Sports and Society
Faculty Interest Group
Professional and amateur sports are deeply woven into American culture. For many,
participation in sports as both an athlete and a spectator serves as an important
source of identity. For a few, it serves as a career. Because its influence is so
widespread and much of its history is so well documented, sport provides an excellent
vehicle for understanding broader social and economic phenomena. For example, there
is much that students can learn from the study of sport about issues of gender, race,
and power—social, economic, and political.
As a Faculty Interest Group, our goal is to explore commonalities in our teaching
and research interests. We hope that our students and we can benefit from coordination
of our efforts in course offerings, outside speakers and films, and research projects.
A single on-campus speaker, for example, can provide context for a discussion of discrimination
within and across different disciplines.
We plan to meet regularly (hopefully two or three times per semester). In addition
to planning joint activities, we will also discuss how we might assist one another
with our individual course offerings (e.g., guest lecturing and sharing readings)
and with research synergies that may include data acquisition and coordination of
purchases for the library.
Current members:
- Catherine White Berheide, sociology
- Dan Nathan, American studies
- Peter von Allmen, economics
- Jeff Segrave, health and exercise sciences
- Paul Arciero, health and exercise sciences
- Kenji Tierney
For more information: Please contact either Catherine White Berheide or Dan Nathan.