Visitors since 13 December 2004
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~ Comments and News From our Current Students ~ __________________________________________________________________
The announcement of the competition for the Walter O. Cralle Scholarship for the academic year 2004-2005 was made earlier in 2004 and many qualified students applied. The department's Scholarship Committee reviewed all of the applications to choose one student to be honored by being awarded the Walter O. Cralle Scholarship. With so many qualified students, it was a difficult decision for the committee to make. As you may know, Cralle scholars are among our best students who perform at the top of their class and are involved in their community. But choose it must do, and the Committee recently announced that the recipient of the Walter O. Cralle Scholarship for the academic year 2004-2005 will be Tamara Wilfong! Our congratulations to Tamara who is pursuing a double major in our department (Sociology and in Crime and Society). Tamara expects to graduate in May of 2005 and is a member of Alpha Pi Sigma, the national Criminal Justice Honorary Society. Tamara was also the recipient of the department's Scholarship for Societal Studies for the 2003-2004 academic year. Tamara has been active in several volunteer organizations, including the Branson Recycling Center and Christian Action Ministries, which provides food to those in need. She has also helped raise money for several organizations whose goal is to find cures for particular diseases. In terms of future plans, Tamara is investigating several options for employment or graduate school for subsequent employment with the Department of Homeland Security, or counseling adolescents with substance abuse problems.
Learning About People
Around the World: by Cole LaPlant When I was young my family served as host parents for international exchange students. We now have many friends in Europe and South America because of that decision. When I came to Missouri State University I knew that growing up in a multicultural environment had taught me two things: that I liked people and that I wanted to travel the world. Missouri State University offers a variety of degrees all of which would have allowed me to explore the area of humanities. After taking SOC 150 (An Introduction to Society), my curiosity regarding individuals in their cultural and social contexts began to grow. Over time, that led me to take several other courses offered by the Sociology and Anthropology department. Soon the decision for me became clear that Sociology was the path I should follow. After making that decision I had one more decision to make. What should I minor in? I wanted to minor in something that would help me to better understand myself and also compliment my major. I started doing a little research and learned that the university offered a Gender Studies Program that would allow me explore many aspects of living in a gendered society and world. I am currently enrolled in Dr. Shahin Gerami’s SOC 290 (Sociology of Gender Roles). Dr. Gerami has taught me to open my eyes to an array of issues stemming from gender issues. With that knowledge I plan to complete my degree at Missouri State and then join Peace Corps so I can help to better the world and continue to work within the context of Public Affairs.
_______________________________________________________________ The first time I realized I wanted to be a Sociology major I was sitting on a bench in an airport. It was nearing the end of my freshman year at Missouri State and I was beginning to get nervous about the fact that I hadn’t chosen a major yet. As I sat I began to people-watch ... I have always loved to do that. For me, half the fun of traveling is sitting in airports, watching people from all over the world pass by. I love to observe them while they rush by, or spend time looking through the magazine shops. I feel like I get a little window into each person's mind just by watching their behavior for a few moments and seeing how they interact with others. It may sound strange, but it’s something that I’ve done ever since I was a little girl. I always have a million questions running through my mind. What kind of a person is this? What music do they listen to? What is their family like? What do they do for a living? The longer I sat on that bench, the more questions I had. On this particular day, it went on for a few hours. Eventually, I got up to catch my flight. As I walked, I realized that not many people could, or even would sit on a bench for five hours and be perfectly happy just to watch people go by. Most choose a book, or a magazine, or watched TV. I thought to myself, “This must be something that I can use to my advantage in life.” By the end of a very long flight I had made my decision to study sociology. It made perfect sense. I love to watch people and observe their behavior. I enjoy studying other cultures and learning about their beliefs and customs. I even have a natural tendency to analyze people's behavior and come up with theories about why they do what they do. Just ask my girlfriends. I have several theories about men and why they do the things they do (only kidding, of course), But in all seriousness, I truly felt like I was choosing a field where I could utilize all my natural strengths. Since I have been in the Sociology program I have become even more passionate about my education. I’ve found plenty of opportunity for open communication and guidance and have been truly amazed at the amount of support I receive from both students and faculty. I use the knowledge I gain in my classes not only at school but at work and at home. I definitely feel that my greater understanding of human behavior will help me throughout my life with any job I might choose.
