Successful Graduates

A degree in sociology from Coe makes possible a wide variety of career opportunities. Some Coe graduates engage in counseling, case work, corrections, urban planning, and program evaluation for government agencies and private organizations. Others find rewarding employment in secondary education, marketing, sales, and personnel work. Here are some examples of what Coe sociology graduates are doing now:

  • Chad Kepros (sociology), graduate of the University of Iowa School of Law and employed by the law practice Bray & Klockau, where he specializes in family law and domestic relations
  • Libby Gottschall Slappey (sociology), Associate Director of Development for the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
  • Steve Harford (sociology), program coordinator, AEGON USA Inc.
  • Jorge Pena (sociology), Substance Abuse Counselor, Midamar Corporation
  • Amber Mason-Lupkes (sociology) Federal Probation Officer, Cedar Rapids
  • Diane Nelson, research coordinator, Vernon Research Group
  • Kate DeTrent, Adoption Coordinator for Lutheran Family Services of Colorado

Successful Students

  • Eric Haugee (sociology) spent a spring semester on the ACM's Urban Studies Program in Chicago. In addition to his academic class work there, he was an intern with an organization called Youth Guidance, which provided social work services in the inner city neighborhood of Cabrini-Green. He is currently a Government Affairs Specialist at Ready 4K.
  • Hilary Sloan (sociology and Spanish) studied in Costa Rica in the fall on the ACM's program there. She was active on Coe's campus in a wide range of pursuits, including soccer and track, being a resident assistant in her residence hall, and being a tutor in Coe's Writing Center. She is currently a Senior Consultant at Bearing Point.
  • Lynda Laughlin (sociology) did an honors thesis at Coe on the impact of welfare and housing reform on low-income families. She received a Ph.D. from Temple University in Philadelphia and works for the U.S. Census Bureau as a family demographer. At Temple she wrote her dissertation on social networks among working mothers in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Philadelphia, and the impact those networks have on employment and earnings.