeriCorps Members in the home to ensure that children’s physical, emotional, and mental needs are met. Hands of Hope AmeriCorps is currently accepting applications for the September 2025-August 2026 service year, which can be found here.  

Conversations to Remember is a non-profit organization that connects seniors, including those with cognitive decline, with college students to combat social isolation and loneliness. Its virtual visit program matches 2-3 college students with residents of long-term care, assisted living, and memory care communities. These visits brighten the days of seniors suffering from isolation. Conversations to Remember provides training to students about the best ways to interact with the seniors as well as additional support. Since these visits are virtual, students can do them without traveling. Students interested in making a senior smile can contact with Po Halpern or visit the group’s website for more information. 

The world is complicated, and so are university graduation requirements. If you have advising questions as you advance towards your degree, Undergraduate Advisor Dr. Maren Scull is ready to meet with you to discuss them. You can reach her at maren.scull@ucdenver.edu.

Employers are increasingly seeking job candidates trained in research methods. Proficiency in qualitative and quantitative methodological skills improve one's prospects of securing well-paid and rewarding careers. The Department of Sociology’s new Graduate Certificate in Social Science Research Methods provides graduate students training in research design, data collection, and data analysis utilizing a variety of statistical and text analysis software. The certificate is available to graduate students in any degree program as well as non-degree seeking students. Contact Dr. Adam Lippert for more information.

Imagine yourself on a 16-day adventure across four of Spain's most enchanting cities: Madrid, Seville, Córdoba, and Cádiz. Earn six credits and a certificate in GIS and Spatial Analysis with instruction from the Spanish National Research Council while immersing yourself in the rich tapestry of Spanish culture. Under the guidance of Dr. Adam Lippert, Descubre España: GIS, Research Training, and Cultural Immersion across Spain allows you to explore historic sites, savor local delicacies, and put new skills to work while studying social life in Spain. For more details, contact Dr. Lippert.

Alpha Kappa Delta is continuing its workshop series for sociology graduate students: The Graduate Student Lounge. The AKD Grad Student Lounge is an initiative sponsored by Alpha Kappa Delta to support and foster graduate students’ professionalization, well-being, and peer networking. It meets monthly to discuss various topics of interest to graduate students in sociology and offers a grad-only safe space to share tips, ideas, and recommendations. Graduate students are welcome to sign up to be invited using this link.

Alpha Kappa Delta currently provides funding to AKD student members who present at regional sociology conferences. Awards are up to $500/student, although no more than $1,500 may be awarded per chapter. This is another great reason to join sociology’s honor society. For more information about the chapter, contact Dr. Jenny Vermilya.

The CU Denver Lynx Food Pantry responds to the need of CU Denver students for resources to fight food insecurity. CU Denver students have access to free food and hygiene products. All students are allocated 10 points each week to use on items from the pantry, whether it's just to grab a snack for the day or to help out with a meal. Bring your student ID when you visit. The Lynx Food Pantry is located on the 3rd floor of the Wellness Center. 

The Sociology Club has its motor running. As you may already know from the emails and social media posts we’ve sent out, the Club meets every other Tuesday from 6-7:30 at the Sociology Department (Lawrence Street Center 420). But the next meeting will be THURSDAY, October 3, from 6-8PM. Pizza and drinks will be provided, feel free to bring your own games. See you there!!!

The PCA will be hosting its second of three Lunch & Learn workshops this semester on Tuesday, October 1st, from 12:30PM-1:45PM in Tivoli 320s. The workshop will focus on sexual violence related pregnancies. Participants will learn the prevalence and impact of sexual violence related pregnancies in the United States, how helping professionals at Auraria campus and in Denver are supporting folks who disclose being survivors of sexual violence related pregnancies, the intersection of the impact of sexual violence related pregnancies on marginalized communities, and recommendations for how we can better support survivors and their children. Free food will be provided to participants.

National Hispanic Heritage Month continues through October 15. Hispanic Heritage Month honors the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans. During the month, our campus and the City of Denver will be sharing the history, heritage, and accomplishments of Hispanic and Latino Americans of past and present. The University Events Calendar and Denver’s Hispanic Heritage Month are great resources for finding events celebrating the campus’s and city’s rich Hispanic roots and cultures. Another excellent source of information is the Denver Foundation’s website.

