Keeping all the systems running at the UMass College of Social & Behavioral Sciences is our dedicated staff. These unsung heroes manage the multitude of administrative and organizational tasks that keep all of the departments in the College running smoothly and efficiently.
| Anthropology | Faculty | Staff |
| Communication | Faculty | Staff |
| Economics | Faculty | Staff |
| Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR) | Staff, Consultants, Scholars, and Board |
| Journalism | Faculty & Staff |
| Labor Studies | Faculty & Staff |
| Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning | Faculty | Staff |
| Legal Studies | Faculty & Staff |
| Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) | Faculty, Fellows, & Staff |
| Political Science | Faculty & Staff |
| School of Public Policy | Faculty | Staff |
| Resource Economics | Faculty & Staff |
| Social Thought & Political Economy | Faculty & Staff |
| Sociology | Faculty | Staff |
Below is a list of staff by function and our numerous committees.
| Grace Rock / Beverly Morrison | Anthropology | ||
| Donna Berg | Communication | ||
| Nancy Lattinville and Sheila Gilroy | Economics | ||
| Karen Mason | ISSR | ||
| Sheilagh Hanley | Journalism | ||
| Terry Trudeau | LARP | ||
| Nicole Dunham | PERI | ||
| Aaron Tauscher | Political Science/Legal Studies | ||
| Gail Fleischaker | Resource Economics | ||
| Cindy Patten | Sociology/Labor Center | ||
| Leticia Garcia | Sociology/Labor Center | ||
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
| Debbie Averill and Beverly Morrison | Anthropology |
| Deb Madigan | Communication |
| Nancy Lattinville and Sheila Gilroy | Economics |
| Karen Mason | ISSR |
| Terry Trudeau | LARP |
| Nicole Dunham | PERI |
| Kathy Colon | Public Policy |
| Stephen Marvell | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Gail Fleischaker | Resource Economics |
| Maureen Warner | Sociology/Labor Center |
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
| Shelley Silva | Anthropology |
| Allison Butler | Communication |
| Leah Dodson | Economics |
| Beth Wallace | Journalism |
| Kellie Nicholas | LARP |
| Barb Ciesluk & Adrian Grace | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Satu Zoller | Public Policy |
| Sophie Williamson and Alesia Brennan | Resource Economics |
| Alyssa Cote | Sociology |
| Kat Fabel | Sociology |
| Monica Garcia | STPEC |
| Shelley Silva | Anthropology |
| Kathy Ready | Communication |
| Mark Landeryou | Economics |
| Clare Hammonds | Labor Center |
| Tessa Stuart | Labor Center |
| Kellie Nicholas | LARP |
| Emily White | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Kathy Colon | Public Policy |
| Satu Zoller | Public Policy |
| Sophie Williamson | Resource Economics |
| Joya Misra | Sociology |
| Shelley Silva | Anthropology |
| Nancy Nash | Economics |
| Sheilagh Hanley | Journalism |
| Tessa Stuart | Labor Center |
| Kellie Nicholas | LARP |
| Stephen Marvell | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Kathy Colon | Public Policy |
| Sophie Williamson | Resource Economics |
| Wesley Dunham | Sociology |
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
| Grace Rock | Anthropology |
| Goldie McCarty | |
| Donna Berg | Communication |
| Nancy Lattinville | Economics |
| Sheilagh Hanley | Journalism |
| Stacy Richardson | LARP |
| Nicole Dunham | PERI |
| Aaron Tauscher | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Gail Fleischaker | Resource Economics |
| Sophie Williamson | Resource Economics |
| Cindy Patten | Sociology/Labor Center |
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
| Bruce O'Leary | Communication |
| Heather Ockington | Economics |
| Viacheslav Yurchenkov | ISSR |
| Bruce O'Leary | Journalism |
| Evonne Gong | LARP |
| Jeannette Wicks-Lim | PERI |
| Eileen Keegan | Resource Economics |
| Heather Ockington | Sociology/Labor Center |
| Ebru Kardan | SBS/Dean's Office |
| Matt Medeiros & Shelley Silva | Anthropology |
| Matt Medeiros & Angela Bowser | Communication |
| Mythreyi Krishnan & Sheila Gilroy | Economics |
| Elisa Martinez | ISSR |
| Mythreyi Krishnan & Sarah Corso | Journalism |
| Matt Medeiros & Tessa Stuart | Labor Center |
| Matt Medeiros & Evonne Gong | LARP |
| Kim Weinstein | PERI |
| Mythreyi Krishnan & Crystal Paul | Political Science/Legal Studies/Grant Support |
| Matt Medeiros | Public Policy |
| Mythreyi Krishnan & Eileen Keegan | Resource Economics |
| Matt Medeiros & Wesley Dunham | Sociology |
| Mythreyi Krishnan & Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
**Matt Medeiros and Mythreyi Krishnan serve as communications liasons/managers. They operate out of the dean's office and provide extra support in communications to assigned departments.
