Associate Professor

Office Address: 2172c Au Sable Hal
Phone: (616) 331-3113
Email: [email protected]

• Ph.D. Sociology, Western Michigan University

Fields

Race and Ethnicity, Youth

Courses

• Social Problems
• Race and Ethnicity
• Sociology of Drug Use and Abuse
• Class, Race, Gender, and Sexuality

Current Research Interests

Underprivileged youth, particularly Latino, African, and Native American youths.

Drug Use/Abuse/Addiction Incidence, The War on Drugs and the Prison Industrial Complex

The Social Construction of Sexuality with particular focus on the Social Construction of Masculinity and the triad of violence. 

Biography

A native of Puerto Rico, Prof. Malaret has a strong interest in the future of underprivileged youths, particularly, Latino, African American, and Native Americans. He works closely with schools and social organizations throughout West Michigan, and serves as a mentor for Latino students in the Grand Rapids Public School system as well as GVSU. Most recently, he has been shifting his focus to the Social Construction of Masculinities and Male Archetypes, and the triad of mental health problems, drugs use, abuse, and addiction, including violence. He strongly believes that students should have as much community involvement and as much critical social issues literacy, which will later help them be more proficient in dealing with a culturally diverse U.S. of America. His specialty areas are race and ethnicity, drugs use and abuse, the social construction of gender and sexuality, and indigenous theorizing. In collaboration with various colleagues, he continues investigating the rapidly changing racial/ethnic landscape of West Michigan. Most recently, Prof. Malaret has been involved with a number of academic organizations such as the ASI (Academic Success Institute) and the ARC (Academic Recovery Camp) both in charge of promoting empowerment through accountability and educational learning ownership amongst primarily underprivileged/first generation students.  Other recent teaching initiatives include “design learning” and the PEW “faculty learning community”, designed to share and incorporate innovative ways to enhance the classroom teaching and environment.