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Sociology
Faculty and Students
Present Findings The Center for Social Sciences and Public Policy Research (formerly Center for Social Research) is a social research center operated by the College of Humanities and Public Affairs. Dr. Gary Brinker became the Associate Director in 1997 and assumed the duties of Director in May of 2002. The Center conducts a variety of research projects, including survey research, program evaluations and public policy analyses. The Center sponsored a trip in 2004 for Jacquelynn and Cara to present their findings. Dr. Brinker also presented the results of a regional study conducted by his Research Methods and Social Problems classes on opinions regarding the medicinal use of marijuana.
Research on the Death Penalty:
The
Student Researchers:
Their
Findings: Dr. Brinker's findings showed majority support for allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to patients under certain medical conditions. They also showed that, despite supporting marijuana as a medicine, most respondents believe marijuana carries a significant potential for harm and abuse. Dr. Brinker found a strong negative correlation between the respondent’s perceived harm of marijuana and support for its use as a medicine. Dr. Brinker and Professor Jeff London are currently conducting a similar statewide study. Cara had this to add to the comments above:
Once Jacquelynn and I had done our presentation the rest of our time at the meeting was open to attend other sessions as well as to see the sights of Washington D.C. Among the more memorable and educational sessions I attended was “Applying Sociology to Violent Crime," which included presentations on domestic violence and rape victimization. The organizer for this session was Missouri State professor Dr. Gayle Rhineberger.
During our visit we spent time at two Smithsonian museums, the Natural Science and the Air and Space museums. We also visited the White House, the Vietnam Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. I am so thankful that I was given the opportunity to attend and present at such an educational and interesting conference. The people I met there were specialists in their fields, down to earth, friendly, and open to conversation. All in all, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I am very grateful to have had.
And from Jacquelynn:
It was such a great experience to be able to attend the meeting. I was very excited about the opportunity to analyze the death penalty data that I helped gather for the Center. I thought working on the project would be beneficial to me, giving me experience I will need for graduate school. After completing my presentation at the meeting, I had an enormous feeling of satisfaction because I had been involved with every part of the study from start to finish: working on the survey, doing the trend analysis with available data from five years ago, writing the paper, and then presenting it at a conference.'
Despite the amount of sociology courses taken as an undergraduate, I don’t think I would have gotten as clear an understanding of what sociology is. I learned more about what I could do with a sociological perspective and how powerful solid research can be. Attending the meeting was exciting because many of the professors from other universities were eager to get to know me and to talk about their graduate programs. And there was such diversity in the presentations that I was able to see new perspectives on things that I may not encounter in an Missouri State classroom. Another thing I enjoyed was being able to meet and listen to people whose books I have read. I would definitely say that being able to work on this project and attend the SAS conference has been my best experience as an undergraduate so far and that it gave me a taste of what I’ll be doing in the future with my degree. ______________________________________ Anthropology Students
This page highlights the kinds
of things our current anthropology students are doing.
Living
with the Kiowa Indians: The Plains Indian tribes once dominated this area, and many of their descendants still call Southwest Oklahoma their home. While there we were able to interact with and get to know members of many different tribes, including the Kiowa, Kiowa-Apache, and Otoe, as well as a few interesting non-Indian characters. Josh and I were the only two students to participate in the field school, which made our workload a heavier one, but it also gave us a greater opportunity to get to know the people personally. As opposed to a horde of anthropology students all jockeying for attention, we were able to work with people on a more intimate basis. During our time in Oklahoma, Josh and I slept alternatively in an earth lodge and a teepee. We stayed with the Jennings family and were privileged to have the opportunity to observe our hostess, Vanessa Jennings, create fine beadwork during our visit. Vanessa’s grandfather was Stephen Mopope, a famous Native American artist. While there we were able to meet with several artists and view the work of many more. We also learned about other prominent members of the community as well. Such figures include the late T.C. Cannon, a revolutionary artist, and Pulitzer Prize winning author N. Scott Momaday. In addition to interviewing lots of people, we were also given the chance to attend several important community functions, such as the Sun Dance, and other events, such as the American Indian Exposition. There were also several museums to be seen, including the Native American Hall of Fame and the Plains Museum, all of which contained wonderful exhibits. We were also able to find the time to visit some local attractions, such as Mount Scott and the Wichita Mountains, and we even got to take in an old-fashioned game of 1800’s-style baseball at the local military base. We visited some sites of a more historical importance as well including Cutthroat Gap, Rainy Mountain, and Saddle Mountain. Other activities included attending local church services, as well as several hand-games, going to Kiowa language classes, and eventually performing our own interviews, unaided. We were given the chance to view or experience so many aspects of the Kiowa culture, including numerous occasions for sampling the cuisine, that we were busy doing something almost all the time.
