Hello! My name is Sirry Alang (she/her). I am a Medical Sociologist and a Health Services Researcher. I obtained a PhD from the Division of Health Policy & Management at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. I was also trained at Lehigh University, Bethlehem PA, and at the University of Buea, Cameroon. I am a currently a tenured Associate Professor of Sociology and Health, Medicine and Society at Lehigh University.
~Activist scholarship because I have to pick a side if I am truly about justice and equity~
My research is about figuring out how to dismantle systems of oppression that lead to poor health outcomes among populations marginalized by structural inequalities.
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Read the long scope below 🙂
My research explores the role of social structures and institutions in creating inequities in health status and health outcomes across the globe. I am interested in how racism and other structures and mechanisms of exclusion shape health over the life course.
I also examine and strive to address racism within my field and discipline.
In my research, I apply a range of methodologies including focus groups, ethnography, policy analyses, and quantitative analyses of complex surveys.
I am frequently invited to speak at a variety of events to a variety of audience. In addition to speaking, I train, develop curricula, and consult on issues around antiracism, racial justice, and equity, and on culturally responsive and radically inclusive practices.
Here are some organizations / institutions that I have worked with:
- Office of Minority Health Resource Center
- Hennepin County Ryan White Program
- Lehigh Valley Health Network
- National Council of Faculty Senates
- University of Minnesota Human Rights Lab and the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility
- Nativity Cathedral, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
- NextGen America
- Bridging the Gaps
- Public Agenda
- Altarum
- Minneapolis Urban League
My work focusses on the social production of health and disease, including outcomes such as unmet need, access to care, mental health and mental illnesses, help-seeking, assessment, and outcomes of treatment.
You can see some of my academic publications here.
I work at Lehigh University where I am a tenured Associate Professor of Sociology and Health, Medicine and Society. I am also a founding co-director of the Institute of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies and chair of the Health Justice Collaborative.
I am working with my local community to strengthen partnerships necessary to understand and eliminate health inequities using a community-based participatory action research approach.
I teach at the graduate and undergraduate levels. My courses include: Introduction to Public Health; Social Epidemiology; Racism and Health Inequities; HIV/AIDS and Society; Globalization and Health; Gender and Health, and Statistics for Sociological Inquiry. Teaching is the most exciting part of my job.
I earned my Ph.D. in Health Services Research, Policy and Administration from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in 2015. I have an M.A. in Sociology from Lehigh University and a B.Sc. in Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Buea in Cameroon.
Please fill out the form below for any inquiries including but not limited to speaking, training, or other consulting. If I am unable to work with you, I will suggest other amazing people.
