Roberto D. Ortiz (they/he) is a PhD candidate and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow whose research examines education, organizations, culture, mental health, and social stratification.
Broadly, their work examines how formal and informal organizational policies and practices structure students’ experiences across educational settings. In his dissertation, Roberto draws on ethnographic observations and longitudinal interviews with undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff at an elite music conservatory to examine (1) how students are professionally socialized and evaluated over time, (2) how these organizational processes may construct and reinforce understandings of musical talent and success, and (3) how these processes shape students’ trajectories into the labor market. In their sociomedical research, Roberto uses mixed methods to investigate (1) how K–12 school staff, families, and youth interpret and enact school-based suicide prevention policies and (2) whether these policies serve students equitably across diverse sociodemographic backgrounds.
Roberto’s research has been published in SSM – Qualitative Research in Health and the Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness. Their work has been supported by the Ronald E. McNair Graduate Fellowship and the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF-GRFP).
Prior to joining Indiana University, Roberto graduated summa cum laude from the University of Georgia with degrees in Sociology, Women’s Studies, and Music. Outside of academia, he serves as second clarinetist of the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra. Roberto is proudly a first-generation college student and second-generation Mexican immigrant.
Education history
MA Sociology, Indiana University-Bloomington (2024)
BA Sociology, Women's Studies, Music, University of Georgia (2022)
The College of Arts