Sociology, Anthropology, Criminology and Social Work

‘She Did It Anyway’
Event highlights women working in criminal justice

“Do it afraid. Do it anyway.” This was the message from keynote speaker Celeste Willard at “She Did It Anyway,” a networking event hosted by Eastern Connecticut State...

Posted on November 24, 2025 by Savannah Striano '25

New co-op program prepares students for emergency services careers
'Career Pathways Program' launches with ESPS Co-op

A new employability initiative at Eastern Connecticut State University will offer immersive learning experiences for students interested in a variety of career fields. Starting with a co-op program...

Posted on September 15, 2025 by Noel Teter '24

Pérez studies Cuba tourism with Wesleyan fellowship
Anthropolgy professor's research investigates environmental impact

Eastern anthropology Professor Ricardo Pérez is spending the spring 2025 semester as a visiting research fellow in the Center for the Humanities at Wesleyan University. He is working on a book...

Posted on March 25, 2025 by Noel Teter '24

Sociology professor pays tribute to former student at Hot Chocolate Run
Cara Bergstrom-Lynch raises more than $3,000 in honor of domestic violence victims

Cara Bergstrom-Lynch, professor of sociology at Eastern Connecticut State University, participated in the 21st annual Hot Chocolate Run for Safe Passage in Northampton, MA, on Dec. 8, her 12th...

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Darlene Orozco B. '28

Eastern student goes on archeological dig in ancient Native American city

An anthropology major with an archaeology concentration and a history minor, Eric Hohenthal ’25 has long known of his interest in his chosen field. Ever since he was a child, Eric has been...

Posted on July 25, 2024 by Ed Osborn

Eastern inducts hundreds into honor societies in spring 2024

More than 20 academic programs and departments at Eastern Connecticut State University recognized student achievements this spring 2024 semester during honor society inductions and award ceremonies.

Posted on May 16, 2024

4th annual 'End Relationship Violence' event honors Alyssiah Wiley

Eastern Connecticut State University hosted its fourth annual End Relationship Violence awareness event on April 3 in memory of Alyssiah Wiley, an Eastern student who was murdered by her...

Posted on April 04, 2024 by Noel Teter

Eastern brings together experts to consider solutions to opioid epidemic

Experts on opioid epidemic open community dialogue at Eastern
Veteran EMT shares first-responder insights

Early in his career as a paramedic, in the 1990s, Peter Canning responded to a cheerleading accident in which a high school girl broke her back. Two years later, he responded to her again, this...

Posted on March 06, 2024 by Michael Rouleau

Anthropology Day returns with worldly program

Eastern Connecticut State University’s Anthropology Day on Feb. 15 featured events to educate students on topics such as endangered languages, Maasai culture in Kenya and graduate school...

Posted on February 22, 2024 by Noel Teter

Bergstrom-Lynch and Todd support victims of domestic violence

Two Eastern Connecticut State University faculty members recently participated in an annual fundraiser for Safe Passage, an organization helping domestic violence victims recover. Cara...

Posted on December 06, 2023 by Noel Teter

University Hour shares stories of migration

Post-colonial political and economic struggles were the topics of a University Hour talk at Eastern Connecticut State University on Nov. 8. These conditions push people to search for opportunities...

Posted on November 13, 2023 by Marcus Grant

Social Action Day tackles opioid crisis

Addressing the nation’s opioid epidemic was the topic of this year’s Social Action Day on Oct. 31, during which students prioritized an awareness campaign about this decades-long...

Posted on November 08, 2023 by Michael Rouleau

Stanton to serve as co-principal investigator on new HIV/AIDS research
Elton John AIDS Foundation provides grant funding

Improving the HIV epidemic response in the South is the aim of a new grant-funded project that Eastern Connecticut State University faculty member Megan Stanton will work on as the co-principal...

Posted on August 30, 2023 by Lucinda Weiss

Internships lend real-world experience in spring 2023

Nearly 100 Eastern Connecticut State University students completed internships in the spring 2023 semester. Students explored a variety of opportunities on and off campus that related to their...

Posted on May 01, 2023 by Molly Boucher

3 students awarded for equity and social justice

Three Eastern Connecticut State University students have won Equity and Social Justice Awards for their work promoting civil rights, resources for undocumented students, and mental health services...

Posted on April 27, 2023 by Lucinda Weiss

New course partners with law enforcement to lay out 'Pathways to Policing'

A new course at Eastern Connecticut State University that teaches students about the rigors of becoming a police officer recently concluded its pilot semester, giving students perspective as they...

