Sociology and Anthropology Alumnus – Amy Cohen

Career Path and Life Passions
Amy chairs the anthropology program at Okanagan College in British Columbia, and she co-founded Radical Action with Migrants in Agriculture (RAMA),  a non-profit advocating social justice for migrant and indigenous people.

Amy’s academic career path and activist passions directly connect to her undergraduate education at Southern Oregon University. Her SOU studies explored social inequality and cultural relativism, two features of the social world which are paramount in her current work with RAMA:

• “I’m really interested in how systems legislate inequality… Those conversations that we had in class as an undergrad definitely made me think about our responsibility to others and our community and the world”

As a college instructor, Amy notes, her SOU classroom experiences inform her own teaching style:

• “It was a model to me of what a professor should be like and I really try to emulate that because I valued it so much at the time as a student. I really want to be somebody who’s approachable… I don’t want to be that aloof person who’s standing at the front of the class saying, ‘Well, I know it all.'”

Useful Job Skills
While a student, Amy did archaeological research in the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA). This experience honed Amy’s data analysis and writing skills, which are essential in her research and advocacy work today. Amy recalls that her SOU professors challenged her to be creative and take risks:

• “They really encouraged us to kind of go out on a limb and make bold statements and not be afraid to be wrong. It’s a good thing…to be brave in what you’re saying.”
  

Advice for Students
Amy thinks that students considering an undergraduate degree in sociology and anthropology should “definitely do it!” The perspectives and skills learned in the program are useful in many career fields and life pursuits. She says that with this degree students will:

• “…become a person who’s more tolerant, more critical, more self-critical and self-reflective, more aware of the diversity of cultures around the world [and more knowledgeable] about the commonality that we all have.”

To learn more about RAMA, check out their website or Facebook page.