First Publics provides a space to explore the politics, pedagogy, and practice of teaching as public sociology.

First Publics was launched in August 2023 by Sarah Shannon and Diana Graizbord. Sarah has long been inspired by Michael Burawoy’s assertion that “as teachers we are all potentially public sociologists” since students are our “first and captive public.” In response, she has developed award-winning courses designed to grow and engage students’ sociological imaginations via high impact practices including service-learning and archives-based learning. Diana’s teaching practice also recognizes students as a first and most critical public, and aims to connect sociology to students’ lives and interests. Her award-winning project-based, and applied courses on policy, storytelling, theory, and methods aim to demonstrate to students sociology’s real-world problem solving potential. The impetus for First Publics came from Sarah and Diana’s desire to connect with like-minded teachers and build a community of practice around teaching as public sociology. First Publics is their attempt to create a space for teacher-scholars to engage in reflection and discussion of teaching as a vital form of public sociology (broadly defined).

First Publics publishes first-person reflections on the embodied and experiential aspects of teaching as public sociology and curates dialogues on timely topics and long-standing concerns related to teaching as public sociology. First Publics also publishes innovative approaches to teaching as class notes, and connects to content on teaching as public sociology from around the web.

Goals & Mission

The goal of First Publics is to provide a platform for an online community of practice centered on teaching as an essential form of public sociology. We hope to be a space for critical reflection and a useful resource for those interested in teaching as public sociology in higher educational settings, across institution types (e.g., 2-year, 4-year, private, public, etc.) and teaching roles (e.g., grad student instructors, adjunct, lecturer, teaching professor, tenure-track, etc.) as well as contexts outside of the US.

First Publics does not advocate for a particular set of pedagogical practices or approaches. The editors of First Publics are, however, committed to a politics of care and engagement and strive to create an equitable and inclusive space. We acknowledge and hope to interrogate the inequalities that define teaching and shape opportunities for public engagement across the uneven institutional landscape of higher education within and outside the United States. First Publics strives to be a collaborative and inclusive space and build a diverse and welcoming community of readers and collaborators.

Our Team

Sarah Shannon, Co-Editor, is Meigs Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Director of the Criminal Justice Studies Program at the University of Georgia. Her research focuses on systems of criminal punishment and their effects on social life. In the immortal words of Chuck D, Sarah hopes to “teach the bourgeois and rock the boulevard” in her work as a public sociologist inside and outside the classroom.

Diana Graizbord, Co-Editor, is Assistant Professor of Sociology and Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of Georgia. She conducts research on the politics of expertise, mostly in the Mexican context. Diana loves teaching and is committed to public sociology.

Stephanie Hanus-Knapp, Editorial Assistant, is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Georgia. Her teaching and research interests are in the areas of family, life course, and aging. 

Phattra Marbang, Board Member, is a Doctoral Candidate at the University of Georgia. Her areas of study include sociology of international education, immigration policy, and state power. She has taught classes on Race and Ethnicity in the U.S. and sociological theory.

Saifa Tazrin, Board Member, is a Doctoral student at the University of Georgia. Her areas of study include political sociology, feminist methods and gender-based violence. She has a background in law (graduate and undergraduate degrees) and looking forward to researching into the socio-legal perspectives on online platforms as a tool of violence and resistance. 

Advisory Board

Michel Estefan is an Associate Professor of Teaching and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the sociology department at the University of California, San Diego. His published work has appeared in Teaching Sociology, Sociological Focus, TRAILS: Teaching Resources and Innovations Library for Sociology, First Publics, Inside Higher Ed, and Teaching/Learning Matters, and has been featured multiple times in The Chronicle of Higher Education. His teaching and mentoring have been recognized with awards from the University of California, San Diego, the University of California, Berkeley, SAGE publishing, and the Teaching and Learning Section of the American Sociological Association.

Kyle Green is an Associate Professor of Sociology at SUNY Brockport. Kyle researches storytelling, intimacy, and the body with a particular emphasis on how groups construct meaning through shared physical practice. Kyle produces and hosts the Give Theory a Chance and Give Methods a Chance podcasts. He also co-authored a text of the same name (Give Methods a Chance, W.W. Norton, 2018). Kyle is the winner of the 2019 American Sociological Association’s Junior Theorist of the Year Award and is the Book Reviews Editor at Contexts Magazine.

Shamus Khan is the Willard Thorp professor of sociology and American Studies at Princeton University, where he also directs the program in Gender and Sexuality Studies. He is the author of Privilege: The Making of an Adolescent Elite at St. Paul’s School, and Sexual Citizens: Sex, Power, and Assault on Campus (with Jennifer Hirsch). 

Johnnie Lotesta is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Appalachian State University. She is a political, comparative-historical, and cultural sociologist specializing in political parties, labor and social movements, and American political development. Her research has appeared in outlets such as Research in Political Sociology, American Journal of Cultural Sociology, and Journal of Community Psychology. Dr. Lotesta teaches courses in political sociology, social movements, and stratification, as well as introductory sociology. 

Myron T. Strong is an award-winning sociologist, who is currently an Associate Professor of Sociology at the Community College of Baltimore County in Baltimore, Maryland. His research explores Afrofuturism, race, gender and other social factors in comics and popular culture. He recently co-authored, “Honor Your Contract: Finding Sensibility in Community Colleges” in Teacher College Record; also co-authored “Wakanda Forever: Afrofuturism, Healing, and Creating a New Diaspora” in Contexts; and “Using Asian Futurism as a Pedagogical Framework: Opportunities with 3 Body Problem” in Sociology of Race and Ethnicity. He also recently won the 2025 Doris Wilkinson Faculty Award from the Society for the Study of Social Problems. More information can be found at myrontstrong.weebly.com.

Lisa Wade is an Associate Professor at Tulane University with appointments in Sociology, the Gender and Sexuality Studies Program, and the Newcomb Institute. She is the author of American Hookup: The New Culture of Sex on Campus; an introduction to sociology titled Terrible Magnificent Sociology; a sociology of gender textbook, Gender: Ideas, Interactions, Institutions, with Myra Marx Ferree; and numerous other research publications. Her newest project documents undergraduate social life during the pre-vaccine pandemic. As a public-facing scholar, Lisa works to make her and others’ scholarship engaging to a public audience. You can find her online at lisa-wade.com and on Threads at @lisawadephd.