Meredith Williams, Department of Sociology
Where are you originally from?
Salt Lake City, Utah.
Where did you complete your education?
Washington State University.
Where have you taught prior to coming to HSU?
Washington State University (the Pullman and Vancouver campuses), and the University of Portland.
What are your specific areas of expertise?
Social inequality (especially gender and sexuality) and crime
What classes are you teaching this year?
Right now I am teaching Intro to Criminology and Justice Studies (for the new CJS major within the Sociology Department), plus an undergraduate statistics lab. In the Spring I will be teaching a methods course, and a class on gender and crime.
What attracted you to Humboldt State?
Two things: first, I attended a conference a couple of years ago, and remember seeing Humboldt State’s name all over the program. I quickly figured out that the Sociology Department had brought an entire group of students to the conference for the experience and mentorship. I was blown away, and a bit envious that I did not know those opportunities could exist at the undergraduate level. I wish I had been able to experience such things!
Second, when I came for my interview, I listened to the way the faculty, staff and administrators talked about their students. There is so much respect and affection for the student body here; I found that heartwarming, and I really wanted to be a part of such a student-focused culture.
What do you do in your free time outside the classroom?
Since I have lived here, I have asked many of the people I meet for a suggestion of a place I must see. That has created a really nice checklist for Sunday adventures around the county.
What is your favorite classroom technique to engage students?
Humor. If you talk to any of my prior students, they can tell you that we find a way to talk about some very serious topics in a way that feels more encouraging than overwhelming.
What is the best thing about being a university professor?
I have spent a lot of time trying to make the world a better, more inclusive and affirming place for those that have been traditionally excluded. As an activist, I could create change at one level, and I found that work incredibly rewarding. Now as a professor, I get to have a semester-long conversation with a whole new group of individuals who, at risk of sounding cliché, are the next generation of world changers. I get to help give them the foundation they will need, in their skills and knowledge, to branch out, and create change in ways that will grow exponentially, as they teach and do themselves.
Where is the strangest place you’ve done research?
I use some heavily restricted data for my research. For the last two years I was teaching in Vancouver, WA, but my data were on a special computer in a locked office six hours away. Every time I wanted to run a model, or recode a variable, it meant a long weekend of driving and statistics in the wee hours of the morning.
If you weren’t an HSU professor, what would you be?
I am sure I would be right back in the non-profit world, still trying to find a way to teach and learn.
What superpower would be most valuable to your research?
I could probably use the ability to bend time, to make 6 hours of research only take up 1 hour of my day!
Sangwon Kim, Department of Psychology
Where are you originally from?
Seoul, South Korea.
Where did you complete your education?
The University of Georgia.
Where have you taught prior to coming to HSU?
Ewha Womans University in Seoul, South Korea and Fordham University in NY.
What are your specific areas of expertise?
Psychological assessment, and risk and protective factors of child and adolescent social emotional adjustment have been my areas of research. I have also been increasingly interested in the protective effects of spirituality on mental health and mindfulness based interventions.
What classes are you teaching this year?
I am teaching Cognitive Psychology for undergraduate students and Cognitive Assessment I for graduate students. In the spring, I will teach Cognitive Psychology and two graduate courses, including Cognitive Assessment II and Social Emotional Assessment & Intervention.
What attracted you to Humboldt State?
I was initially drawn to Humboldt State because of its student-centered philosophy and progressive atmosphere. During the interview, I also liked the collaborative collegial atmosphere in the Psychology Department.
What do you do in your free time outside the classroom?
I like to spend time relaxing, which involves working out, meditation, chatting with family and friends, cooking, and watching Korean TV shows and movies.
What is your favorite classroom technique to engage students?
I have found that students become more engaged with hands-on activities.
What is the best thing about being a university professor?
It is a blessing for me to be able to work with motivated students in an intellectually stimulating environment.
Where is the strangest place you’ve done research?
I was collecting data at a local youth organization on the east coast. I met with the youth group leader, provided compensation for participants, and distributed my survey. Afterwards, to my surprise I never heard from them.
If you weren’t an HSU professor, what would you be?
I would be a practicing school psychologist.
What superpower would be most valuable to your research?
Boldness so that I can live with the fear of the unknown related to my research.