Aaron Klassen
Aaron Klassen (PhD, 2018) is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Booth University College in Winnipeg, where he teaches in the Behavioural Sciences department, and where he directs the interdisciplinary, Community and Urban Transformation (CUT) program. CUT introduces students to ways of thinking about cities as globally networked and provides opportunity to apply that knowledge through practicum for credit.
Carleton’s PhD program in SocAnth has been invaluable for me. Ottawa provided a plateau of space for exploring academic questions and a fruitful season of time for answers gestate. The major factor in my studies, of course, was the people with whom I was privileged to develop relationships, from my supervisory committee, whose patient mentorship and drive for social justice inspired me to practice the craft of sociology with diligence, to my peers, whose collective effervescence motivated me to press on. I am a first generation academic, so these relationships and the collective pursuit of truth therein were vital in lifting me to the next level. It’s a gift I aim to pass along to my own students today.