Government & Politics

B.A.
University of Maryland, College Park

Sociology

M.A.
Howard University

Sociology

Ph.D.
Howard University

Sociology of Disaster

Emergency Management

Policing

Gender Studies

Criminology

Climate Change, Energy, and Social Justice

This course is designed to introduce students to the study of climate change, energy, and social justice.  The course will address the causes and consequences of climate change from a national and international perspective.  Special attention will be given to the social, cultural, and political implications of climate change and the social movements that seek to address environmental injustice.

Victimology

This course is designed to introduce students to the study of victimology and the typologies of victimization.  The course focuses on the following types of victimization: intimate partner violence, child abuse, and sexual assault.  We will review the development of concepts and theories of victimization and the implications of these developments.  This aspect of the course also reviews the criminal justice system’s response to victims.  The second stage of the course delves into the different types of victimization, the various types of victims, as well as explanations for their victimization.  Lastly, the course examines the conditions under which individuals are victimized and the impact of victimization on interpersonal and intrapersonal relations.

Police, Law, & Society

This course reviews the role of law and law enforcement in modern society from a multi-disciplinary approach.  The course examines critical issues related to policing including: the various styles and models of policing; the various types of police misconduct and corruption; the challenges of the profession; the nuances of police culture; and the nature of the relationship between the police and the community.  

Social Change and Criminal Justice

This course is designed for graduate students only.  The course examines the interconnection between political ideology, public discourse, political pressures, and changes in criminal justice policies.  We will explore the political and ideological shifts that have led to some of the significant historical changes in the criminal justice system.  Some of the major changes in criminal justice policy have been driven by political hype and mass hysteria.  The underpinnings of these changes are sometimes driven by political gamesmanship and fear.  However, some of the changes in criminal justice policies were pushed forward through the pressures of grassroots movements.  This course will explore these issues and others to gain a sense of how criminal justice policies are influenced, drafted, altered, and changed.

Deviance in the Community

This course will review the types of individual and institutional forms of deviance.  Specifically, the course examines and assess the theoretical approaches associated with the study of deviance and society’s reaction to such phenomena.