Department of Sociology Faculty

Kathleen Odell Korgen

Kathleen Odell Korgen (Professor) received her Ph.D. from Boston College and her B.A. from the College of the Holy Cross. Her primary areas of specialization are race relations, racial identity, and public sociology.

Professor Korgen published work on race relations and racial identity include Crossing the Racial Divide: Close Friendships between Black and White Americans (Praeger 2002) and From Black to Biracial: Transforming Racial Identity among Americans (Praeger 1998, 1999). She just signed a contract with Routledge to edit and recruit top scholars to contribute to Multiracial Identity and Social Class. This will be the first work to focus on the influence of social class on the racial identity of multiracial Americans. Her works on public sociology include The Engaged Sociologist: Connecting the Classroom to the Community (with Jonathan White, Pine Forge 2007, 2009). She has authored articles in various edited texts and in such peer-reviewed journals as Sociological Inquiry, The American Sociologist, the Electronic Journal of Sociology, and Teaching Sociology.

Raised in Massachusetts, Professor Korgen now lives in Montclair, NJ, with her husband Jeff, daughters Julie and Jessica, and mother Patricia.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS :

Selected Books:

Korgen, K. and White, J. (2007, 2009) The Engaged Sociologist: Connecting the Classroom to the Community, Second Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge

Korgen, K. (2002). Crossing the Racial Divide: Close Friendships Between Black and White Americans. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

Korgen, K. (1998, 1999). From Black to Biracial: Transforming Racial Identity Among Americans . Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

 Selected Peer Reviewed Journal Articles:

 Korgen, K. (Forthcoming) Black/White Biracial Identity: The Influence of Colorblindness and the Racialization of Poor Black Americans. Theory in Action.

Korgen, K. and O’Brien E (2007). “I’m Colorblind But What Are You, Anyway?” Electronic Journal ofSociology http://www.sociology.org/contents.html

O’Brien, E. and Korgen, K. (2007) “ It's the Message, Not the Messenger: The Declining Significance of Black-White Contact in a ‘Colorblind’ Society” Sociological Inquiry 77, 3:356–382.

Odell, P., Korgen, K. and Wang, G. (2005) “Cross-racial Friendships and Social Distance Between Racial Groups on a College Campus.” Innovative Higher Education 29, 4:291-305.

Delucchi, M. and Korgen, K. (2002). "We're the Customer--We Pay the Tuition: Student Consumerism among Undergraduate Sociology Majors. Teaching Sociology. 30, January:100-107.

Odell, P.M., Korgen, K. and del Carmen, A. (2002) "Recent Trends in Faculty Employment in Sociology." The American Sociologist. 32, 4: 98-106.

Stein, P. and Korgen, K. (2001) “Sociological Practice and Diversity Training.” Social Insight. 6, Fall:21-26.

Korgen, K., Odell, P.M. and Schumacher, P. (2001) “Internet Use Among College Students: Are There Differences By Race/Ethnicity?” Electronic Journal of Sociology, 5, 3 http://www.sociology.org/content/vol005.003/korgen.html

Odell, P.M., Korgen, K, Schumacher, P. and DeLucchi, M. (2000). “Internet Use Among Male and Female College Students,” CyberPsychology and Behavior, 3, 5, 855-862.

Korgen, K. and Korgen, J. (2000). "Mixed-Race Americans and Affirmative Action: From the One Drop Rule to the Pigmentation Rule." Southeastern Sociological Review,1, 1-12..

Selected Chapters in Edited Works:

Korgen, K. and O’Brien, E. (2006) "What's Race Got to Do With it? Close Black/White Friendships in a 'Color-Blind' Society." Negotiating the Color Line: Doing Race in the Color-Blind Era and Implications for Racial Justice. Ed. David L. Brunsma (2006) Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publications.

 Korgen, K, Wang, G. and Mahon, J. (2006) “Social Distance and the Tipping Effect” on a Northern New Jersey College Campus.” In The New Quality of Contact: African Americans and Whites on College Campuses Ed. Robert Moore. New York: The University Press of America.

Korgen, K. (2006) “Social Policy on Race in the Colorblind Era.” American Government, Policy & Law, 2 nd Edition. Ed. Michael Luis Principe. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt.

Korgen, K (2003). “The Elephant in the Living Room: The Issue of Race in Close Black/White Friendships.” Race, Ethnicity, and Gender: Selected Readings. Ed. Joseph Healey & Eileen O’Brien: 177-189. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.

Wang, G. and Korgen, K. (2002). “Don’t Stand Too Close to Me: Social Distance and College Students at a Northern New Jersey University.” In The Quality of Contact: African Americans and Whites on College Campuses Ed. Robert Moore: 95-107. New York: The University Press of America.

Korgen, K. and Odell, P.M. (2000). “Beyond a Multiracial America: Racial Demographics and Crime in the U.S. Today.” Raceand Crime. Madison WI: CourseWise Publishing,

 del Carmen, A., Korgen, K., del Carmen, D. and Espinosa, A. (1999). “Hispanics: The New Irish in the American Criminal Justice System?” Perspectives: Criminal Justice. Madison, WI: CourseWise Publishing