Susan R. Rankin
Susan R. Rankin, Ph.D.
Research Associate, CSHE
Associate Professor of Education, College Student Affairs, EPS
Dr. Susan Rankin is a Research Associate in the Center for the Study of Higher Education and Associate Professor of Education in the College Student Affairs Program at The Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Rankin earned her B.S. from Montclair State University in 1978, a M.S. in Exercise Physiology from The Pennsylvania State University in 1981, and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration in 1994, also from Penn State. Before moving into her current position, Dr. Ranking served for 17 years as the Head Coach for Women's Softball and Lecturer in Kinesiology at Penn State. She has presented and published widely on the impact of sexism, racism and heterosexism in the academy and in intercollegiate athletics. Dr. Rankin's current research focuses on the assessment of institutional climate and providing program planners and policy makers with recommended strategies to improve the campus climate for under-served communites.
Dr. Rankin has collaborated with over 70 institutions/organizations in implementing assessments and developing strategic plans regarding social justice issues. In her advocacy work, Dr. Rankin is a founding member of the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals, a network of professionals doing advocacy work for LGBT people on college campuses and the Statewide Pennsylvania Rights Coalition, a network of individuals and organizations across the Commonwealth committed to securing and defending full civil rights for LGBT individuals.
Dr. Rankin is the recipient of the American College Personnel Association's 2008 Voice of Inclusion Medallion. The award recognizes individuals who embody the student affairs values of social justice.
National Public Radio (NPR) Interview with Ari Shapiro (October 1, 2010)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130258246
Although Rutgers student Tyler Clementi was not openly gay, the broadcast of his romantic encounter with a man on the Internet is being linked to his apparent suicide. New research shows campuses have not become significantly safer for students and faculty who are not straight. Sue Rankin, a Penn State professor, talks to Ari Shapiro about her research into gay, lesbian and transgender issues on college campuses.
Link to the Executive Summary of the report:
