Current DIFF Member Biographies

Dr. Shainaz Landge is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and BioChemistry (Statesboro campus) and is a member of Diversity and Inclusion (D and I) Collaborative and a part of Inclusive Teaching in COSM (sub team). She is a part of the Women Leadership Series – Employee Resource Group, which brings safe space, leadership and mentorship workshops to help enrich and guide the careers of women. She has been an active leader in the promotion of undergraduate research in the Chemistry Department by bringing the Freshman Research Initiative (FRI) program at the college level. In her spare time, she likes to read, write, watch movies and hang around with friends and family members.

Dr. Peggy Shannon-Baker  is an assistant professor in the Department of Curriculum, Foundations and Reading, an affiliate faculty member of the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program, and a Diversity and Inclusion Faculty Fellow at Georgia Southern University. Their scholarship bridges two areas: the prevalence and impact of systems of oppression such as racism and heteronormativity on education and the development and use of culturally sustainable research methods. This research is interdisciplinary, spanning the fields of teacher education, educational studies, Critical Race studies, gender and queer studies, and research methods. They use this work to inform their teaching in courses on educational research, qualitative research, and mixed methods research. 

Dr. Stacy W. Smallwood is an associate professor in the Department of Health Policy & Community Health in the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health and affiliate faculty in the Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies program at Georgia Southern University. Dr. Smallwood’s graduate instruction is in health promotion, education, and behavior, and his specialized training is in the area of HIV/AIDS prevention. His research focuses on promoting equity in health and well-being among marginalized communities. His interests include HIV prevention, sexual health, LGBTQ+ health, discrimination and health, and community engagement and organizing within marginalized communities. He is the Immediate Past Chair of the HIV/AIDS Section for the American Public Health Association, and currently serves as the moderator for the Bulloch County Beloved Community, a grassroots organization with the purpose of building connections across lines of social difference in Statesboro, GA and surrounding areas.

Dr. Clare Walsh is a Lecturer in Sociology at Georgia Southern University-Statesboro. She received an MA in Women’s Studies from the University of South Florida and a PhD in Sociology with a Concentration in Women’s Studies from the University of Florida. The intersections of sexuality, gender, and race, especially in the context of family and the scholarship of teaching and learning are her research interests. Her instructional style reflects a perspective based in feminist pedagogy.