The CU Denver community will be hosting various talks and events related to the election. On Tuesday, October 15, at 12PM in the Business School, Phillip De Leon, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Chief Research Officer and Professor of Electrical Engineering, and Catalin Grigoras, Director of the National Center for Media Forensics Associate Professor, will hold an Election Season Brown Bag Session on Understanding AI, Deepfakes, and Media Forensics During an Election Season. They will be discussing the history of AI, where the technology stands today, the benefits and concerns surrounding AI, and what media forensics can and cannot do.

On Friday, October 18, at 12PM in the Business School, Mia Fischer (she/her), Associate Professor of Communication, and Deserai Anderson Crow (she/her), Public Affairs Professor, will hold an Election Season Brown Bag Session on Mis/Disinformation and the Human Desire to Believe. The session will help explain the differences between mis- and disinformation, the history of both within society, why humans are susceptible, and ways to be a smart consumer of information.

My Colorado Journey connects job seekers and students and provides education planning and support resources. On Friday, October 11, 10-11AM, the organization will host a free, virtual webinar on how to use their newest tool—My Resume—to help you land an interview. My Resume helps strengthen and organize your resume based on work experience, education, awards, and skills. Register for the webinar here. Also remember that the CU Denver Career Center has a variety of resources and staff available to help you with resumes, networking, interviewing, and other skills to help you launch your careers.

The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs’ Division of Inclusive Culture & Belonging will holding its 2024 CU Social Justice Summit on Tuesday, October 8, from 9AM-4PM. This year’s theme is Inclusive Leadership and Belonging, centering each campus's commitment to fostering inclusive learning and work environments. A full list of events can be found here. The Summit keynote will feature Brandon Kazen-Maddox, an ASL Artist, choreographer, director, dancer, actor, acrobat, and activist. Register here!

Join artist Micol Hebron in conversation with CU Denver's Professor of Art History and friend of Sociology, Maria Buszek, for a discussion of Hebron's artistic practice and the role of AI in it. This exclusive event will take place on Tuesday, Oct 29th from 2-3:30PM in the Emmanuel Art Gallery on campus. 

Dr. Raphael Sassower will provide the Department of Philosophy's Annual Ethics Keynote talk on Thursday, October 10 from 3:30-5:00PM at Student Commons Building ACAD-2600. Dr. Sassower's talk is titled "Manorial Capitalism: Slavery and the Logic of Dividuation" and will explore the links between practices of contemporary capitalism and the horrific actions of white slavers in the antebellum South. 

You Gotta Vote (Edie Fake, 2020), 925 S. Institute Street, Colorado Springs, CO (Photo: KDVR, October 6, 2023)

SciLine is an editorially independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit service whose goal is to get more science into news stories. Over the summer, Dr. Edelina Burciaga appeared in SciLine for an Experts on Camera interview to discuss her research on the immigration experiences of Latinx populations. You can see and read the interview here. Thanks for getting the word out Edelina!

American sociologist Robert Bellah in “Civil Religion in America” (1967) claimed that Americans share a common civil religion with its own beliefs, values, holidays, and rituals. Among our country’s civic prophets, none figured more centrally than Abraham Lincoln. Famously, he pronounced, “To give the victory to the right, not bloody bullets, but peaceful ballots only, are necessary. Thanks to our good old constitution, and organization under it, these alone are necessary.”

Can we stop talking about the election already? Nah. November’s election features a score of important votes concerning local, state, and national issues that deserve our attention. Colorado Public Radio, The Colorado Sun, and Westword are media outlets with election coverage freely available—The Denver Post also has great reporting available behind a paywall. Keep yourself informed going into the voting booth in November!

On September 23, California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued ExxonMobil for engaging “in a decades-long campaign of deception” about the effectiveness of recycling. The lawsuit claims the giant oil and petrochemical company engaged in a decades-long marketing and advertising campaign misinforming the public about the efficacy of plastic recycling. The lawsuit could have major ramifications for reimagining society’s efforts to reduce plastic pollution and holding plastic producers accountable for their actions. The Washington Post has coverage here.

Since April 2024, the north-east African country of Sudan has been embroiled in a civil war involving its army and a powerful paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The war has led to one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with up to 150,000 people killed and more than 10 million people displaced. In late September, the two forces were battling for control of the country’s capital, Khartoum. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has expert reporting on the conflict.