It’s been a banner year for revisits, renewals, and updates from alumni.  Read on to see where they went after IU, what they’ve done, and where they are now.

Bachelor of Arts Alumni

Jennifer Ashcraft (B.A. 2000) returned to Indiana University Bloomington this past year after a two-year hiatus, accepting a position as Program Management Specialist with IU Online. Sociology students and faculty relied heavily on Jennifer in her previous position as Senior Academic Advisor, International Specialist and Sociology department cheerleader. When our resident expert on the ins-and-outs of IUB left to explore new opportunities, we wished her all the best, so we are delighted to know she is back in the IU fold.

Shelley D Arroyo (B.A. 2005) writes, “I have changed locations and got a new job. I moved to Columbus, Indiana and I am now working at IUPUC as an assistant director of student affairs.”

Michael K. Blanchard (B.A. 1989). After graduating with a Sociology degree from Indiana University, this South Bend native completed his M.B.A. in 2015 and earned an Ed.D. in 2018. Michael’s dissertation The Persistence of Community College Students: A Single Site Case Study was motivated by the fact that few students in community colleges complete the Associates Degree within three years, and time to degree is worse among students at urban community colleges. Dr. Blanchard’s research publications include A Community Research Guide to Student Persistence: Research-based Strategies to Improve Student Persistence and articles that address social problems such as gun violence [1][2] and the failures of nursing home care. He also published The Black Book of Lamentations, covered by the South Bend Tribune.  Dr. Blanchard’s YouTube channel is fittingly labelled Da Teachas. 

Lee Ann Chan (B.A. 2005) writes, “I'm currently a Senior Manager of U.S. Early Talent Careers at TD Bank in New York City. I graduated in May 2005 with both a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Management. I'm also a Career Coach as well helping professionals land their dream job! Here's my LinkedIn profile for anyone that wishes to connect with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leeannchan/.”

Lauren Thorpe (B.A. 1991) writes, “I never formally used my sociology degree; however, it has been invaluable in understanding and navigating large and small companies where I have worked. Currently working for Netflix; a totally different company culture (very refreshing) from traditional "Corporate America"!”

Jill Semko Underly (B.A. 1999) writes, “My first taste for government service actually came from my time at IU when history professor Larry Friedman had me accompany him and other history majors to DC to lobby the congressional delegation on NEH funding. Now 25 years later I’m still in state government (albeit in Wisconsin) as the youngest elected statewide State Superintendent of Public Instruction in Wisconsin history in the past 100 years (but also the youngest and only female who held a doctorate). 4th woman overall to hold the statewide office."

Caitlin Watkins (B.A. 2014) writes, “I am the Executive Director for the Observatory on Social Media (OSoMe) at Indiana University. If anyone is interested in collaborating with the center in their work at IU or wherever their degrees have taken them, they can absolutely reach out to me.”

Scott A. Weissman (B.A. 1992) writes, “I head the wealth management team of Matrix Private Capital Group. It’s a bit of a departure from a Sociology degree for some, however, I believe it’s proven to be additive in many ways. I moved my family during Covid from Chicago to Park City, Utah.”

Graduate Alumni

Amelia Hawbaker (Ph.D., 2022) I began a 2-year position as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Applied Health Sciences within the IU School of Public Health, Bloomington.

Brad Koch (Ph.D. 2009) I left my job as an Associate Professor of Sociology at Georgia College (Milledgeville, GA) and am now working as a Researcher at the Illinois State Board of Education (Chicago, IL). My family and I moved from Athens, Georgia, to Brookfield, Illinois.

Ke Li (Ph.D. 2015) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the City University of New York.  Recently, I published my first book via Stanford University Press: Marriage Unbound: State Law, Power, and Inequality in Contemporary China.

Ann McCranie (Ph.D. 2016) is working at IU Bloomington as an associate director with two different institutes - the IU Network Science Institute and the Irsay Institute. She is the PI of awards with Lumina Foundation and the NSF and really enjoys working with other faculty to facilitate their research. She and husband Don have one daughter, Molly (9) and love to visit with other alums at Nick’s or Runcible Spoon when they visit Bloomington.

David O’Brien (Ph.D. 1972) I received my PhD from IU in 1972. From that point until 2019 I was a professor, first in the Sociology Department at the University of Akron (Ohio) and then in the Rural Sociology Department at the University of Missouri (Columbia). My research over the years has included urban community organization, Japanese American assimilation and cultural retention, rural Midwestern community adaptation (and lack of) to change, rural Soviet and Post-Soviet Russia and West Africa (Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda).

Melissa Quintela (Ph.D. 2010) I’ve recently moved back to Austin, Tx and am marking my 20th year teaching this year. This year have been awarded a Faculty Innovation fellowship (surfacing and solving university issues) and Executive Connections fellowship (training on higher education administration) at Western Governors University.