| Susan McDonough | SBS/Dean's Office |
| Grace Rock | Anthropology |
| Wendy Varner | Center for Research on Families |
| Deb Madigan | Communication |
| Sheila Gilroy | Economics |
| Sarah Corso | Journalism |
| Tessa Stuart | Labor Center |
| Terry Trudeau | LARP |
| Crystal Paul | Political Science/Legal Studies |
| Gail Fleischaker | Resource Economics |
| Wesley Dunham | Sociology |
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
| Grace Rock | Anthropology |
| Donna Berg | Communication |
| Melissa Walsh | Dean's Office Staff |
| Nancy Lattinville | Economics |
| Karen Mason | ISSR |
| Terry Trudeau | LARP |
| Nicole Dunham | PERI |
| Crystal Paul | Political Science |
| Aaron Tauscher | Political Science |
| Gail Fleischaker | Resource Economics |
| Leticia Garcia | Sociology/Labor Center |
| Donna Vanasse | STPEC |
The SBS Personnel Committee has many annual duties as well as some case-by-case responsibilities. Each year, the committee is tasked with reviewing: exceptional merit awards (September); faculty tenure (November); promotion cases (January); and mini tenure cases (March). A sub-committee of the Personnel Committee meets in April to handle Periodic Multi-Year Review cases. Additionally, the committee reviews tenure with hire cases based on the hire date throughout the year and it reviews distinguished professorship cases based on when the individual cases are received throughout the year. After the Personnel Committee review level, the cases are then reviewed separately by the Dean and the Associate Dean of Research and Faculty Development.
| Name | Title & Department | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Ethan Carr, Co-Chair | Professor - LARP | (413) 545-0153 |
| James Heintz, Co-Chair | Professor - Economics | (413) 545-6355 |
| Maryann Barakso | Associate Professor - Political Science | (413) 545-4363 |
| Dan Clawson | Professor - Sociology | (413) 545-5974 |
| Nicholas McBride | Associate Professor - Journalism | (413) 545-5921 |
| Angela de Oliveira | Associate Professor - Resource Economics | (413) 545-5716 |
| Ventura Pérez | Associate Professor - Anthropology | (413) 577-0662 |
The Graduate Directors Council coordinates Methods course offerings and works together to support the SBS graduate student experience.
| Name | Department/Program | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Betsy Krause | Anthropology | (413) 577-1205 |
| Leda Cooks | Communication | (413) 545-2895 |
| Economics | (413) 545-0739 | |
| Ethan Carr | Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA) | (413) 545-0153 |
| Henry Renski | PhD Regional Planning | (413) 545-6638 |
| Master of Regional Planning (MRP) | (413) 545-6608 | |
| Ellen Pader | MRP/law dual degree | (413) 545-6620 |
| Robert Ryan | MRP/MLA dual degree program | (413) 545-6633 |
| Tatishe Nteta | Political Science | (413) 545-3546 |
| School of Public Policy and Administration | (413) 545-3162 (413) 545-2714 | |
| John Spraggon | Resource Economics | (413) 545-6651 |
| Joya Misra | Sociology | (413) 545-3577 |
| Clare Hammonds | Labor Studies | (413) 545-0577 |
| Jen Lundquist, Chair | Associate Dean for Faculty Development | (413) 545-5977 |
The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee is charged with enhancing and improving instruction and student learning in SBS.
