Skip to main content

Dr. Shannon Latkin Anderson

Professor, Senior Director of Strategic Health Initiatives

Location:
304 Trout Hall
Phone:
(540)378-5104

Degrees

  • Ph.D., University of Virginia, 2007
  • M.A., University of Virginia, 2007
  • B.A., Tulane University, 1994

Research & Teaching Interests

  • Dr. Shannon Latkin Anderson joined the Department of Sociology and Public Health at Roanoke College in 2010. She teaches courses in the core of the sociology major such as Introduction to Sociology and Social Theory. In 2017-2018, Roanoke College introduced its new Public Health Studies program with Anderson as Coordinator. Now also serving as Director of Strategic Health Initiatives, Anderson's role at the college has expanded beyond her teaching and research into developing and managing partnerships with organizations in our local health ecosystem.

Books

  • Immigration, Assimilation, and the Cultural Construction of American National Identity. New York: Routledge. 2015.

Publications

  • "Enriching surgical residency training through the liberal arts," The American Journal of Surgery, Nov. 30, 2020.
  • "The Immigration Question Remains: Unison or Harmony?" The Richmond Times-Dispatch, May 28, 2016.
  • "Understanding the New Nationalism," The Virginian-Pilot, July 24, 2016.

Available as a Media resource for the following topics

  • Public health: HIV, autism, women's health, general (covid, health disparities, health care systems, etc.)
  • Public health education at the undergraduate level
  • Sociology: race, ethnicity, national identity
  • Community partnerships
  • Health equity
  • Community-based learning
  • Community well-being (examples: American identity, Autism and society (not biomedical), Immigration and assimilation)
  • Gender and sexuality
  • Sexual assault
  • Intimate partner violence
  • Social determinants of health international service learning

Willing to speak to professional, social or civic groups on

  • Public health: HIV, autism, women's health, general (covid, health disparities, health care systems, etc.)
  • Public health education at the undergraduate level
  • Sociology: race, ethnicity, national identity
  • Community partnerships
  • Health equity
  • Community-based learning
  • Community well-being (examples: American identity, Autism and society (not biomedical), Immigration and assimilation)
  • Gender and sexuality
  • Sexual assault
  • Intimate partner violence
  • Social determinants of health international service learning

Biography

  • Dr. Shannon Latkin Anderson joined the Department of Sociology and Public Health at Roanoke College in 2010. Now serving as Director of Strategic Health Initiatives, Anderson's role at the college has expanded beyond her teaching and research into developing and managing partnerships with organizations in our local health ecosystem.
  • Anderson teaches courses in the core of the sociology major such as Introduction to Sociology and Social Theory. In 2017-2018, Roanoke College introduced its new Public Health Studies program with Anderson as Coordinator, working not only with students and faculty here on campus but connecting with local health institutions and organizations as well.
  • More recently, Anderson collaborated with colleagues at the college and at Carilion Clinic (the major health system in the Roanoke Valley and the region's largest employer) to develop a partnership with an emphasis on non-clinical opportunities. This focus is novel but one that creates new opportunities for students and faculty to grow their skills through internships and research and also to contribute in meaningful ways to the overall health of our region. Given her experience working in clinical research at the University of North Carolina Medical School in the early years of her career, this opportunity to introduce the study of population health through a social science lens is one Dr. Anderson relishes.
  • Before arriving in Salem, Anderson taught at the University of Virginia, Washington and Lee University and Hollins University. Prior to coming to Roanoke College, Dr. Anderson spent time as a doctoral and postdoctoral fellow with the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia, where she completed her doctorate and served as a lecturer. During this time Anderson's research was in comparative historical sociology with a focus on ethnic and national identity.
  • Her book, “Immigration, Assimilation and the Cultural Construction of American National Identity,” examined the relationship between immigration and other social factors with stories of national identity over the course of the twentieth century. The narrative arc is provocative with a key finding suggesting that high levels of immigration precede resurgences of nativist national identities and politics. In our current historical moment there are significant resonances in political discourse with those from the first quarter of the twentieth-century.
  • Here on campus, Anderson is actively involved in one-on-one research with students, advising especially in the areas of public health and other health professions and participating in events focusing on social and health issues. Though much of her work deals with difficult and sometimes frustrating issues, Anderson reminds students repeatedly that her excitement about teaching in applied fields is that social change can happen only when we understand the underlying causes of problems. Problem-solving is a key focus in any course study or aspect of life and building the knowledge and skills and mindset to take on challenges is central to Anderson's pedagogy.