Sharon Wright Austin, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Education | Professional Activities | Courses | Research Interests Publications | Awards and Professional Service

Education

• Ph.D., University of Tennessee at Knoxville, 1993
  
  

Professional Activities

• Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Florida, 2004 - Present
  

• Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Florida, 2001 - 2004
  

• Visiting Scholar of Political Science, The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, August 2000-May 2001
  

• Assistant Professor of Political Science and Black Studies, The University of Missouri at Columbia, August 1995-July 2000
  

• Associate Professor of Political Science and Black Studies, The University of Missouri at Columbia, July 2000-August 2002
  

• Assistant Professor of Pan African Studies, The University of Louisville, August 1992-May 1995
  

Courses

African American Politics
Cultural Diversity	(ISS 2160) - Syllabus
Race, Gender, and Politics
Asian American Politics	(POS 6157) - Syllabus
Honors American Government
Urban Politics
Community Analysis	(POS 4931) - Syllabus
Introduction to American Government

Research Interests
Sharon Austin's teaching interests are in American Government, Urban Politics, and African American Politics and her research interests are in African American mayoral elections, rural African American political activism, and African American political behavior. Her first book, Race, Power, and Political Emergence in Memphis was published in 2000 by Garland Publishing. She has also published scholarly articles in the National Political Science Review, The Journal of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, The Journal of Black Studies, and Politics and Policy and has written several book chapters. Her second book, The Transformation of Plantation Politics in the Mississippi Delta: Black Politics,Concentrated Poverty, and Social Capital in the Mississippi Delta, was published by the State University of New York Press in July 2006.

Publications

Manuscript-Published

• Sharon D. Wright. Race, Power, and Political Emergence in Memphis (New York: Garland Publishing, 2000), 218 pages.
• Sharon D. Wright Austin. The Transformation of Plantation Politics in the Mississippi Delta: Black Politics, Concentrated Poverty, and Social Capital in the Mississippi Delta (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2006), 200 pages.

Refereed Journal articles-Published

• Sharon D. Wright Austin and Richard T. Middleton IV. The Limitations of the Deracialization Concept in the 2001 Los Angeles Mayoral Election. Political Research Quarterly 57, 2 (June 2004): 283-293.
• Sharon D. Wright. Political Organization or Machine: The Impact of Harold E. Ford’s Endorsements in Memphis Mayoral Elections. National Political Science Review: The Journal of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists 7(Fall 1999): 210-220.
• Sharon D. Wright. The Tennessee Caucus of Black State Legislators. The Journal of Black Studies 31, 1 (September 2000): 3-19.
• Sharon D. Wright and Richard T. Middleton IV. The 2001 Los Angeles Mayoral Election: Implications for Deracialization and Biracial Coalition Theories. Politics and Policy (formerly known as The Southeastern Political Review) 29, 1 (2002): 692-707.

Refereed Book Chapters-Published

• Sharon D. Wright. The Activism of Black Women in Congress, 1967-1997. In African American Women’s Activism Since the Civil Rights Movement, ed. Kimberly Springer. (New York: New York University Press, 1999).
• Sharon D. Wright and Minion K.C. Morrison. The African American Political Experience. In The Historical and Bibliographical Guide to the African American Experience, eds. Arvarh Strickland and Robert E. Weems Jr. (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000).
• Sharon D. Wright. Clinton and Racial Politics. In The Postmodern Presidency: Bill Clinton’s Legacy in U.S. Politics, ed. Steven Schier (Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1999).
• Sharon D. Wright. The Deracialization Strategy and African American candidates in Memphis Mayoral Elections. In Race, Politics and Governance in the United States, ed. Huey L. Perry (Gainesville, FL: University of Florida Press, 1997).
• Sharon D. Wright Austin and Richard T. Middleton IV. Sustainability in the Twin Cities of Biloxi-Gulfport, Mississippi. In Governing Middle-Sized Cities: Studies in Mayoral Leadership, eds. Wilbur C. Rich and James Bowers (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2000).