| Name | Title & Department | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Krista Harper | Anthropology | (413) 577-0661 |
| Benjamin Bailey | Communication | (413) 545-2522 |
| Gerald Friedman | Economics | (413) 545-2590 |
| Razvan Sibii | Journalism | (413) 545-5926 |
| Patricia McGirr | LARP & Sustainable Community Development | (413) 545-6621 |
| Paul Collins | Political Science - Legal Studies | (413) 545-4079 |
| Jesse Rhodes | Political Science | (413) 545-6185 |
| M.J. Alhabeeb | Resource Economics | (413) 545-5010 |
| Carolyn Bassett | SBS Exploratory Track | (413) 577-1057 |
| School of Public Policy | (413) 545-2714 | |
| Jonathan Wynn | Sociology | (413) 545-4073 |
| Graciela Monteagudo | STPEC | (413) 545-0043 |
| Julie Caswell | Associate Dean for Education and Student Development | (413) 577-1203 |
The Dean's Research Council organizes the Social Science Matters speaker series annually. The Council also offers two categories of grants to support research each year. A strong preference is given to generating a new research project or a new direction within an existing project. Priority in most cases is given to those projects that are likely to lead to external foundation or government funding; however, SBS also supports high-quality, meritorious research for which opportunities for extramural funding are limited. All ranks of tenure track faculty and lecturers whose major responsibilities include research are eligible to apply to both categories.
| Name | Title & Department |
|---|---|
| Laurel Smith-Doerr, Co-chair | Director of ISSR |
| Naomi Gerstel, Co-chair | Acting Associate Dean for Research |
| Benjamin Bailey | Professor - Communication |
| Josh Braun | Associate Professor - Journalism |
| Jason Kamilar | Associate Professor - Anthropology |
| Larry King | Professor - Economics |
| Emily Wang | Assistant Professor - Resource Economics |
| Kevin Young | Associate Professor - Political Science |
Associate Dean for Education and Student Development Julie Caswell is leading a group of faculty and staff to review and recommend changes to student success and advising programs college-wide. This includes development of the SBS Academic Advisor/Faculty Mentor advising model, the SBS Advising Resource Center, and the SBS Pathways approach to promoting student success.
| Name | Title & Department | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Julie Caswell, chair | Associate Dean for Education and Student Development | (413) 577-1203 |
| Carolyn Bassett | Assistant Dean & Executive Director of the Advising Resource Center | (413) 577-1057 |
| Vanessa Blais | Associate Director, SBS Advising Resource Center | (413) 577-1057 |
| Jackie Brousseau-Pereira | Academic Dean & Director of First Year Seminars | (413) 545-3519 |
| Diane Curtis | Director of Pre-Law Advising | (413) 577-0396 |
| Adrian Grace | Chief Undergraduate Advisor, Political Science & Legal Studies | (413)545-5880 |
| Lynn Phillips | Director of Academic Engagement and Student Success | (413) 545-3539 |
| Student Members | Major | Class of |
| Mica Reel | Anthropology | 2018 |
| Horizon Starwood | Anthropology | 2020 |
| Casey Lyons | Communication | 2019 |
| Emma Tavolieri | Communication | 2018 |
| Noah Kouchekinia | Economics | 2019 |
| Joshua Weinstein | Economics | 2018 |
| Sarah Jacobs | Journalism | 2020 |
| Talya Sogoba | Journalism | 2018 |
| Maura Robitaille | Landscape Architecture | 2020 |
| Meaghan Tretheway | Landscape Architecture | 2019 |
| Margaret Mendoza | Legal Studies | 2020 |
| Rosario Naranjo-Zarate | Legal Studies | 2019 |
| Viviana Angel-Cruz | Political Science | 2019 |
| Ahmad Bakrin | Political Science | 2020 |
| Jonathan Astor | Resource Economics | 2019 |
| Tanvi Badrinath | Resource Economics | 2020 |
| Rachel Strom | SBS Exploratory Track | 2021 |
| Sarah Chappell | Social Thought & Political Economy | 2018 |
| Ashley Everson | Social Thought & Political Economy | 2020 |
| Kyanna Harris-Hairston | Sociology | 2019 |
| May Nguyen | Sociology | 2021 |
| Christian Appia | Sustainable Community Development | 2018 |
| Cobi Frongillo | Public Policy & Management | 2019 |
| Hadiya Williams | Public Policy & Management | 2019 |
| Dean's Office Members | ||
| John Hird | Dean | |
| Julie Caswell | Associate Dean for Education & Student Development | |
| Lynn Phillips | Director of Academic Engagement & Student Success | |
Administrative Offices
Draper Hall · 40 Campus Center Way, Amherst,
MA 01003-9244 · Tel: 413.545.4173 · Fax: 413.577.0905