College of Arts & Sciences

Dr. Carmen Henne-Ochoa’s professional experiences are grounded in over 15 years of teaching, scholarship, and service that promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice (DEIJ). A sociologist, her research and teaching have focused on questions of social stratification and identity formation processes. At the core of her work and practice is interrogating disparities in the context of embodied difference and their connection to larger systems of privilege, power, and oppression. Her most recent scholarship examines the perils and opportunities of institutionalizing diversity in higher education.

As Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, she partners with divisional deans, department chairs, faculty, and staff to develop and implement foundational efforts that positively transform the College’s culture and climate. Her focus is on articulating a strategic DEIJ vision, cultivating shared understandings, and creating concrete opportunities for faculty and staff to build DEIJ knowledge and skills required for effective teaching, learning, and research.

Since launching the College-wide Diversity and Inclusion Advisory and Action Committee, she has served as its chair and co-chair. And, she works closely with the College’s Faculty Fellows to enhance institutional practices and to infuse DEIJ into existing curricula.

She has taught numerous courses that address social (in)equality, education and achievement, sociological theory, and Latin American (im)migration. Central to her teaching is privileging students’ personal narratives and lived experiences. By doing so, she fosters students’ authentic knowledge construction and thereby strengthens the validity and relevance of their learning.