Educational Problems Division Business Meeting
(held in conjunction with Poverty, Class, and Inequality)
August 7, 2026
Meeting Minutes
Brief Introductions: Jackie Zalewski, Nicole Krauss, Andrew Krauss, Namrata Shokeen,
Emily Bonner, and Julia Gutierrez
Educational Problems Chair extended thanks to the Graduate Student Paper Committee—Derron Wallace, Kyla Walters, and Linda Waldron—and congratulations to the Graduate Student Paper Winners Joyce Kim and Tristain Ly for “Missing the Boat: Social Class and Extracurriculars in the Elite Education-to-Employment Pipeline” and the Honorable Mention Winner Annie Jones for “Racialized Framing in Higher Education Policy: A Case Study from Florida.”  
Chair of Educational Problems and Chair of Poverty, Class, and Inequality briefly discussed the possibility of merging the two Divisions. But all attendees agreed that the foci and mission statements for each of the two Divisions differed significantly. 
Chair of Educational Problems also said candidates need to be identified for a Division election that needs to take place over the winter months.
Chair introduced the conference theme for the 2027 conference: “Building Communities for Radical Change.” She gave a brief overview of the financial state of SSSP, the designation as a medium-sized Division, and the BOD guidelines to develop 2 solo sponsored sessions (one addressing the conference theme) and 4 co-sponsored sessions.
The remainder of the time, the Chairs and attendees brainstormed possible session topics for the 2027 annual meeting.
Solo-sponsored Sessions:
1. CRITICAL DIALOGUE-THEMATIC: Teaching to Transgress – (co-organizers from Educational Problems?)
2. Session Type? Inequality in Higher Education (co-organizers from Educational Problems?)
Co-sponsored Sessions
1. (Teaching Social Problems) WORKS IN PROGRESS: "Bring Your Own Brilliance”: Sharing Our Ideas That Have Been Successful in Teaching – Janelle Pham and Jackie Zalewski (co-organizers)
2. (Sociology, Social Work, and Social Welfare) Type of Session?? AI in Teaching and Practice – William Cabin (Sociology, Social Work, and Social Welfare (co-organizer from Educational Problems?)
3. (Community, Research, and Practice; Labor Studies) WORKS IN PROGRESS: Research Methodology Feedback – Namrata Shokeen (Educational Problems) (co-organizer from Community, Research, and Practice OR Labor Studies?)
4. (Institutional Ethnography) WORKS IN PROGRESS: What Can Institutional Ethnography Tell Us About Educational Problems? (Laura Parson/IE; co-organizer from Educational Problems?)