AUM Faculty & Staff
Directory
Jason Shifferd
Senior Lecturer | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Jason Shifferd is a lecturer for the Auburn University at Montgomery Department of English & Philosophy. He primarily teaches English Composition and helps in curriculum design for the English Composition Program, including the creation of several assignments in the AUM edition of Writer/Designer and the creation of multiple Composition II themes, such as Fake News and Conspiracy Theories. He has also taught English Literature and has previously served as a writing tutor for the AUM Learning Center. A two-time alumnus of AUM, he earned his Bachelor of Arts in English in 2009 and his Master of Liberal Arts in 2014. His master’s thesis, available online and in print at the AUM library, is entitled The Case for Humor in the Classroom: An Annotated Bibliography. He has also published essays of literary criticism for Critical Insights including “Humor in the Autobiographical Writings of Maya Angelou: Maya Meets Mr. Julian” (2016) and “Maxine Peake’s Female Hamlet: A Survey of Responses” (2019). As a graduate student in 2013, he worked as a research assistant for the Department of Sociology and helped to publish the article “Who Lives Where: A Comprehensive Population Taxonomy of Cities, Suburbs, Exurbs, and Rural Areas in the United States” (2016) for The Geographical Bulletin. In 2019, he co-led a presentation on the AUM English Composition Program’s Teaching-for-Transfer curriculum at the Conference on College Composition and Communication in Pittsburgh. He is currently working on a creative writing side project and looking into options for pursuing a PhD.
Lacey Sloan
Associate Professor | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Angie Smith
Assistant Professor of Social Work | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Eric Sterling
Distinguished Research Professor, MLA Program Director | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Zongli Tang
Professor | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
I joined the AUM faculty in 2001 and received my Ph.D. in Demography/Sociology from University of Alberta, Canada, a master’s degree in Economics from Wuhan University, China, a master’s degree in Sociology from University of Regina, Canada, and a bachelor’s degree in Political Economy from Anhui University, China. Before joining the faculty at AUM, I was a social scientist at Massachusetts Institute for Social Economic Research, University of Massachusetts (Amherst), where, as the state demographer, I was elected as a member of the steering committee in the Federal State Cooperative Program for Population Estimates (FSCPE). I was also the principal investigator of several projects granted by the US Census Bureau and the state government. Currently, I am an Full Professor of Sociology at AUM.
My research interests cover the following areas: population studies, racial/ethnic studies (including ethnic cultures), political economy, and urbanization with a quantitative focus. I have published six books, a number of book chapters and research papers in internationally and nationally recognized journals. I have made more than 50 presentations and lectures at national and international conferences. The courses that I have taught include Introduction to Sociology, Research Methods, Social Statistics, Minority Groups, Demographic Techniques, International Economy, and Thinking Philosophy in China and Japan.
Courtney A. Waid
Associate Professor and Faculty Athletic Representative | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Samuel Wallace
Distinguished Senior Lecturer | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Val Winkelman
Professor | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Val Winkelman is an Auburn University at Montgomery Distinguished Research and Honors Professor and received the Alumni Association Award for outstanding service. She is one of the campus advisors for Omicron Delta Kappa. She has directed or designed over 200 plays, musicals, or ballets. She is an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and is a Past Fellow of the International Council of Fine Arts. She has been a Distinguished Guest for the Texas Educational Theatre Association. She has been serving as the Production Manager and as one of the Costume Designers for over 30 seasons at the Texas Shakespeare Festival. Val is the National Vice-Chair for Design, Technology, and Management for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. She received a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin and named a Distinguished Alumna of the University of North Texas where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Advising for the following
- All students majoring in Communication with a Theatre concentration
