Message from the Chair Barbara Combs 

  • Welcome to the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Kennesaw State University! Whether you stumbled on this page by accident or intentionally, I hope you will spend a few moments here and learn more about our department, our disciplines, and our people. After you visit this site, my hope is that many of you will decide to join us, but at the very least, you will have a little better understanding of who we are and what we do.

    In many ways, my life has come full circle. I was a first-generation college student, and now I sit in the position of a college professor with a child poised to start college in another year. I understand and empathize with the perspective of a student trying to figure out what our disciplines are and what they want to do with their lives, and I understand the position of a parent who wants their child to have a secure future. Let me tell you why I think you should consider one of our programs.

    Broadly speaking, sociology is the study of social life; to do this we examine social change and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Criminal justice often involves a study of criminal activity, policing, corrections, criminal court procedures, as well as the agents who operate within these institutions and social policy (as it relates to crime and control). Our disciplines require and develop the critical thinking skills necessary to be successful in any career and foster deeper understanding of the social world in which we all live. Karl Marx, one of the foundational theorists in the classical and contemporary social thought, once said that "the point is not just to understand the social world but to change it." Our offerings equip students to do both—better understand the social world and contribute to improving it for all. Won’t you join us?

    We offer a B.S. in Criminal Justice, B.S. in Sociology (both traditional and online programs), a Master of Science in Criminal Justice, and contribute to an interdisciplinary Master of Science in Cybersecurity.  The department also offers minors in Criminal Justice, Criminology, Gerontology, Medical Sociology, and Sociology, and we will be home to a new certificate program in Workplace Interpersonal Relationships.

    The department currently serves over 1300 undergraduate majors, as well as 30 graduate students. Distinctive departmental features include a vibrant internship program, innovative experiential learning opportunities for students, and three active student organizations. The department is noted for its strong academic programs, and supports global learning, interdisciplinary scholarship, and community engagement.

    Our faculty award-winning faculty are committed to and have demonstrated excellence in the areas of teaching, research, and service. This is part of the reason that despite the fact we are a fairly large department (with approximately 35 full-time and another 35 part-time faculty members), we remain intensely committed to our mission, which includes an express commitment to achieve student-centered education and student success.

    Thank you for your interest in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Kennesaw State University!

    Barbara Combs
    Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice

Faculty & Staff

Listed below are the current faculty and staff for the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Kennesaw State University.

Administration

Name
Position

  • Chair of the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice and Professor of Sociology

    bcombs2@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-4384
    SO 4058


    Areas of expertise: Vulnerable populations, corrections and reentry, barriers to reentry, desistance from crime, juvenile delinquency, substance use

  • Tanja Link Assistant Chair, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, Criminal Justice Internship Coordinator

    Coordinator of Internships for Criminal Justice and Professor of Criminal Justice and Sociology

    tlink1@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2292
    SO 4054

    Areas of expertise: Neighborhoods and crime, public space, delinquency, scholarship of teaching and learning, high-impact practices

  • Sara Evans Director, Masters in Criminal Justice (MSCJ), Associate Professor in Criminal Justic

    MSCJ Program Director and Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    sevan120@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4067

    Areas of expertise: Environmental sociology, Social inequality, Intersections of race, class, and gender

  • Gail Markle Sociology Program Coordinator, Professor of Sociology

    Professor of Sociology

    gmarkle@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2477
    SO 4071

    Areas of expertise:Life-course criminology, desistance from crime, barriers to reentry, corrections, juvenile delinquency

    Faculty web page

  • Beverly Reece Churchwell Criminal Justice Program Coordinator, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    Coordinator of Criminal Justice and Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    breece11@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4066

    Areas of expertise: Life-course criminology, desistance from crime, barriers to reentry, corrections, juvenile delinquency

    Faculty web page

  • Camille Pfeifle Program Coordinator, Masters of Criminal Justice Program

    Academic Program Support Specialist

    cpfeifle@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-5743
    SO 5010

  • Shari Sheridan Program Coordinator

    Academic Program Support Specialist

    ssherid2@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4057

Full-time Faculty

Name
Position

  • Samuel Abaidoo Professor of Sociology

    Professor of Sociology

    sabaidoo@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-4473
    SO 5058

    Areas of expertise: Technology and society, dark heritage studies, sociology of biotechnology

