MA Graduate Teaching Assistants

Brittany Buttry-Watson
Brittany is a first-year master's student and teaching assistant for Dr.  Mark Austin and his SOC 201 course, as well as a research assistant for Dr. Hiromi Taniguchi this fall.  Brittany earned her bachelor degrees from Greenville College in Greenville, IL in psychology/religion and social work.  Her areas of interest include the penal and criminal justice system in the United States. She also plans to focus on prisoner reentry and rehabilitation practices. In her free time she enjoys outdoor activities and strategy games.     
          b0butt01@louisville.edu    (502) 852-8044   Lutz 113

Jelisa Clark
Jelisa is a second-year master's student and teaching and research assistant for Dr.  Derrick Brooms and his SOC 210 course.  Jelisa earned her bachelor degree from the University of Kentucky in marketing with a minor is sociology.  She plans on working towards a PhD and her research interest include urban poverty, race, and gender.  In her free time, Jelisa enjoys baking. 
          jsclar05@louisville.edu    (502) 852-8044   Lutz 113

James "Kent" Pugh
Kent is a first-year master's student and teaching assistant for Dr. Derrick Brooms and and his 210 course, as well as a resarch assistant for Dr. Robin Högnäs.  Kent grew up in Menifee County in Eastern Kentucky and attended Berea College where he received a bachelors of arts degree in sociology with minors in history and Appalachian studies in May 2012. His main interest areas are poverty, work and labor and Appalachian studies. However, his interest areas have not been limited to the world of academia; he has been an activist on including issues related to LGBTQ community, Mountain Top Coal Removal and in the Occupy Wall Street protests. He has also traveled extensively in Eastern Europe and Uganda in Central Africa. He is currently working on a masters in sociology with plans to work towards a Ph.D.
          jkpugh01@louisville.edu      (502) 852-8044   Lutz 113

Shane Scott
Shane is a second-year master's student and teaching assistant for Drs. Patricia Gagné and Gul Marshall and their SOC 320 courses, Social Theory.  Shane earned his bachelor of arts degree in history from UofL and is interested in sociological theory, stratification and inequality, and knowledge production.  He is currently working on his thesis which explores how the commodification of BMX culture and how it is sold to the general influences core/authentic BMX culture.  In his free time, he enjoys "being as self reflective as possible to grow and understand myself as a person."  Shane is also an avid BMX rider and cyclist.
         stscot02@louisville.edu      (502) 852-8044   Lutz 113

PhD Graduate Teaching Assistants

Muhamed Fazlagic
Muhamed is a second-year doctoral student and is teaching SOC 323 Diversity & Inequality this fall.  Muhamed earned his Master of Public Administration degree at Kentucky State University in International Administration and Development. His research interest is in the social construction of ethnic identity, ethnic conflict and multiculturalism.  His co-authored book review with Dr. Ryan Schroeder on "Wounded I am More Awake: Finding Meaning after Terror" by Lieblich and Boskailo is forthcoming in Teaching Sociology Journal in October 2012.  He is currently conducting research on  the effects of socially constructed ethnicity among Bosnian refugees living in the US in ethnically mixed marriages.  Muhamed presented his research on this topic at the Anthropologists and Sociologists of Kentucky Conference (2011) and North-Central Sociological Association (2012) in Pittsburgh, PA.  His long term goals are to research and teach in a university setting. He spends the majority of his free time watching soccer.
         mafazl01@louisville.edu     (502) 852-8045   Lutz 115

Robert Shelby
Rob is a second-year doctoral student and is teaching SOC 320 Social Theory this fall. He holds two master of arts degrees, one in communication and culture from Trinity Graduate School (2006) and the second in sociology from Western Illinois University (2011). He earned dual bachelor of arts degrees in youth ministry and Biblical studies from Trinity International University (2001). He has held leadership positions within higher education, telecommunications firms, non-profit organizations, and the United States Army. His research interests relate to organizational structure and social cohesion within large organizations. His current research projects focus on multisited megachurches in the U.S. Rob aims to conduct research and teach in a university setting, while providing consultancy services for organizations in a variety of sectors. Rob collects comic books, is a film enthusiast, and technology aficionado.  
         rlshel04@louisville.edu     (502) 852-8045   Lutz 115

Fran Shupe
Fran is third-year doctoral student and will be teaching SOC 202 Social Problems this fall.  She received her undergraduate degree in the interdisciplinary studies of mass communications and marketing from Virginia Commonwealth University.  Fran earned her master's degree in sociology from the University of Louisville in 2010.   She co-authored a research article with Dr. Hiromi Taniguchi entitled "Gender and family status differences in leisure-time sports/fitness participation" is forthcoming in the International Review for the Sociology of Sport.  Fran is currently conducting research in the area of poverty and social welfare policy.  Her goal is to conduct research and teach in a university setting. 
         flshup01@louisville.edu     (502) 852-8046   Lutz 116

Jennifer Sinski
Jennifer is a second-year doctoral student and will be teaching SOC 323 Diversity & Inequality this fall.  Jennifer graduated from Bellarmine University with a BA in liberal studies followed by an MAT in education with additional hours in special education.  She received an MA in English literature from Murray State University.     After teaching high school special education students for five years, she served as an IDC Coordinator and English instructor for Bellarmine University for two years.  While teaching full-time in the English Department at Elizabethtown Community College, Sinski decided to return to school to obtain her PhD in Sociology.  In addition to teaching, Sinski has co-authored with Dr. Curtis Bergstrand “Swinging in America:  Love, Sex and Marriage in the 21st Century” and several journal articles on subjects including teaching students with PTSD in the college classroom.  Currently, Jennifer is working with Dr. Patricia Gagne on a project focusing on the population of canines and felines held in Kentucky County public animal shelters.  Current interests include animals and society with focus on the human/animal bond.  Another area of interest is the impact of post-traumatic stress disorder for returning Veterans in the classroom.  In her free time, Sinski trains and competes in canine agility with her dogs Chloe, Allie and Sunshine.
     jbsins01@louisville.edu   (502) 852-8046   Lutz 116

Maggie Stone
Maggie is a third-year doctoral student and will be teaching SOC 301 Social Statistics this fall. An alumna of the University of Louisville, Maggie has earned a Master of Education in Counseling Psychology and Personnel Services (1999) as well as Bachelor of Arts degrees in both music and psychology (1995). For nearly a decade she practiced psychology in a variety of settings, including the Kentucky prison system, long term care facilities and hospitals. From 2008 to 2010 she served as an adjunct faculty member at Sullivan University and ITT Technical Institute, where she taught social and behavioral sciences. Maggie’s research interests include prostitution and sexual health. Her long term goals are to research and teach in a university setting. She spends the majority of her free time catering to the whims of her canine family members.  
      mbmcca04@louisville.edu      (502) 852-8045   Lutz 115