Welcome to a New GWS Faculty Member: Melissa Hodges!

Melissa Hodges joined the department of Sociology and Criminology and the community at Villanova last fall. Receiving her PhD in Sociology from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, her primary research and teaching interests focus on the intersections of Race, Class, Gender inequalities and work and occupations.

Professor Hodges’ research agenda primarily focuses on the study of wage inequality among individuals and families both in the United States and cross-nationally.  Her dissertation research investigates the role of parenthood and gender dynamics within households in the production of wage gaps across families by race and social class in the US. While previous research has primarily investigated these phenomena across individuals, she finds that current wage inequality is partially situated within married couple households. She also finds that the gender wage gap within married couples grows with the addition of children to the household and that these effects contribute to overall US wage inequality.

Her ongoing research also examines the wage penalties associated with paid and unpaid caregiving and the effect of motherhood on women’s self-employment.  Her work has been published in the American Sociological Review and Gender & Society. She is a past recipient of the Reuben Hill Award from the National Council on Family Relations and the Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Research Excellence in Families and Work. In 2012, her work was also recognized by the American Sociological Association when she received the Article of the Year Award, Family Section.

Professor Hodges has had several opportunities to teach in diverse classroom settings ranging from urban high school to her current position at Villanova, but in all of her courses, she encourages students to engage critically in the social world around them. As an educator, her goal is to encourage students to apply sociological theories and concepts in making sense of their social world and to use these tools to make an impact on society. She is particularly excited to join the faculty at Villanova as the university’s emphasis on service to the community and social justice is well suited to both her research and teaching goals. She is also committed to continuously improving the learning experience of her students and appreciates student feedback on her courses. Her teaching interests include courses on the family, gender and work, race, class and gender, and political sociology. She currently teaches Introduction to Sociology and Sociology of Gender.

Professor Hodges received her undergraduate degree from James Madison College of Public Affairs at Michigan State University. A Detroit native, Professor Hodges is a serious Tigers fan, but also enjoys reading, gardening, and cooking in her spare time.