News

SOAN major Victoria Semmelhack ’25 was among three Carleton students awarded the prestigious Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, which supports graduating seniors during a year of independent exploration outside of the United States. The fellowship allows for deep, global engagement of a personal interest. Semmelhack will travel to Ghana, India, Australia, and Norway to explore childbirth knowledge and maternal healthcare policy.

Annette Nierobisz, Ada M. Harrison Distinguished Teaching Professor of the Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology at Carleton, published a new book titled American Idle: Late-Career Job Loss in a Neoliberal Era, now available from Rutgers University Press. The book explores the challenges faced by older white-collar workers navigating job loss in a recessionary economy marked by employer preference for younger workers.

Pamela Feldman-Savelsberg, Broom Professor of Social Demography and Anthropology at Carleton, was featured in the Carleton News for her long-running ACE course Anthropology of Health and Illness, which she has been teaching for over 20 years.

SOAN major and Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow Juan Garcia Reyes ’26 has been accepted into the 2025 American Sociological Association (ASA) Honors Program. This program introduces exceptional undergraduate sociology students to the professional life of the discipline through participation in special activities at the ASA Annual Meeting.

Pamela Feldman-Savelsberg, Broom Professor of Social Demography and Anthropology at Carleton, published a research article in Ethos, the journal of the Society for Psychological Anthropology, titled “Contesting parenting expertise: Constructing good mothering and searching for dignity in Cameroonian Berlin.”

Cheryl Yin, assistant professor of anthropology at Carleton, was a discussant for the panel “Cambodia in the World: Khmer Encounters with Others” at the Association of Asian Studies annual conference in Columbus, Ohio on March 15. Yin was also invited to be part of the Thailand Laos Cambodia (TLC) Studies Group‘s “New Research and Emerging Voices Roundtable,” where she was one of four junior scholars who shared their research with the wider community of TLC scholars at the conference.

SOAN major Cici Wang ’26 was featured in the March 2025 Student Life Newsletter with fellow student Yiming Ma ’27 for launching Carleton’s first multilingual magazine In Other Words. The magazine will feature prose, poetry, and visual art by students, staff, and faculty in any language other than English, with English translations provided so readers can fully appreciate every submission. The team recently received an IDE Mini-grant from the Office of Inclusion, Equity, and Community, and are additionally supported by the Language Center, the Office of International Student Life, and the Writing Center.

Cheryl Yin, assistant professor of anthropology at Carleton, presented a talk titled “Khmer Honorific Registers: Understanding Honorific Word-Choice in Khmer” at the Cambodian American Studies Conference at the Santa Clara County Office of Education in San Jose, California. This conference introduces the Cambodian American Studies Model Curriculum to K-12 teachers and provides valuable cultural information to California K-12 educators who are interested in incorporating Cambodian studies and Cambodian American studies into their curriculum.

SOAN major Miah Francis ’26 was featured in the Carleton News with fellow student Tyler Chodera ’25 for assisting Professor of Art Jade Hoyer ’07 with the “Prairie Paper” research project. The project, which includes transforming local plant fibers in Carleton’s Cowling Arboretum into handmade paper, represents a convergence of artistic practice and ecological awareness, with hopes to produce an exhibition that will coincide with the Arb’s upcoming 150th anniversary celebrations.

Cheryl Yin, assistant professor of anthropology at Carleton and a board member of the  Cambodian American Partnership of Minnesota, spoke at the 44th Annual Hmong New Year celebration.