  • Judy Allen Senior Lecturer of Sociology, Internship Coordinator, Sociology

    Principal Lecturer of Sociology

    jallen12@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2070
    SO 4068

    Areas of expertise: Minority student retention, Social inequality, Social Isolation of Minorities in Upscale Communities, Relationship Profiles, Adopt a Senior Bridge Building

  • Jesse Benjamin Professor of Sociology and International Conflict Management

    Professor of Sociology and International Conflict Management

    jbenjam2@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2067
    SO 3003B

    Areas of expertise:
    Pan-Africanism, decolonial theory, history of race, whiteness studies, epistemology, development

  • Mindy Bernhardt Lecturer of Criminal Justice

    Lecturer of Criminal Justice

    mbernha2@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Offender Decision Making, Criminological Theory, Offender Relationships, Violent Behavior, Policing Technology, and Program & Process Evaluation

  • Sinyong Choi Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    schoi35@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    PS 232

    Areas of interest: Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Ethical hacking, Digital forensic, Illegal online gambling, Quantitative analysis, Cryptocurrency crime

  • Joel Crombez Assistant Professor of Sociology

    Associate Professor of Sociology

    jcrombez@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4076

    Areas of expertise: critical, social, and sociological theory, political economy, mental health, technology

  • Daniel Farr Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    Principal Lecturer of Sociology

    dfarr4@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-7970
    SO 5006

    Areas of expertise:
    Gender, Sexuality, LGBTQ Studies, Queer Health, Media, Body Studies

  • Chris Hess Assistant Professor of Sociology

    Assistant Professor of Sociology

    chess11@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    PS 252

    Areas of Interest: Urban Sociology, Computational Social Science, Housing and Neighborhoods, Quantitative Methods, Social Demography, Data Visualization

  • Melanie Holland Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    mholla47@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4064

    Areas of expertise: Sentencing policies and theories, sentencing inequality, contextualization of disparate court outcomes

    Faculty web page

  • Richard Hutchinson Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    rhutch13@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 5122

    Areas of expertise: Social movements, social theory, environmental sociology, social stratification 

  • Wendell Johnson Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    wjohn129@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Ethnography, community-based health interventions, health disparities

  • Ian King Lecturer of Criminal Justice

    Lecturer of Criminal Justice

    iking25@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-4734
    SO 4059

    Areas of expertise: Prisoner Reentry, Community Corrections, Intimate Partner Violence, Health Disparities, Policy Influences on Criminal Offending

  • Carolee Larsen Lecturer of Sociology

    Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    clarsen1@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2365
    UC 120

    Areas of expertise: Race/class/gender, classical and modern theory, qualitative methods, sociology of education

  • Gang Lee Professor of Criminal Justice

    Professor of Criminal Justice

    glee18@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2437
    SO 4072

    Areas of expertise: Cybercrime, international criminology, comparative criminal justice, program evaluation

    Faculty web page

  • Darina Lepadatu Professor of Sociology

    Professor of Sociology

    dlepadat@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6953
    House 3201 - 110A

    Areas of expertise: organizations, occupations, and work, international conflict management, transnational migration, qualitative methods

  • Michael Logan Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    mlogan21@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4063

    Areas of expertise: Violence, Violent Extremism, Criminal Organizations, Offender Decision-Making, Malevolent Creativity

    Faculty web page

  • James McCafferty Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    Professor of Criminal Justice

    jmccaff4@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-7771
    SO 4074

    Areas of expertise: Risk assessment, juvenile corrections, community corrections, campus gun policies

    Faculty web page

  • Jason Mueller Assistant Professor of Sociology

    Assistant Professor of Sociology

    jmuell18@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    PS 142

    Areas of interest: Global Social Change; Political-Economy of Development; Social Theory; Protests, Uprisings, & Insurgencies; Race, Ethnicity, & Indigeneity; Culture & Ideology; Psychoanalysis; Africana Studies; Comparative & Historical Methods

    Faculty Web Page

  • Felipe Salazar-Tobar Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    fsalaza4@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    PS 140

    Areas of expertise: Policing; Criminal Justice Policy; Comparative Criminology; Policy Diffusion, Research Methods; Social Networks Analysis

  • Professor of Criminal Justice

    hscherer@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2894
    SO 4062

  • Brian Starks Associate Professor of Sociology

    Associate Professor of Sociology

    bstarks3@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6710
    SO 3002A

    Areas of expertise: Religion and Politics, Catholic Identity, Campus Ministry and Young Adults

