Faculty

Dr. Stephen Childs, Professor Emeritus
Ph.D. (Anthropology), State University of New York at Albany, 1977
Coordinator, BA in Sociology (Anthropology Focus)
smchilds@valdosta.edu
Download Dr. Child's Vita

As one of two cultural anthropologists in our department, I have taught a variety of courses.  Currently, I teach anthropological research methods, anthropological theory, anthropology of law, and a course on anthropology of religion. My research interests center about law, specifically conflict resolution, and religious ritual and symbol. At present, I'm gathering data on changing interpretations of  religious law resulting from acculturation.

Dr. Melissa Rinehart, Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Ph.D. (Anthropology), Michigan State University, 2006
marinehart@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 249-4975
University Center: 1141

As a cultural anthropologist I have many interests.  My area of specialization is in American Indian studies and I have worked with Miami Indian communities in Indiana and Oklahoma for several years.  Topics I have examined include Miami removal from Indiana in 1846, marriage practices, Miami Catholicism, boarding school experiences, and language shift and revitalization.  Other interests include language ideologies (Sociolinguistics), gender relations, racial formation, the dichotomy between public/private identities, and the anthropology of food.  Methodological interests include ethnohistory and collaborative ethnography.

Dr. Martha  Laughlin, Assistant Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy
Director of Clinical Training, MS in Marriage and Family Therapy
Ph.D. (Systemic Studies) Nova Southeastern University, 1998
mjlaughl@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 249-4961
University Center:  1127

Hello. My name is Martha Laughlin. I’m an Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the Family Therapy Program. I came to Valdosta State University 4 years ago from Florida where I received my degrees, conducted private practice, and worked as the director of a short-term crisis unit for people with acute and chronic mental illness. I have a Ph.D. and an M S. in Family Therapy from Nova Southeastern University and an MSW from Barry University.
My interests include Batesonian systems theory, writing as thinking, and qualitative research. But my first passion concerns the use of imagination and creativity in therapy and supervision and ideas about how to teach students to think creatively in family therapy. I believe creative thinking is an important facet of many fields, including family therapy. Cultural historian William Thompson suggested that creative imagination is the horizon of science itself and many important scientists, including Einstein himself, have acknowledged the vast importance of creativity in scientific work. What we know and what we imagine are the two sides of a coin: what we know shapes our imagination and our imagination shapes what (and how) we know. I believe that when therapists rely primarily on techniques that “work,” they narrow their ability to think creatively, and they reduce the effectiveness of their therapy. On the other hand, creative thinking in therapy cannot be an “anything goes.” My challenge is how to teach my family therapy students to think imaginatively about their clients from within the structure of a clear, theoretical framework.

Dr. Kate Warner, Assistant Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy
Coordinator, MS in Marriage in Family Therapy
Ph.D. (Systemic Studies) Nova Southeastern University, 1998
kwarner@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 293-6264
University Center:  1145

Hello, my name is Kate Warner, and I direct the Masters of Marriage and Family Therapy Program. Before I arrived at VSU, I directed the Family Therapy program at Seton Hill College. I graduated from Kalamazoo College in Michigan with a major in Sociology and later competed my PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy at Nova Southeastern University in South Florida. I am an American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy Approved Supervisor and a Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator. I am a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Florida and Georgia. In addition to my training in Marriage and Family Therapy and Family Mediation, I’ve spent time in private practice as well as working at a domestic assault shelter and in a home-based family preservation program.
My research interests include therapy with involuntary clients, the intersection of spirituality and family therapy, death and dying, and the use of therapy with children involved in the juvenile justice system—especially therapy that is provided by balanced and restorative justice programs. While I consider myself primarily a qualitative researcher, I am currently involved in two mixed methods research projects that focus on the juvenile justice system.
As a therapist, I am committed to non-pathologizing methods of therapeutic intervention. In fact, it was the non-pathologizing aspects of Family Therapy that drew me to the field. I don’t find labels useful, and I work hard to help my clients in ways that don’t leave them with a negative definition of themselves. I also work from a systemic/contextual perspective; meaning, that I believe all behavior makes sense in context. One of the things I love about family therapy is learning how each client’s perspective makes sense to them. In addition, I also consider myself to be a constructivist, which for me means that I expect each person to have a unique meaning system that I must understand before I can begin helping them find ways of changing that fit their world view.
I teach several classes in the MFT program, including Practicum, Interventions in MFT, and Treatment Issues in MFT. All of the therapy ideas and interests I’ve described above inform my teaching.
Choosing a program that leads to a career as a clinician can be a confusing process. I would be glad to talk with you about a career in Marriage and Family Therapy.

