Faculty Profile for Dr. Melissa Janet Garcia
Dr. Melissa Janet Garcia
Assistant Professor — Sociology
Program Faculty — Sociology
Biography Section
Biography and Education
Dr. Melissa Garcia is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology and an affiliated faculty member for the Minor in Latino Studies at Texas State University. She received her Ph.D. in Sociology at Indiana University, Bloomington, a M.A. in Sociology from the University of Memphis, and B.A. in International Studies/Anthropology (Latin American focus) from Southwestern University.Research Interests
Her research and expertise are at the intersection of Immigration, Sociology of Education, and Latinx Sociology. Melissa’s research uses various qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews, archival methods, and ethnographic observations, to conduct research that aims to address social inequalities. In one strand of her current research, she examines how students experience inclusion or exclusion in Latinx and Asian panethnic student organizations and its implications. In a second strand of research, she is interested in how immigration-related public policies affect immigrants’ daily lives. In other research, Melissa, along with co-authors, have examined immigrants’ well-being and perceptions of discrimination.Selected Scholarly/Creative Work
- Smith, N. C., Brooks, C. V., Ekl, E., Ambriz, D., Garcia, M. J., Maupome, G., & Perry, B. L. (2024). The Informal Safety Net: Social Network Activation among Hispanic Immigrants during COVID-19. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 10(3), 371–388.
- Garcia, M. J., Brooks, C. V., Ambriz, D., Smith, N. C., Maupome, G., & Perry, B. L. (2023). Pandemic precarity: COVID-19’s impact on Mexican and Central American immigrants. Journal of Marriage and Family, 85(5), 1028–1046.
- Adem, M., Rao, S., Marrow, H. B., Garcia, M. J., & Okamoto, D. G. (2023). A Relational Approach to Perceived Discrimination: The Case of Asian Indians. Social Psychology Quarterly, 86(3), 357–378.
- Marrow, H. B., Okamoto, D. G., Garcia, M. J., Adem, M., & Tropp, L. R. (2022). Skin Tone and Mexicans’ Perceptions of Discrimination in New Immigrant Destinations. Social Psychology Quarterly, 85(4), 374–385.
- Lowe, M. R., Byron, R. A., Ferry, G., & Garcia, M. J. (2013). Food for Thought: Frequent Interracial Dining Experiences as a Predictor of Students’ Racial Climate Perceptions. The Journal of Higher Education, 84(4), 569–600.