stay away from sociology.
~Sociologist Peter Berger, 1963
Professor and Department Chair
Office: Lalumiere Hall, 352
Phone: (414) 288-3440
Contact via e-mail
Curriculum vitae 
Listen to Dr. Roberta Coles' interview about her book Best Kept Secrets: Single Black Fathers
I originally went to graduate school to be a journalist, but when I left journalism
school, I still felt that I didn’t have a deep understanding of how the world works. I
knew what happened, but had no a way of explaining it. So I decided to take a few
sociology courses as a supplement, and instead I fell in love with it and went on to get
my doctorate in this fascinating discipline. It’s a discipline that helped me explain
my own individual experience as well as that of the larger society.
I have been fortunate to be on the faculty at Marquette since 1995, where I am
surrounded by a great set of colleagues doing intriguing research. Over the years, I’ve taught a variety of courses, but most regularly I teach family, race and family, social inequality, and race and ethnic relations.
View a couple of my recent class syllabi:
My research interests have changed over the years from war and peace to fatherhood
issues. However, underlying those apparently divergent topics has been an abiding
interest in inequality, particularly socioeconomic class and race & ethnicity. Some of
my articles have appeared in The Sociological Quarterly, Sociology of Religion,
Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, and the Journal of Aging Studies. For a more
detailed look at my professional career, click on the curriculum vitae link above.
View the links below for two of my recent books:
- Race & Family: A structural approach
(Sage Publications)
- Best Kept Secret: Single Black Fathers
(Rowman & Littlefield)
Social and Cultural Sciences Majors
Check out our suggested curriculum for our four majors:• Anthropology
• Criminology and Law Studies
• Social and Welfare Justice
• Sociology