Dr. Jennifer Lambert-Shute
MA, Marriage and Family Therapy, Appalachian State University
Ph.D., Marriage and Family Therapy, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
jjshute@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 245-4323
University Center:  1143

Hello. My name is Jennifer Lambert-Shute and I am an assistant professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy program. I came to Valdosta in 2004 from the University of Oregon where I was an MFT instructor and clinical supervisor. Also, while in Oregon I worked as a therapist with Women’s Care: Physicians & Surgeons, of Lane County Mental Health with children and adolescents, and as a therapist and supervisor for the center for family therapy. I received my doctorate from Virginia Tech in MFT, my masters from Appalachian State University in MFT, and my bachelors in Psychology from Western Illinois. I am currently an Associate Member and a Supervisor in Training with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT).

My primary research interest focuses on issues in training marriage and family therapists. My master’s thesis studied the stressors involved in MFT graduate training. My dissertation focused on successful strategies of non-sexual dual relationships between faculty and students in MFT programs. My research has also focused on gerontology and marriage and family therapists working with older adults, incarceration and its impact on families, and exploring issues of obesity and family therapy. Obesity has reached epidemic status in the United Sates and many scientists are investigating ways to fight this disease. I feel strongly that the field of family therapy can make meaningful contributions to this investigation. Additionally, I believe that if the field of marriage and family therapy is going to continue growing as a profession, therapists need to be involved in conducting effective research that can help move the field into the future. As a researcher I am interested in finding the best methodology to answer our fields many questions. Thusly, I have embraced both qualitative and quantitative methods in my research.

As a therapist I am committed to exploring client’s perspectives and understanding their context and how this connects to the presenting issues. I use a strength basis perspective in working with clients and students. In training students to become therapists my goal is to help supervisees develop and clarify their own ideas of therapeutic change. An important aspect of my job is to help students clarify and form a theoretical framework to work with clients that is congruent with their epistemology. Another area that I emphasize in working with students is the importance of using literature and research in our work as clinicians. As clinicians, I believe it is too easy to predominantly rely on intuition. While intuition and clinical judgment are important elements of our work, I try to encourage my supervisees to incorporate effectiveness research into their work. As a supervisor I focus on self of the therapist issues such as learning self-care and encouraging supervisees to develop strategies for preventing burnout.

As a faculty member in the Marriage and Family Therapy program, I am committed and passionate about working with students and training future therapists. The best part of my job is working and interacting with students. Therefore, I try to convey to our students that my door is always open. If you ever have any questions or would like to know more about our program please do not hesitate to call, email, or simply stop by.

Dr. Michael Capece,  Associate Professor of Sociology

Interim Department Head
Ph.D. (Sociology), University of Florida, 1991
Coordinator, BA in Sociology Degree Program
mcapece@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 333-5488
University Center: 1135
Download Dr. Capece's Vita

Hello, my name is Michael Capece and I am an Associate Professor of Sociology. Before coming to Valdosta State University I lived in the Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida area. During my time in Florida, I was in private practice and also taught courses in sociology and criminology at the University of South Florida and St. Leo College.
     I earned my Ph.D. from the University of Florida My areas of teaching/practice interest are sociological practice, mental health, substance abuse, and criminology/deviance. I have published in the areas of sociological practice, employee assistance programs, and family sociology. I am currently working with the faculty in Criminology and Law at the University of Florida researching drinking behavior of college students and testing Ronald Akers ’ Social Structure/Social Learning theory of criminal and deviant behavior. I hold counseling licenses in Georgia and Florida and have a private practice in Valdosta.
       Over the years I have benefited from the flexibility of my degree in sociology. It prepared me for employment as a clinical practitioner, supervisor, teacher, and applied researcher. I would be happy to discuss the career opportunities that a Masters Degree in Applied Sociology would afford you.

Dr. Chet Ballard, Professor of Sociology
Coordinator of Sociology Graduate Programs
Ph.D. (Sociology), Texas A & M University,  1980
cballard@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 333-5491
University Center:  11
Download Dr. Ballard's Vita

