Sociology and anthropology
Whether engaging in a sociological or anthropological path, our respective curricula
in The University of Toledo Department of Sociology and Anthropology champion the
exploration of multiple perspectives, numerous forms of evidence, and a concrete set
of methodological practices that foster a distinct comprehension of human societies
and cultures.
We offer undergraduate and graduate-level degrees in both sociology and anthropology. A Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Africana Studies is available as an interdisciplinary degree.
Sociology and Anthropology - How are they different and similar?
Sociology is the study of societies and all that happens within them. We are particularly interested in the institutions people create and the relationships they forge with each other. In our rapidly changing world, those institutions and relationships can maintain stability and continuity in communities – but also injustice and inequality. In other words, we study people; and we try to understand how all of us are changing with our times. We hope that a better understanding of how humans interact with each other will lead to more just and tolerant societies.
Anthropology is the study of what it means to be human in the past and present. Among the most diversified fields in the social sciences it is part history, part natural science, part literature, and part humanities. Thriving on this heterogeneity, anthropological training provides a multifaceted way to engage and understand our ever-interconnecting world[s]. Through intensive study of both past and present human cultures, students develop skill sets that both aid in the preservation of our cultural past and maintenance of the lived cultural present, and offer guidance as we move ahead toward a mutual future.
Department Anti-Racist Position Statement
We the members of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology stand with the Black community who are grieving the murder, abuse, and exploitation of Black men, women, and non-binary persons; due to a long-standing system of racial, economic, and gender inequities and the continued inaction of apathetic White people to create change. In our affirmation that Black Lives Matter, we are committed to being part of the solution to end institutional policies and social practices that perpetuate an unjust society.
Anti-Black racism in American society predates the nation itself and has been perpetuated through the historical processes of slavery, colonialism, and policymaking. These processes have too frequently served to dispossess Black, Indigenous, and People of Color of their voices, their livelihoods, and their lives. We recognize that racial disparities are compounded when they intersect with other points of discrimination in American society, such as sex, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status, disability, nationality, religion, and socio-economic status. We also recognize that the educational system, including the disciplines of Sociology and Anthropology, has developed from histories of colonialism, racism, and academic imperialism. In recent decades, our disciplines have striven to identify and correct these past inequities, often stumbling but continually laboring to understand and spotlight the struggles of the disempowered, amplify the voices of persons marginalized and discriminated against, and draw attention to structural inequities and violence.
Sociologists and Anthropologists emphasize the importance of grassroots social change movements and the resilience of communities of color. As we collectively and individually reflect on the current movement that seeks social justice and change to our current social contract that has failed people of color, the members of this department advocate for an educational environment that is actively anti-racist, as well as free from prejudice and discrimination based on sex, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status, disability, nationality, religion, and socio-economic status. We will continue to implement and champion critical intersectional approaches to our teaching and research – that is, applying analytical frameworks that permit a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between multiple factors of identity and how they combine to shape individual life chances and societal patterns of stratification simultaneously.
Finally, we recognize that individual thoughts and actions and institutional patterns and policies that create and perpetuate unequal access to power, privilege, resources, and opportunities are avoidable. Therefore, we collectively and personally are holding ourselves accountable to oppose racism, prejudice, and discrimination in all its forms. Through our ongoing work and engagement with our students, we will continue to advocate for constructing an anti-racist future that we all can share in.
Recognizing Where we Live and Work
The University of Toledo acknowledges that the region of Ohio in which the University sits on the ancestral homelands of the Odawa, Seneca and Erie as well as places of trade of Indigenous peoples, including the Anishinaabe (Ojibwa, Pottawatomi), Eel River, Lenape, Kaskaskia, Kickapoo, Miami, Munsee, Peoria, Piankashaw, Shawnee, Wea and Wyandot. As a steward of public lands, it is our responsibility to understand the history of the land, the peoples who came before us, and their continuing ties to this place. We thank them for their strength and resilience in protecting this land, and aspire to uphold our responsibilities according to their example.
- The Faculty and Staff of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology