Thank you for helping us build momentum. We’re grateful for your support of the Department of Sociology.
Your gift to the Excellence Fund strengthens our academic programs, sparks bold new ideas, and opens doors for students, faculty, and staff to thrive. Thanks to your commitment, we’re not just moving forward, we’re gaining momentum. We’re advancing education, accelerating research, and enriching our community with purpose and energy.
Your belief in our mission keeps us going. You’re a vital part of the progress we’re making, and we’re excited to share a few highlights from the past year that reflect the impact of your support. There’s so much more ahead, and we look forward to keeping you connected to the incredible work you’re helping make possible.
With heartfelt appreciation,
GO COUGS!
- Awarded over $17,000 in monies to deserving undergraduate students, including our Outstanding Senior. They largely used the money to defray living costs and in the case of graduate student recipients, to support their research (e.g., allowing them to collect data, purchase software).
- We celebrated our graduating seniors with a reception for them and their families in May and December. Parents and students mentioned they enjoyed getting to interact with faculty members and other students who attended. Many faculty in attendance have taught the students over the course of their 4 years at WSU and enjoyed getting to see them launch into their new careers.
- Support an undergraduate alumni event. A major department goal is in articulating the career skills students learn from sociology. One of the ways we did this was to host an alumni event where 4 recent sociology graduates, all with jobs, speak to current and future majors about their jobs and how sociology applies to their job tasks. It was attended by close to 100 students! We heard from undergraduate students that the event was very helpful not only in helping them think of future careers, but in making connections to the speakers.
- We hosted a luncheon for undergraduate advisors from across the university to showcase our sociology classes and department activities. The goal was to promote the benefits of studying sociology and recruit new majors. Since we introduced a new sociology minor, it was important to have a chance to speak with advisors who will share the information about it.
- We supported graduate student travel to conferences, a key part of training to becoming a successful job market candidate. Travel to these conferences helps students get exposure and make important connections to their potential future colleagues.