I am in my 20th year of service at Valdosta State University. My BA sociology degree is from Cumberland College in Kentucky, Masters degree in sociology from Western Kentucky University and Ph.D. in sociology from Texas A&M University where I studied rural sociology and community development. My 24 year career as a sociologist, teacher (I taught for four years in Virginia before moving to Georgia), researcher, and applied community consultant has produced over 40 publications including articles, research reports, monographs, and one co-edited book, The Student’s Companion to Sociology published in 1997 with two British co-authors. I teach a variety of sociology courses including a completely on-line course in VSU's education doctoral program. My current published research is a look at the early days of the Association for Humanist Sociology published in The American Sociologist. Dr. Prine (Criminal Justice) and I have recently completed a study of community policing in Thomasville, GA. In 1992 I was elected president of the Georgia Sociological Association, in 2000 I served as President of the Association for Humanist Sociology, and in 2002 (and again in 2004) I served as president of VSU's chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). I am President of the Board of Directors of America's Second Harvest Food Bank of South Georgia, Chair of the Advisory Council for the Alzheimer's Day Care Center, a program of VSU's Division of Social Work, and a member of the Community Policing Subcommittee in Valdosta's Weed and Seed Program. My partner, Myrna, is president of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce and we live in rural Brooks County, out in the sticks, at the end of a semi-paved road with three dogs and two silly cats.

Dr. Kathleen Lowney, Professor of Sociology
Ph.D. (Religion and Society), Drew University, 1986
email: klowney@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 333-5487
University Center:  1124
Visit Dr. Lowney's Homepage
Download Dr. Lowney's Vita

I think for as long as I can remember, I read about religion. And I watched people. I remember going to Seattle Seahawks games and watching the people more than the football game!  So it seems to make sense that I decided to major in both Sociology and Comparative Religions as an undergraduate. Then I chose to go to graduate school and study Religion and Society. That, in fact, is what I got my Ph.D. in at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey. I studied a religious group called "the Unification Church," more commonly known as "the Moonies." In particular, I interviewed 50 couples and asked them about their gender role divisions in their marriage.
One stream of my research is easy to explain; it goes like this. After graduation, I got married and moved to Valdosta. And I needed a new research topic and well, one fell into my lap.  I began a 6 year ethnographic project studying teenage Satanism. And the more I studied them, the more I began to realize that there were perceptions (or misperceptions) about Satanists and that much of those perceptions came from television talk shows, such as The Geraldo Rivera Show. So I ordered all talk show transcripts about Satanism and analyzed them. When I did that, I realized that these talk shows were pretty interesting! And so I decided to write a book about the "religion of recovery" on talk shows.
And now? Well, I am in the early stages of writing about professional wrestling, especially the WWF. The first article is an analysis of professional wrestling as soap opera for men. My second article is on how the WWF parodied one of its critics, the Parents Television Council, by creating the wrestling faction, Right To Censor. So if you are a fan of The Rock, 'Taker, Jericho, or any other wrestler -- stop by and chat a while!!

Dr. Carl Hand, Professor of Sociology

Coordinator of Sociology Undergraduate Programs
Ph.D. (Sociology), University of Tennessee, 1986
chand@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 249-4973
University Center:  1138

I like to think of myself as having diverse sociological interests. My graduate training at the University of TN, Knoxville, focused primarily on environmental issues, population problems, and social movements. I have kept these interest areas but I have also written on the discipline of sociology, particularly changes in the number of undergraduate and graduate students in sociology and the fragmentation of sociology into different specialty areas. I've recently become interested in community sociology-the place where almost all sociological interests come together. My current writing efforts involve the greening of Christianity, and teaching social theory. I guess I owe my eclecticism to a broad liberal arts education. For hobbies, I scuba dive and mountain bike and try to otherwise stay physically active. I also like playing guitar and piano for relaxation.

Dr. Katherine Schmidt, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Ph.D. (Sociology),
email: kjschmidt@valdosta.edu
Office: 229)333-5484
University Center:  1131

Dr. Daniel Nehring, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Ph.D. (Sociology), University of Essex, 2008
email: dfnehring@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 333-5456
University Center:  1166

My research and teaching interests are mainly located in the areas of cultural sociology, globalization, gender and intimate relationships, and qualitative approaches to social research. I recently completed a large research project on the cultural dynamics of intimate relationships among young middle-class people in Mexico City, with funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (UK) and the University of Essex. For this project, I interviewed 43 women and men working in upper middle-level positions in public administration and transnational corporations on their understandings, experiences, and practices of love, family life, couple relationships, and sexuality. In order to contextualize my participants’ accounts, I also analyzed cultural representations of couple relationships in a large sample of self-help texts in books and magazines. This allowed me to obtain insights into the large-scale cultural logics of intimate life in contemporary urban life In Mexico and to explore the ways in which they are embedded in wider, transnational cultural flows. I have published parts of this research in international academic journals in English and Spanish, and I am currently working on a series of future publications. I have also presented different aspects of my findings at international conferences of the British Sociological Association, the Society for Latin American Studies, and the Latin American Studies Association, among others.

