Sociology, Criminology & Justice Studies Office Information
Department Chair: Kerry Pannell
Location: Towers Hall, 1 S. Grove St.
Hours: Monday – Friday (8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
Contact: Patti Welch, Academic Administrative Assistant
Phone: 614-823-1361
Email: pwelch@otterbein.edu
Faculty
Heidi Ballard
Associate Professor
Associate Professor Heidi R. Ballard earned a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of New Mexico and an Master’s degree in Public Health from The Ohio State University. She received her Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM. Her graduate work emphasized social theory and global development issues, with a regional emphasis on Latin America. Areas of expertise include classical and contemporary sociological theory, global social change and development, and environmental sociology. Issues of social justice are of special interest in her work. Courses currently taught include classical social theory, contemporary social theory, racial and ethnic relations, global social change, environmental sociology, and urban sociology.
Leesa Kern
Associate Professor
Dr. Kern received her doctorate from The Ohio State University. Her classes are in the criminology concentration. Her research interests are criminology and juvenile delinquency. She also teaches Introductory Sociology, Research Methods, Social Problems, and also teaches in the Integrative Studies and Senior Year Experience programs. She is currently completing research on women in policing, and has begun researching gang involvement in violent crime in Columbus. Her other research interests include stigma management among members in deviant communities, and the intersections between pollution, crime, and lower income neighborhoods.
Staff