Book Chapters-Forthcoming

• Sharon D. Wright Austin and Richard T. Middleton IV. The 2001 Los Angeles Mayoral Election: Implications for Deracialization and Biracial Coalition Theories. In Black and Latino/a Politics: Issues in Political Development in the United States, eds. Jessica Lavariega Monforti and William E. Nelson Jr. (Miami, FL: Barnhardt and Ash, 2006).
• Sharon D. Wright Austin and Richard T. Middleton IV. Racial Politics of Gaming in the Delta. In Resorting to Casinos: The Mississippi Gaming Industry, ed. Denise von Hermann (Oxford, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 2006).

Research Report

• Sharon D. Wright. Casino Gaming in the Delta: Race, Politics, and Gaming in Tunica County, Mississippi. In The Trotter Review of the University of Massachusetts, Boston 38 (Summer 2000).

Encyclopedia Entries-Forthcoming

• Sharon D. Wright Austin. Constance Baker-Motley. In An Encyclopedia of American Civil Rights and Liberties, eds. Otis H. Stephens Jr., John M. Scheb II, and Kara E. Stooksbury (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2006).
• Sharon D. Wright Austin. Rosa Parks. In An Encyclopedia of American Civil Rights and Liberties, eds. Otis H. Stephens Jr., John M. Scheb II, and Kara E. Stooksbury (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2006).

Awards and Professional Service

• 2004-2005 University of Florida University-wide Advisor of the Year
• 2004-2005 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Advisor of the Year at the University of Florida
• 2004-2005 Student Activities Center Student Organization Advisor of the Year at the University of Florida for my work with the Black Political Science Association
• Fellow, "Analyzing Poverty and Welfare Trends Using Census 2000 Data" Workshop at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, June 23-27, 2003.
• Outstanding Mentor of the Gatorlaunch Program during the 2002-2003 academic year.
• "The 2001 Los Angeles Mayoral Election: An Analysis of the Racial Threat Hypothesis and Black-Latino Electoral Coalitions" by Sharon D. Wright and Richard T. Middleton IV received the blacks and politics best paper award at the Annual Meeting of the Western Political Science Association, Long Beach, CA, March 22, 2002.
• My chapter "Clinton and Racial Politics" is published in The Postmodern Presidency: Bill Clinton’s Legacy in U.S. Politics which was selected by CHOICE AS ONE OF THE "Outstanding Academic Books of the Year" for 2001.
• Outstanding Mentor of the McNair Scholars Program during the 2001-2002, 2003-2003, and 2004-2005 academic years
• Freedom Journal Award, The Voice Magazine Recognizes Dr. Sharon D. Wright as an Exemplar of Outstanding Service to the Students of the University of Missouri-Columbia, April 25, 1999
• Profile in the Columbia Missourian newspaper, "The Wright Stuff: MU Professor Spearheads Civil Rights Education," October 19, 1997
• Certificate of Recognition, "The Association of Black Graduate and Professional Students Recognizes Dr. Sharon D. Wright for Dedicating her Time and Expertise to the 1998 Graduate Professional Development Workshop," April 3, 1999
• Certificate of Appreciation, "The Association of Black Graduate and Professional Students Recognizes Dr. Sharon D. Wright for Participating in the 1997 Graduate Professional Development Workshop," April 9, 1998
• "A Case Study in Intra-Racial Divisions: The 1994 Shelby County Mayoral Election" received the Rodney Higgins Best Paper Award of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, March 6-10, 1996
• Fellow, Sixth Annual Africana Studies Summer Institute at the University of Ghana at Legon, West Africa. The four-week institute (July 9-August 6, 1995) was sponsored by the National Council for Black Studies and a grant from the Ford Foundation
• Fellow, Summer Institute at the University of West Indies, Cave Hill in Barbados, West Indies. The four-week institute (July 19-August 22, 1994) was sponsored by the University of Louisville and the University of West Indies.