As some of the senior members of the sociology
department approach retirement, there is great optimism that
the high teaching standards set by the department
will continue with its junior members. “We’ve hired some very interesting
younger people,” says Davidson. He feels that the newer members—Associate
Professors Michael Emerson and Katharine Donato and Assistant Professor Bridget
Gorman—will soon be winning their share of the Brown prizes.
A snapshot of each member shows the diverse talents they bring to the department.Donato
is conducting important funded research on the health consequences of Mexico–U.S.
migration, and her affiliation with the University of San Luis Potosi, in the
city where she recently spent time as a Fulbright fellow, helps her maintain
close ties with scholars in both countries. She has published widelyin both sociology
and demography journals and was the recipient of several teaching awards at Louisiana
State University before coming to Rice.
Emerson’s recently published book, Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion
and the Problem of Race in America, was the cover story of a national magazine,
Christianity Today, and won the DistinguishedBook Award of the Society for the
Scientific Study of Religion.
Gorman is the newest member of the faculty, arriving in 2002. Her research and
teaching interests lie in the broad areas of social inequality, family, and health
during the course of life. Gorman and Donato hold joint appointments at the University
of Texas School of Public Health.
“When we hire someone in this department,” says Martin, “we
expect them to do good research, and we expect them to take their teaching seriously.” And
his assessment of the junior faculty is that they are destined for a bright future
at Rice. As department chair many years ago, Martin started a procedure in which
all teaching evaluations are made available to all members of the department
with the intention of helping them improve their pedagogical skills. That tradition
has continued, and he says he has seen “great feedback”from students
about all the newer members.
It is welcome news as he and the other senior sociology faculty approach retirement
from a depart-ment they have worked so hard to make a prized part of Rice’s
academic landscape. “When I pull my hand out of the water,” he says, “it’s
not going to leave a big hole.”
