Faculty can be reached at the following address:
Department of Sociology, Geography, Anthropology & Criminal Justice
1000 Chastain Road
Kennesaw, GA 30144-5591
Alphabetical Listing Of Full-time Department Faculty:
Sam Abaidoo, Ph.D., Chair
Associate Professor of Sociology
Phone: (770) 420-4473
Email:sabaidoo@kennesaw.edu
Areas of teaching/research interests include comparative urban studies and demography, family
sociology, sociology of agriculture and sociology of bio/technology with particular research
emphasis on human-nature interactions and their social ramifications. Current areas of teaching
include introductory sociology, social change and modernization, gender roles and sociology of the
family. Has published articles in the areas of agriculture and biotechnology in the recent past, and is
currently working with others on the creation of a suburban studies initiative.
Miriam W. Boeri, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Sociology
Phone: (678) 797-2069
Email: mboeri@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Boeri's Webpage
Dr. Boeri joined the faculty at Kennesaw State University in August 2003.
She teaches principles of sociology, sociology of deviance, religion and society,
sex roles and society and the senior seminar, a capstone course that allows students
to conduct research and analysis and write an academic paper to be presented at a
professional conference. Her own published work includes a book depicting an
insider’s view on cults and journal articles on drug use and abuse. She also
has written a chapter in an edited book on sex and religion, which is due for
publication in 2005. Dr. Boeri currently conducts research on ecstasy use among
young adults and family dynamics surrounding cocaine use.
Her special area of interest is in ethnographic research of hidden populations.
Sutham Cheurprakobkit, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Criminal Justice
Phone: (770) 420-4734
E-Mail: scheurpr@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Cheurprakobkit's Webpage
Sutham Cheurprakobkit was a police officer for three years in Bangkok,
Thailand and a police instructor for one year at the National Police
Cadet Academy in Thailand. He earned his master’s degree in Criminal
Justice from University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1989 and his Ph.D.
in Criminal Justice from Sam Houston State University in 1996. He has
received several grants and has published a number of refereed articles
and one book chapter. His research interests include comparative policing,
community policing, police and minorities, and computer crime.
Michelle Emerson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
Office: SS107
Phone: 770-420-4413
E-mail: memerson@kennesaw.edu
Michelle Emerson is obtaining her Ph.D. in Sociology from Georgia State University.
She has a MS in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University and a BS in Public and
Social Services from Kennesaw State University. Her area of research is in the area
of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. She currently teaches at Kennesaw State University
in the department of Sociology, Anthropology, Geography, and Criminal Justice. Her courses
include Foundations of Criminal Justice, Victimology, Sociology of Violence, and Alcohol,
Drugs, and Crime. She is the faculty advisor to the Criminal Justice Student Organization.
Ms. Emerson has also worked with the juvenile court system and probation in Cobb County
and the victim-witness program in Essex County, Massachusetts.
Melvyn Fein, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology
Phone: (770) 423-6599
E-Mail: mfein@kennesaw.edu
He is a certified clinical sociologist, who holds his
doctorate in sociology from the City University of New York
and has accumulated over twenty years of clinical
experience. Active in establishing the intellectual
foundations of sociological practice, he is the author of
I.A.M.* A Common-Sense Guide to Coping with Anger, Analyzing
Psychotherapy: A Social Role Interpretation, and Role
Change: A Resocialization Perspective. Dr. Fein has served on the Boards of the Sociological
Practice Association and the Georgia Sociological
Association. He is also a State Licensure Monitor for the
American Sociological Association and has served as editor
of the national theme journal Sociological Practice.
Jonathan A. Freedman, Ph.D., C.C.S.
Associate Professor of Sociology
Phone: (404) 423-6490
E-Mail: jfreedm1@kennesaw.edu
Webpage: http://ksuweb.kennesaw.edu/~jfreedm1/
For much of my career, I have combined academic teaching with a
position in a government bureaucracy, and with volunteer work with
social change, community or professional associations. I have won
awards for my teaching and my organizational service. Even now,
late in my career, I continue to be passionate about creating, to
be fascinated in my lifelong learning with people and their social
situations, and to be open to trying new approaches to teaching and
academic programs.