I am originally from Germany, but have been living in England and Mexico for the past ten years, before moving to the USA. Prior to coming to Valdosta State University, I worked at the University of Westminster (2007) and the University of Essex (2003-2008), where I also obtained my academic degrees (BA in Sociology (1st class) 2002; MA in Social Research 2003; PhD in Sociology 2007). In 2004/2005, I furthermore was a visiting researcher at El Colegio de México and the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS) in Mexico City. At Essex and Westminster, I gathered extensive teaching experience in sociological theory, cultural sociology, media studies, criminology, qualitative and quantitative research methods, qualitative and quantitative data analysis and statistics, and software packages for social research (e.g. SPSS, MaxQDA, Endnote).

Dr. Ginger Macheski, Professor of Sociology
Ph.D. (Sociology), Michigan State University, 1986
email: macheski@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 333-5493
University Center:  1123
Visit Dr. Macheski's Homepage

Sociology was not even something I had ever heard of before I went to college, (the first person in my family to do so) but over time sociology became both my world view and my vocation. As an undergraduate I was a psychology major and I was politically active. Through the peace movement and the women’s movement, I learned to ask why? who benefits? and maybe more importantly why not? which left room for social change. Right along beside me asking the same questions and with some answers were Sociology faculty at Michigan State. So it made sense when I decided upon more school after my B.A. to apply to Sociology graduate programs. With a brief sojourn to Purdue, I returned to M.S.U. and 10 years, one husband, a number of jobs, and two children later, I received my Ph.D. My sociology has been informed by a constant critical perspective (ask my children about this!) and a desire to communicate and apply what we as sociologist learn about the world to others.
Fifteen years ago, I came to Valdosta State University. Moving to South Georgia brought many positive things to my life, two more children, numerous cats and dogs, a horse, a house and a lot of friends. To my sociology, this move has sharpened my applied focus. Most of my work here in Valdosta has been working on local issues with local groups ranging from how do you change P.T.O.’s to be more multi cultural and inclusive to documenting the existence of institutionalized racism in the community with Levi-Strauss’ Project Change. Another applied focus has been my interest in teaching and the teaching of sociology. I have been very active with the ASA’s (American Sociological Association) Teaching Resource Center editing collections of teaching materials, writing about teaching and giving teaching workshops. In the Department, I teach family, research methods, statistics, and inequality courses.

Dr. Tracy Woodard Meyers, Associate Professor of Sociology
Ph.D. (Human Sciences), Florida State University, 1996
email: tmeyers@valdosta.edu
Office: 229) 249-4976
University Center:  1129
Download Dr. Meyer's Vita

A Florida native, I moved to Valdosta and have been teaching at Valdosta State University since 1994.  Prior to earning my Ph.D. in family relations at Florida State University, I worked ten years in the human service field five of which were with abused and neglected children. Because of my work experience and education, I was hired to teach in both the sociology and marriage and family therapy programs.  As a result of teaching in two programs, I have taught a wide range of courses including marriage and the family, social welfare, sociology of the family, domestic violence, crisis intervention, gender, human sexuality, family stress and crisis, family development, and research methods.  My specializations however, are in traumatic stress, family violence, and crisis intervention.  I have conducted research and published articles concerning secondary traumatic stress symptoms in child protective service workers.  In addition, I am a Certified Family Life Educator and Certified Disaster Mental Health Counselor for the American Red Cross.

Dr. Mark Patrick George, Assistant Professor of Sociology

Ph.D. (Sociology), University of New Mexico, 2004
email: mpgeorge@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 249-4976
University Center: 1129

In addition to teaching an assortment of Sociology courses, as an Applied Sociologist and long-time community organizer I strive to bridge the gap that sometimes exists between the academy and the broader community.  Over the years that work has centered on serving as a resource person to a variety of community groups and non-profit organizations working to address various social justice issues.  Therefore my research and organizing agenda is participatory in nature and driven by those who might benefit from the tools Sociology offers, especially as they relate to identifying, analyzing, and addressing gender, race, class, and sexual inequalities.  In all, it is my hope to make Sociology “public” and relevant to those around me so that we might bring about social change.  My current work includes research on racial/class inequality as it relates to education, criminal justice, and economics in Lowndes County, Georgia.  I  am also heavily involved with the Mary Turner Project (www.maryturner.org) and am doing joint research with my colleagues Dr. Tracy Woodard Meyers and Dr. Shani Gray.  That collaborative work examines sexual assault at Valdosta State and analyzes how students negotiate sexual encounters.   Lastly, I also serve as the Education Chairperson for the Lowndes/Valdosta chapter of the SCLC, a national civil rights organization.