Kim Hoosier on Sociology

Kim Hoosier is a sociology professor at PVCC who teaches a variety of different courses on the subject. Hoosier has been working at PVCC since 1999. She has been teaching five courses per semester at PVCC since she started working full-time in 2004, four introduction courses and one sociology elective.

Hoosier started studying sociology at Appalachian State University and received her bachelor’s degree. She then continued with her education in sociology at both American University and the University of Virginia, receiving both her master’s degree and doctorate in sociology. Hoosier has stayed interested in the field since then and finds it important to study sociology. She said, “Hopefully, when you take a sociology class you think about the world a little bit differently, you see things, how things are connected, you see how society shapes individuals, and you see this big role of institutions. So I think if we don’t study sociology, we are missing a really very important perspective.”

As stated before, Hoosier teaches five classes, but she has a new favorite class that she recently developed and started teaching last year called Sociology of Gender. Hoosier said, “I taught it last year in the Fall, and it was great. I’ve got a lot to learn; I’m still learning, but the students were very engaged, and they were happy to help me along with some of the new terminology and development… they were very very helpful.”  

Hoosier is excited for the opportunity to teach this class again next Fall because of the evolving state of gender in the world. Hoosier does recommend taking Introduction to Sociology – SOC 200 at PVCC before taking this class though, because it goes over many theories and terms that are used in Sociology of Gender. Sociology of Gender – SOC 225 (45331) will be available to take on campus in Fall 2022 on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Hoosier is planning to stay at PVCC until she feels that she has stopped doing good work. She enjoys teaching students who are engaged in her classes and can connect the class to their own lives. For those interested in taking a sociology course and who are wondering if it meets a class requirement for their degree, this information can be found within each student’s Student Information System (SIS).