I was Director of Education and Training at Hutchings Psychiatric
Center for twenty-two years. After I took early retirement from
this NY State facility, I moved to Atlanta and became a management
consultant and trainer for large corporations. Then in Fall 2003 I
joined the Kennesaw faculty part-time. I became full-time starting
in the Spring of 2004. I co-wrote Clinical Sociology, the first
modern text in this subfield and am a Certified Clinical
Sociologist. [C.C.S.]
Agatino LaRosa, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of
Geographic Information Systems
Phone:420-4735
Email:alarosa@kennesaw.edu
Dr. La Rosas's Webpage
Dr. Agatino La Rosa is Assistant Professor of Geographic Information System
(GIS) at Kennesaw State University, a fast-growing school in the University System
of Georgia. Dr. La Rosa teaches core courses for the GIS Certificate and for the
GIS Major programs, such as Cartography, GIS and Remote Sensing. He offers direct
studies on individual basis in special topics (i.e. GIS in Transportation Planning,
Web-Based GIS, Customizing GIS Applications with VBA). Dr. La Rosa is the system
administrator of the GIS computing laboratory at KSU. Major research areas involve
the development of Spatial Decision Support Systems and Web-based GIS Applications
integrating the capabilities of GIS systems' object models with programming languages.
Lynn M. Patterson, Ph.D.
Instructor of Geography
Phone: (770) 420-4735
E-mail:lpatters@kennesaw.edu
Lynn Patterson is a PhD candidate in City and Regional Planning
at Georgia Tech. She holds a masters degree and bachelor's degree in Human Geography from the University of Arizona and the Johns Hopkins University, respectively. Her current research focuses on sustainable local economic development and community development. At Kennesaw, she teaches World Regional Geography, Social Issues from a Geographic Perspective, Cultural Geography, and Economic Geography. In a previous career, Ms. Patterson worked in the public and private development sectors.
Mark Patterson, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Geography
Phone: (770) 423-
E-mail:mpatters@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Patterson is the director of the geographic information systems
(GIS) certificate program at KSU and the faculty advisor for the Student
Society for GIS. His main research interests focus on resource
geography, specifically forest resources and their management.
Rebecca D. (Becky) Petersen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
Phone: (770) 420-4732
Email:rpeterse@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Petersen joined the faculty at Kennesaw State University in August 2003. She teaches courses in technology & crime, corrections, juvenile delinquency, youth gangs and women & crime. Professor Petersen recently completed a major Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded study on sexual and intimate violence among Mexican American adolescent females in which she was the Co-Principal Investigator. Much of her published research found in scholarly journal articles and book chapters has focused on juvenile justice/delinquency, gangs, females & crime, juvenile corrections, intermediate sanctions, drug courts, intimate & family violence and criminal justice policy. In fact Dr. Petersen recently edited a gang book entitled, Understanding contemporary gangs in America: An interdisciplinary approach, published by Prentice-Hall 2003. Professor Petersen’s most recent honors include two consecutive years of being included in "Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers" and "Who's Who in America."
Terry G. Powis, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Phone: (678) 797-2174
Email:tpowis@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Powis joined the faculty at Kennesaw State University in August 2005. He received his master’s degree in anthropology at Trent University in Ontario, Canada, and his Ph.D. in anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin. He is an archaeologist who conducts research in the Maya Lowlands of Belize, Central America. He specializes in Maya pottery, diet and subsistence, and the evolution of complex societies. His recent research has focused on the origin of chocolate in the New World. He teaches Principles of Archaeology, Maya Archaeology, North American Archaeology, Indians of North America, and Social Issues: Perspectives in Anthropology.
Vanessa Slinger, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Geography
Office: LIB 312
Phone 678-797-2068
E-Mail: vslinger@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Vanessa Slinger is an Assistant Professor of Geography at KSU.
