Contact: Robbie S. Ward
Some 100 sociology scholars from more than a dozen Mississippi and Alabama colleges and universities gather Thursday [Feb. 16] at Mississippi State University for a two-day discussion of topics related to disparities in demographics, economics, literacy, transportation, and agriculture.
While there is a registration fee for public participation in the 43rd annual meeting of the Alabama-Mississippi Sociological Association, members of the news media may attend at no charge.
Nearly 50 research papers, many related to issues faced in the two states, will be presented by faculty and student registrants. A sampling of the reports includes:
--"Big Mama Thornton: Crossing race, gender, and class boundaries in Alabama blues music," by Elizabeth Ali of Troy University;
--"1927 and Today: The Flood's effects on the Mississippi Delta," by Elizabeth Gardner of Hinds Community College;
--"Prevalence of untreated tooth decay among children under age 5 in the Mississippi Delta region, their related risk factors and barriers to accessing care," by Rahel Mathews of MSU; and
--"Experiences with prostitution in a Southern town: Reasons and consequences," by Lacretia Williams of Alabama State University.
Times and locations of events related to the conference may be viewed at http://www.a-msa.org/Documents/AMSA2012Program.pdf .
For more than four decades, the association has worked to create academic and research connections between sociologists in the two-state region. (For more, visit www.a-msa.org.)
MSU sponsors for the meeting include the sociology department, National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center, Office of Research and Economic Development, Social Science Research Center, and College of Arts and Sciences.
For more conference information, contact Lynne Cossman at 662-325-7880 or