________________________________________________________________ Dem
Bones, Dem Bones! As a biological anthropologist, one of my areas of expertise has become forensic anthropology. I've always been interested in bones, animal or human, but after discovering just how much information a skeleton can yield about the person who once inhabited it, interest became fascination. First in the coastal redwood country in northern California (where skeletons turn up in the woods and on beaches from time to time), and now here in southwest Missouri, I've been consulted on a number of cases involving human remains. How old was this person when they died? Male or female? How tall were they? What was their ancestral past? Sometimes the evidence provided by the bones melds itself into an answer, and sometimes we're frustratingly left with as many questions as we started with. Such was the case for a skeleton that was brought to me at the Missouri State Anthropology Lab in June of this year. When the Texas County coroner, Tom Whittaker, brought a skeleton to be identified, it came complete with its own casket. Mr. Whittaker's biggest concern was that the remains were Native American, in which case the skeleton would need to be identified as such and then repatriated, in accordance with NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act). Since the casket and some aspects of its contents hinted at an age of about a hundred years ago, it was quite obvious that we weren't dealing with a recent homicide. Having recently finished teaching an intersession course in forensic anthropology, I knew some students who were hungry for more experience in the area. I requested permission from the coroner for them to examine the skeleton as well. Thus it came to be that four students (Nick Evangelista, Scott Jackson, Lester Lakey, and Courtney Smith) and I spent the better part of a Saturday and Sunday in the Anthropology Lab, taking measurements and recording qualitative features of the skeleton, with the goal of arriving at some preliminary indication of who we were dealing with. Its age? Old. It was one of the oldest skeletons I'd ever seen, with most teeth (and their sockets) gone or extremely worn, the skull sutures mostly obliterated from a lifetime of scalp rubbing against it, and signs of arthritis throughout much of the body. Male or female? Yes. The skeleton proved frustratingly ambiguous in terms of features indicative of its sex. Ancestry? Here also, the bones were reluctant to give up much information. Human populations differ more within each group than between groups, and this overlap is part of the reason we can't be easily classified or categorized. However, some features are more common in some groups than in others. For our skeleton, the features fit in best with either African or American black, or Asian ancestry (specifically Japanese, according to our forensic anthropology computer program). This individual may well have been of mixed ancestry. Stature? That can often be a simple question. Measure the limb bones, especially the femur (thigh bone), and plug the numbers into a formula to spew out a height, with some margin of error. The catch is that limb proportions differ somewhat depending on ancestry, so we had to widen our margin of error to accommodate unknown ancestry, making our final answer a bigger range of possible heights. Our mystery skeleton is still a mystery, although Lester Lakey and Courtney Smith carry on the work (see the article below), collecting more data and conducting more analyses on the skeleton, looking into the makeup of the historical populations of Texas County, Missouri, and how the skeleton may have come to be in downtown Houston. If we find out, we'll let you know. ________________________________________________________________
Oh My Aching Bones: A major in anthropology requires an interest in the human experience, whether it is cultural, behavioral, biological, or social. It is a study of the past and present human condition. My main area of interest is physical anthropology, with a specialization in forensics. Forensic anthropology has as its basis human osteology (a branch of anatomy dealing with the bones, ed.) and applies this knowledge to obtain facts so this information can be applied to courts of law whether it is civil or criminal. Anthropologists specializing in forensics usually work out of universities or for government agencies such as a branch of the military. Forensic anthropologists can also volunteer and possibly get paid to work for NGO’s, or nonprofit organizations like Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch. This is the path I’m determined to follow so that what I’ve studied and learned can benefit humanity in some way. To reach a goal, though, one has to start somewhere, and currently Courtney Smith (another Missouri State Anthropology student, ed.) and I are working on our first forensics case, a skeleton from Houston, Missouri. This past summer, after taking “A Survey of Forensic Anthropology” offered by Dr. Walker here on campus, I was offered the opportunity to examine a skeleton found in a building usually rented out for cheerleading practice in the small rural town of Houston, Missouri, in Texas County. Three girls from the cheerleading squad took a break and ventured to the upper floors of the building and discovered three coffins. Two of the coffins contained fake skeletons but the third coffin the girls found an unmistakably real skeleton. The building itself is normally vacant and had been previously used several years ago by a fraternal charitable organization called the Odd Fellows. During the ritual initiation practices of the Odd Fellows, the new members recite a passage in the presence of a skeleton (believed to remind them of their own mortality). Usually, the skeletons that are used are not real and real skeletons could at one time be ordered through the mail and are normally bought by medical professionals. In studying the skeleton, we examined and inventoried everything available: including all bones, teeth, and whatever was found with the human remains and noted the condition of the bones. Eventually, the goal is to obtain the sex of the skeleton and establish estimation on ancestry and stature. Using my first case as an opportunity to apply what I’ve learned so far has been a fascinating experience in learning more about the human condition. __________________________________________ Crime and Society Students
