Department of Sociology and Criminology
City of Cleveland and Â鶹¾«Ñ¡Launch Initiative to Strengthen Police-Community Trust
Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ and the City of Cleveland have launched a new research and training initiative aimed at strengthening trust, collaboration and accountability between the Cleveland Division of Police and city residents. The project is supported by a $20,000 grant from Kent State’s Community Engaged Research Institute.
Healing With One Stanza at a Time
In a front porch conversation during the height of COVID-19, two Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ professors realized they had something in common beyond their neighborhood proximity: both were turning to poetry to cope with unprecedented stress and uncertainty. Clare Stacey, Ph.D., a professor in Kent St…
From Loss to Legacy
For Adedayo Adeagbo, a Ph.D. candidate in medical sociology at Â鶹¾«Ñ¡, working with older adults isn't just a research interest -- it's a promise she made to the grandmother she couldn't save.She says she can still see the bruises. Even years later, even thousands of miles away from w…
Bridging Generations
In an era where social media connections replace face-to-face interactions and political divisions seem insurmountable, one Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ professor has found an antidote: bringing college students and older adults together through simple, meaningful human connection. For over six …
Where the Classroom Meets the Field
It's 10:30 on a weeknight. Will Kalkhoff, Ph.D., a professor and graduate program coordinator in Kent State's Department of Sociology and Criminology, has just settled in after a long day. Then his phone goes off. A possible drowning. A local lake. The clock starts ticking. Within minutes, he's on his way. And in that moment, everything he teaches in the classroom becomes something else entirely.
Beyond the Textbook: When Prison Comes to the Classroom
On a November afternoon in Merrill Hall, six women walk into a Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ classroom. They're not guest lecturers with advanced degrees. They're currently incarcerated at the Northeast Reintegration Center (NERC) in downtown Cleveland. And for the next couple hours, they'll share the…
Flash Focus: Liberty Prosser
Meet Liberty Prosser, a graduate student furthering her studies in criminology and criminal justice after having graduated from Â鶹¾«Ñ¡in 2025, with dual Bachelor of Arts degrees – one in sociology with a concentration in social problems, deviance and crime, and another degree in criminology and justice studies with a minor in forensic anthropology.
Mission: Graduation Surprise
When Jayrelis Capeles walked across the stage at Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ this spring, she was already brimming with emotion. She had just earned not one, but two degrees — in psychology and sociology — and was celebrating the end of her college journey that began in 2021. But the most unforgettable moment wasn’t the walk or the tassel turn.
‘This Is an Aspect of Wanting to Share Black History in a Way That Is Hopeful’
Accomplished sociologist, TV host, podcaster, author Â鶹¾«Ñ¡alumna Bertice Berry, Ph.D.,used her alma mater as a familiar setting for her book "BlackWorld," which explores a "unique corner of heaven" where the living can visit with and learn from the deceased. She also some of her memories of Â鶹¾«Ñ¡and personal insights into the university's place in history.