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Noel Teter

Individuals present as 'books' at Human Library

Eastern Connecticut State University’s J. Eugene Smith Library recently provided students with an opportunity to learn about social issues in a more intimate way than reading about them. The...

Posted on April 17, 2023 by Noel Teter

Student volunteerism recognized at annual CCE Expo

Community service was on display at the annual Center for Community Engagement (CCE) Expo at Eastern Connecticut State University on April 10, where students collected awards for their service and...

Posted on April 12, 2023 by Lucinda Weiss

Eastern hosts 'Humans and the Environment' symposium

Four Connecticut-based scholars described the ecological impacts and anthropogenic changes that humanity has had on the environment at a symposium at Eastern Connecticut State University on March 24.

Posted on April 05, 2023 by Jack Jones

Eastern hosts second annual Anthropology Day

Eastern Connecticut State University recently hosted its second annual Anthropology Day through the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, Criminology and Social Work. Aimed at raising awareness...

Posted on March 02, 2023 by Molly Boucher

Eastern archaeologist wins NSF grant to study medieval indigenous city of Cahokia

Sarah Baires, associate professor of anthropology at Eastern Connecticut State University, is the principal investigator on a new National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to conduct an...

Posted on December 22, 2022 by by Lucinda Weiss

Bergstrom-Lynch and Todd participate in Hot Chocolate Run to end domestic violence
Alyssiah Wiley remembered with $4,000 donation

Sociology Professor Cara Bergstrom-Lynch raised more than $4,000 in memory of former student Alyssiah Wiley on Dec. 4 at the annual Hot Chocolate Run for Safe Passage in Northampton, MA. Wiley was...

Posted on December 07, 2022 by Noel Teter

Eastern accessibility experts win first Betsey Doane Award

Eastern Sociology Professor Nicolas Simon and Sandra Flores-Gonzales, assistant director of the Office of AccessAbility Services (OAS), won the inaugural Betsey Doane Digital Accessibility...

Posted on November 09, 2022 by Noel Teter

Eastern hosts 3rd relationship violence awareness event in memory of Alyssiah Wiley

Eastern Connecticut State University hosted its 3rd annual Alyssiah Wiley End Relationship Violence Awareness Event on Oct. 4. The event was organized by Sociology Professor Brenda Westberry and...

Posted on October 06, 2022 by Noel Teter

Bouley’s book on implicit bias makes best-seller list

Eastern Connecticut State University Professor of Education Theresa Bouley recently hit Library Journal’s best-seller list for academic/education-centric books with her latest release,...

Posted on October 04, 2022 by Molly Boucher

Eastern to host third violence awareness event in memory of Alyssiah Wiley

In light of October being National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Eastern Connecticut State University will host the third annual Alyssiah Wiley End Relationship Violence Awareness Event on...

Posted on September 22, 2022 by Molly Boucher

3 student papers awarded by Latin American and Caribbean Studies program
Papers investigate immigration and sexual diversity

The Latin American and Caribbean Studies program recognized three students in its 2022 annual Student Paper Awards. History major Max Turner ’22 won the top prize, whereas Sociology major...

Posted on July 26, 2022 by Dwight Bachman

Nicholas Simon wins CSCU system teaching excellence award

The Board of Regents (BOR) of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities System (CSCU) has named Nicholas Simon, assistant professor of sociology at Eastern Connecticut State University, the...

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Dwight Bachman

Students reflect on spring 2022 internships

Eastern Connecticut State University students participated in both on-campus and off-campus internships during the spring 2022 semester. Internship locations ranged from Eastern’s Office of...

Posted on May 12, 2022 by Jacob Blain and Bobbi Brown

Isabel Logan, Eastern social work professor and co-director of the SWLE Project, presents pre-recorded remarks by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona.

U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona praises police social work project
Eastern hosts inaugural ‘Boots on the Ground’ celebration

Eastern Connecticut State University hosted the first capstone celebration for the Social Work and Law Enforcement (SWLE) Project on April 22 in the Shafer Hall Auditorium. Titled “Boots on...

Posted on April 29, 2022 by Michael Rouleau

Campus Briefs
Miss Little Poland | STEM Gap | Sunrise CT

Student Olivia Wronka crowned Miss Little Poland; Eastern shrinks the STEM gap; Sunrise CT calls for students to be climate activists; CSCU president visits campus; Social work students partner...