Getting Involved: Missouri State's Mission I have been a student at Missouri State since the fall of 2002. I would like to say that my knowledge of criminology has increased immensely through the courses I've taken, and my experiences in the field have taught me even more. I have two more semesters here at Missouri State and I believe my time at Missouri State has made me more of an asset to the job market. I am a member of the Criminal Justice Society and three honor societies. It is true when people say, "If you work hard towards something you can obtain it." I was recently hired by the Springfield Missouri Police Department as an intern ... and I'm learning a lot from this experience. It's been a great introduction to the "real world" of police work. I believe real world experience is the most important thing to get while attending college. The courses at the university are great, and clarifying what one's future profession may be is even better. This is where Missouri State excels as compared to other universities. The mission at Missouri State is public affairs. The university wants its students to get out into the community, and contribute to society while they are still in college. An option in the Crime and Society program (and in other departments' course offerings) is to take a service learning class. The one I took offered one credit hour and was attached to another Crime and Society course. To satisfy the requirements of the Service Learning course I took, I spent 40 hours volunteering in the Springfield Police Department. I think the Service Learning program is an excellent opportunity for students, and I think that the public affairs mission that the university has adopted helps the students get into the world earlier than other college students. This experience will put Missouri State graduates ahead of other college graduates when they get into the job market. ________________________________________________________________ Stephanie Horak: By Stephanie Horak
I took a course entitled "An Introduction to the American Criminal Justice System" (CAS 210) here at Missouri State simply on a recommendation when I needed another class. I thought it would be interesting, but I never thought it would become my major and quite possibly my future career.
While in the course, I participated in a service learning experience. That means, in my case, that I worked for 40 hours at a local group home, The Community Learning Center, under Manager Ed Dorris and earned academic credit for my work. Again, I just thought it would be interesting, but it led me to discover a career for myself.
After interacting with the delinquent boys living in the group home, and talking about things from past abuse to our favorite kinds of cars, I decided to carry on the next semester and I completed over 100 hours total of service learning. During this semester, I also completed an independent study course with Dr. Carlie. This gave me the opportunity to take things I had seen in the group home, find literature on them, and discuss them with him. At the end of the semester I received both the Presidential Award for Community Service from the Office of the President of the United States, and the Lloyd R. Young Scholarship.
I went into my sophomore year undecided about my major or career after graduation and left with an invaluable experience and declared majors and minors; I plan to major in Crime and Society and Sociology with minors in Psychology and Religious Studies. As of right now, I’m looking at taking a year off from school and work with Campus Crusade for Christ. Then I will continue on to graduate school with the ultimate goal of working with adolescents through group homes, possibly running my own someday. ________________________________________________________________
Putting Theory into Practice:
The Crime and Society Major provides its students with many opportunities to learn about careers and graduate education available in the field of criminology / criminal justice. A major in our program can obtain knowledge about the careers in the courses offered in our department. Instructors often provide interaction with employees in a variety of criminal justice agencies through guest lectures, presentations, and field trips. In addition, a few of our courses have a Service Learning component.
Service Learning Opportunities: Another way of looking at
service learning is as an
"internship." Students
have worked as mentors in various correctional institutions,
community agencies which work with at -risk populations,
and other agencies for their service learning
credit. Sometimes this experience allows
students to work in an agency related to
the career they anticipate entering upon graduation. For
instance, working as a juvenile mentor can allow
one time to consider whether he or she prefers
contact with juveniles or adults. Service
learning in a correctional institution can provide
students with information on the different
opportunities available within a correctional facility beyond
employment as a correctional officer. In addition,
students can develop a sense of pride knowing
they are providing a valuable service to
these agencies as volunteers. Corrections-related
opportunities exist in state, county and local prisons and jails,
halfway houses, juvenile residential treatment facilities, and
in both adult and juvenile probation and
parole. Social services include working
with victims, in after-school programs for
juveniles, and in a variety of treatment
programs. As you can see, we offer a number
of opportunities for our students. ________________________________________________________________ Can we feature you in a future issue?
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Visitors since 13 December 2004