    Faculty web page

  • Cristina Stephens Associate Professor of Sociology

    Associate Professor of Sociology

    cstep123@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 5093

    Areas of expertise: Immigration, acculturation, impact on health, family and quality of life

    Faculty web page

  • Evelina Sterling Associate Professor of Sociology

    Professor of Sociology

    esterlin@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2268
    SO 4065

    Areas of expertise: Health disparities, sexual and reproductive health, maternal and child health, mental health, chronic conditions

  • Richard Stringer Associate Professor of Criminal Justice

    Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    rstring7@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4051A

    Areas of expertise: Drug and alcohol policy,policing, advanced quantitative methods

    www.richardstringer.net

    Faculty web page

  • Lisa Thompson Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    lthom255@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    PS 141

    Areas of interest: Offending and Decision-Making; Military and Police Decision-Making; Violence Against Women, Quantitative Methods, Violent Extremism, Sex Offenses, Sexually Deviant Behavior, Forensic Psychology

  • Christopher Totten Professor in Criminal Justice (Law)

    Professor of Criminal Justice

    ctotten@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-4413
    SO 4069

    Areas of expertise: Criminal Law and Procedure, Criminal Law and Society, International Criminal Law

  • Linda Treiber Professor of Sociology

    Workforce Interpersonal Relations Certificate Coordinator and Professor of Sociology

    ltreiber@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2279
    SO 4070

    Areas of expertise: Medical Sociology, Nursing, Social Determinants of Health, Work/Organizations Gender

    Linda Treiber Selected Works

  • Kenneth White Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Political Science

    Associate Professor of Political Science and Criminal Justice

    kwhite88@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-2928
    SO 5085

    Areas of expertise: Constitutional law, political theory, criminal procedure and ethics

    Faculty web page

  • William White Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    Senior Lecturer of Sociology

    wwhite61@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 5122

    Areas of expertise: Racial Identity, Housing Discrimination, Neighborhood Redevelopment, Education (Sociology of Knowledge), and Motorcycle Clubs

  • Adeline Fauth Office Manager • Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice

    Office Manager

    afauth@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

Part-time and Limited Term Faculty

Name
Position

  • Tony Bailey Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    tbaile20@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Police Administration, Police in America

  • Dennis Brown Part-time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    dbrown3@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Ideological/Group Violence and Law Enforcement, Information and Cyber Security

  • James Bullock Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    jbulloc9@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Foundations of Criminal Justice, Police Administration, Corrections

  • Jennifer Combs Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    jcombs10@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Corrections, Criminal Investigation, Ethics in Criminal Justice, Police in America

  • Peter Fenton Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice - Retired, teaching Part-time

    Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    pfenton@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Policing, Organized Crime, Ethics in CJ, Criminal Procedure, Intro to CJ

  • Rodney Hendrix Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    rhendr21@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Crimes and Defenses, Criminal Investigation

  • Laquanda Jackson Part-time Instructor of Sociology

    Part-Time Instructor of Sociology

    ljack170@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Intro to Sociology, Social Problems, Social Organization

  • Steve Kish Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    smk8041@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Foundations of Criminal Justice, Police

  • Calvin Moss Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    cmoss38@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Police in America, Police Administration 

  • Shanika Perry Part time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    sperry59@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Juvenile Justice, Profiling of the Serial Offenders, Criminal Courts

  • Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    jpete173@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of Expertise: Criminal Courts, Corrections, Criminology, Victimology, Crimes and Defenses, Juvenile Justice

  • Malachi-Chaim Robinson Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    mrobin86@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Tech and Cyber-crime

  • Part-Time Instructor of Sociology

    jrush20@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Criminology, Intro to Sociology, Medical Sociology 

  • Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    prussel6@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Criminal Courts, Criminal Procedures, Crimes and Defenses, Foundation of Criminal Justice

  • Gary Shoats Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    gshoats@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Foundation of Criminal Justice, Police in America

  • Angie Smith Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    astephe8@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Cyber-crime

  • Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    fstarost@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Criminal Courts, Criminal Procedures, Crimes and Defenses, Foundations of Criminal Justice 

  • Todd Vande Zande Part-time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    tav6723@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

    Areas of expertise: Technology & Cyber Crime, Police in America, Police Administration, Juvenile Justice 

  • Part-Time Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    gkillam@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

  • Part-Time Instructor of Criminal Justice

    nlehner@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055

  • Limited Term Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice

    oayeni6@kennesaw.edu
    (470) 578-6739
    SO 4055