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Tess Pendergrast is a sociologist specializing in inequality studies and civil human rights, focusing on economic development and social movements. Her research primarily investigates environmental justice movements in the Southeastern United States, emphasizing ongoing struggles for local democracy. Tess also studies the opportunities and barriers to postsecondary education for incarcerated populations. She previously served as a Lecturer in the Department of Global Development and is currently a Research Associate with the Cornell Prison Education Program (CPEP), where she retains a faculty affiliation with Global Development. Tess holds a Master’s and PhD in Development Sociology from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her work encompasses a variety of themes such as socio-economic class, racial inequalities, conflicts over water and waste management, civil rights movements, and incarceration. Utilizing mixed methods in sociology, Tess prioritizes community-based participatory research designs in her studies. She co-leads a multi-year project examining the impacts of college education on prison outcomes and reentry initiatives. An experienced educator, she teaches courses related to politics, waste management, and international development and has been a regular instructor for the Cornell Prison Education Program since 2019.
Department of Architecture