2022 Sociologists of Minnesota (SOM) Annual Conference

Thursday, October 13, 2022
12:30 PM - 11:45 AM
CSU

The 2022 Sociologists of Minnesota (SOM) Conference will take place Thursday October 13 and Friday October 14 in the Centennial Student Union, virtual options avaialble. Minnesota State Mankato employees and students are invited to attend all conference sessions, including the keynote address on Thursday at 6 p.m., at no cost, either in person or virtually.

*Please note dinner and lunch events are for registered participants only.

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ABout this year's conference:

Rural Sociology: Connecting People, Communities, Economics, Politics, Health & Environment 

This year, with our conference theme, we reaffirm our ties to the rural communities, which is our roots clinging to our ancestors, land, and the earth itself. Rural sociology is about making connections with people and their life in the rural areas, which included but not limited to food, agriculture, and natural resources, land use and environment, economics of the farm production, migrant workers, rural-urban disparities, health care access, and culture and identity of the rural people. Together, we explore connections between variables, between social structures, between individuals, or between theoretical or methodological frameworks, and of course, connect with other social scientists, activists, policy makers, and fellow conscious citizens!

Our SOM conference sessions are wide open for scholars to join in from sociology, as well as, other important social science disciplines, i.e., anthropology, communication studies, economics, education, ethnic studies, gender and women’s studies, global and international relations, health sciences, political science, and psychology, etc.

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Keynote Address:

Julie Tesch, President and CEO of Minnesota Center for Rural Policy and Development (CRPD)

After 25-years of living in urban areas, Julie decided it was time to return to her roots in rural Minnesota. Julie became the President & CEO in 2018 after working in Washington, DC as the executive director of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. She has been involved in non-profit management and supporting the rural lifestyle her entire career through her work with the National FFA Alumni Association and the Minnesota Agricultural Education Leadership Council (MAELC). She is a proud graduate of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where she received her bachelor’s degree in applied economics and her Master’s of Education in agricultural education.

At the Center, Julie is the chief relationship builder, manages a board of 19-members, oversees the overall management of the center, and is the pied piper of living in rural Minnesota.

Download conference schedule (PDF)