Posted on April 20, 2022

Anderson Curtis speaks to attendees of ACLU event.

Period poverty to online dating safety
Social work students tackle issues with community organizations

Through service and outreach, Eastern social work students are immersing themselves in the community and gaining field experience. For a required course of the Social Work major -- "Generalist...

Posted on April 20, 2022 by Molly Boucher

CCE concludes successful reading program with Windham Public Schools

Eastern Connecticut State University’s Center for Community Engagement (CCE) recently completed a year-long reading program with more than 135 children in Windham Public Schools. Based on a...

Posted on April 04, 2022 by Kim Silcox

A New Movement
Students share perspectives on Open Pedagogy

As far back as 2008, Eastern Connecticut State University faculty began helping their students save money on textbooks by adopting Open Education Resources (OER) in their classrooms. One of the...

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Dwight Bachman

Baires and her book "“Cahokia and the North American Worlds”

Baires authors book on ancient city Cahokia

Sarah Baires, associate professor of anthropology at Eastern Connecticut State University, recently authored a new book, “Cahokia and the North American Worlds." Published by Cambridge...

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Molly Boucher

Eastern co-founds North Star Collective to benefit faculty of color
Inaugural fellowship selects Professors Williams and Logan

Eastern Connecticut State University is one of 13 founding institutions of a new reparative justice effort by the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE). The North Star Collective comprises...

Posted on January 26, 2022 by Michael Rouleau

Bergstrom-Lynch raises more than $3,000 for domestic violence awareness
Professor competes in 9th Hot Chocolate Run for Safe Passage

Cara Bergstrom-Lynch, sociology professor at Eastern Connecticut State University, brought awareness to domestic violence on Dec. 5 by participating in Safe Passage's annual Hot Chocolate Run...

Posted on December 06, 2021 by Bobbi Brown

Students present their project on Mass Incarceration.

Social Action Day focuses on mass incarceration
Annual event is led by junior social work students

Students from Eastern Connecticut State University’s Social Work Program held the seventh annual Social Action Day on Nov. 9 to bring awareness to the policies related to mass incarceration....

Posted on November 11, 2021 by Bobbi Brown and Molly Boucher

Eastern and Willimantic police spearhead statewide police-social work initiative
SWLE Project provides model for Connecticut and nation

What started as a pilot internship last year with two Eastern Connecticut State University students has evolved into a statewide collaboration that may well serve as a national model for the...

Posted on October 27, 2021 by Michael Rouleau

Campus Briefs

Shackathon exposes students to substandard housing; Class Day celebrates sophomore students; Canterbury book draws international celebration; and Vasillopulos to sit on accreditation panel of Greek...

Posted on October 26, 2021

Art Gallery showcases prison artwork
'The Artist as Witness' runs until February

On Oct. 18, Eastern’s Art Gallery, in collaboration with the Connecticut Prison Arts program, opened the exhibition, “The Artist as Witness.” The exhibition runs through Feb. 1,...

Posted on October 26, 2021 by Dwight Bachman

Canterbury book draws international celebration

On Oct. 7, the world-renowned Institute of African Studies at the University of Ghana in Legon, Ghana, West Africa, brought together scholars from Ghana, the United States, Guyana, Antigua and...

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Dwight Bachman

Eastern community remembers Alyssiah Wiley
Annual event raises relationship violence awareness

Eastern Connecticut State University hosted its third annual Alyssiah Wiley End Relationship Violence Awareness Event on Oct. 13. The event, which honors Wiley, an Eastern student who was murdered...

Posted on October 13, 2021 by Molly Boucher

Eastern partners in AAC&U-sponsored open educational resources project

Eastern Connecticut State University was recently selected to participate in an Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) project to accelerate the development and adoption of...

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Dwight Bachman

4 faculty authors publish new books

Four faculty members from Eastern Connecticut State University have recently published academic books spanning philosophy, Caribbean economics, the musicality of film and Latina leadership. The...

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Bobbi Brown, Molly Boucher, Dwight Bachman

Eastern students teach of The Amistad’s journey to freedom
Partnership with Discovering Amistad serves Hartford-area middle, high schoolers

Eight students from Eastern Connecticut State University are working with Discovering Amistad this September and October, teaching Hartford-area middle and high school students about the famed...

Posted on September 21, 2021 by Michael Rouleau