Originally, from Trinidad, Dr. Slinger obtained her M.A. in Latin
American Studies and Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Florida.
All of her work to date has been focused on natural resource management
and ecotourism in developing countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.
She completed a World Bank sponsored study in Mexico and El Salvador of
Vetiver grass technology for soil erosion control. She analyzed the use
of an agroforestry system for Amazonian urban resettlement in Acre, Brazil.
Most recently, Dr. Slinger has researched the use of ecotourism on Dominica,
W.I., for economic development and nature preservation.
Garrett Smith, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Geography
Phone: (770) 423-3399
E-Mail: gsmith@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Garrett Smith - Ph.D. in Geography from University of California at
Davis, 1995. Master of International Management from "Thunderbird", Arizona
1983. Research interests include economic geography, human-environmental
interaction, forestry issues, and Subsaharan Africa. Former Peace Corps
volunteer in Togo, West Africa. Faculty Advisor to Model Organization of
African Unity (OAU).
Susan Kirkpatrick Smith, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Phone: (770) 423-6247
E-Mail: ssmith1@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Smith received her Ph.D. in anthropology from Indiana University. Her areas of research interest include skeletal analysis and the interaction between health and social status in ancient Greek populations. She has spent a year living in Athens, Greece researching skeletons from the Late Bronze Age cemetery at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens. Her teaching interests include forensic anthropology, human evolution, and human biological variation.
Linda A. Treiber, Ph. D.
Assistant Professor of Sociology
Phone: (678) 797-2279
E-Mail: ltreiber@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Treiber earned a Ph.D. in Sociology from North Carolina State University in 2005 and a Master’s degree in Nursing from The Ohio State University in 1997. Her current research centers on the effects of workplace social support and labor process control on occupational injury, persistent pain, and health status. Dr. Treiber has clinical experience in hospital health care, management, and has published work in the area of community health evaluation. Other research interests include the social organization of health care in the US, gender and occupations, and images of race, class, and gender in popular media. Courses taught include Medical Sociology, Race and Ethnicity, Social Problems, and Jobs and Work.
Harold Trendell, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Geography
Phone: (770) 423-6240
E-Mail: htrendel@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Trendell's Webpage
Dr. Trendell is a former Merchant Marine Officer with a wealth of worldwide travel in the past and presently as a KSU faculty member in Summer Study Abroad Programs. He is a geographer who "knows for a fact that the earth is round" having circumnavigated the world on a cargo ship. He holds one degree from the New York State Maritime College and three from Georgia State University. Professor Trendell enjoys "expanding the geographic horizons" of his students in both his introductory and upper division classes. Dr. Trendell’s regional specialization is the Geography of Europe and he also teaches classes in Urban, Political, Historical and Cultural Geography. His research focus is international migration and is currently conducting research on the growth of Latino business in Cobb County, Georgia.
Wayne Van Horne, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Anthropology
Phone: (770) 423-6635
E-Mail: wvanhorn@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Van Horne is an ethnologist and ethnohistorian who is currently researching the role of warfare in social evolution. He has conducted research about warfare among the American Indians of the Southeastern United States and the Anthropology of Martial Arts. He has conducted fieldwork in, and published articles about, Japanese martial arts systems. He teaches Introductory Anthropology, Cultural Diversity in the U.S., Cultural Anthropology, Cultures and Societies of the World, and Southeastern Indians.
Lori Waite, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Sociology
Office: LIB 311
Phone: 678-797-2067
E-mail: lwaite@kennesaw.edu
Dr. Waite earned her Ph.D. in sociology from Northwestern University. Her areas of teaching and research include social inequality, race and ethnic relations, social movements, and urban sociology. The courses she teaches on a regular basis include principles of sociology, race and ethnicity, social organization, Black women and social activism, and the sociology of the civil rights movement. Dr. Waite has published a number of articles on the southern civil rights movement and the civil rights movement in Chicago, commonly known as the Chicago Freedom Movement. She is currently working on an oral history that explores the relationship between social activism and social location.
