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Professor Whitney Pirtle Discusses Why COVID-19 Is Disproportionately Affecting People of Color

July 29, 2020
Earlier this week, the New York Times published an analysis of national data that found that Black and Latinx Americans are three times as likely to catch COVID-19 compared to whites. To discuss the implications of those findings, and what it means for the battle against the virus here in...

Low-Wage Work Is Linked to Spread of COVID-19, Study Finds

July 21, 2020
California counties with high numbers of low-wage workers are seeing higher incidence of COVID-19, suggesting a link between so-called “worker distress” and spread of the virus, according to a new study by UC Merced’s Community and Labor Center. While efforts to contain COVID-19 have centered on...

Professor Whitney Pirtle Talks to The New York Times About The Debate Over Identity and Race

July 16, 2020
Hundreds of news organizations over the past month have changed their style to Black in reference to the race of people, including The Associated Press, long considered an influential arbiter of journalism style. Far more than a typographical change, the move is part of a generations-old struggle...

Three Awarded UC Pre-Professoriate Fellowships

July 8, 2020
UC Merced graduate students Anabel Castillo, Veronica Lerma and Sammy Villa are recipients of the University of California’s inaugural President’s Pre-Professoriate Fellowship (PPPF). The UC Office of the President launched the PPPF as part of its UC-Hispanic Serving Institutions Doctoral Diversity...

Professor Laura Hamilton Weighs In On The Challenges Of Returning To In-person Teaching

July 6, 2020
Professor Laura Hamilton weighs in with the San Francisco Chronicle on the challenges of returning to in-person teaching, including age of professors, students' willingness to wear masks and the precarious balance of protecting oneself and avoiding conflict. Read the article here.

Professor Whitney Pirtle’s Research Featured in Psychology Today article ‘When Race, Money, and Health Collide’

June 22, 2020
Recent reports show us that COVID-19 is just the latest health disparity disproportionately impacting Black communities. At present, racial minorities in the United States are about two to three times more likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19. Unequal mortality rates are also evident: Black...

Professor Charlie Eaton Writes Opinion Piece on University Endowments for Coronavirus Recovery

June 22, 2020
Sociology Professor Charlie Eaton has written an opinion piece for The Hechinger Report, a national nonprofit newsroom that reports on one topic: education In the face of the coronavirus, some courageous university leaders have stepped up to protect their students, their employees, and their...

First-Generation Student Pursues Anti-Racism Research, Joins Cal-Poly Pomona this Fall

April 27, 2020
Kathryn “Katie” Daniels was a teen when she attended the celebration of the opening of UC Merced. As a child growing up in Merced, Daniels had heard her parents stress the importance of education. “My mom always talked about the University of California coming to Merced and how that was going to...

Grad Students Take on Big Roles to Promote Campus Diversity

April 17, 2020
Dania Matos has been at UC Merced for less than a year but is making a big impact as the university’s first chief diversity officer. Now two graduate students with small-town roots are helping Matos amplify her message of equity and justice — a message made more urgent by the COVID-19 pandemic....

Sociology Faculty and Graduate Students attend the 2020 Sociology of Education Association Conference

March 30, 2020
The UC Merced Sociology Department was well represented at the 2020 Sociology of Education Association Conference held in Pacific Grove, CA February 21st through February 23rd. This year’s theme was “The Limits of American Education’s Promise.” Keynotes speakers at the...

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