Sociology
Dr. Deidre Hill Butler's diversity, equity, and inclusion work in higher
education and community organizations span thirty years. She recently
joined the inaugural diversity team at Union. She is the Director of
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion/Academic Chief Diversity Officer. She is also
an Associate Professor of Sociology. Her research areas encompass the
sociology of Black resilience. Her book *Beyond Mammies and Matriarchs:
Visibility of Black Stepmothers* with SUNY Press is forthcoming. She has
contributed to various edited volumes and has published widely in various
Africana academic journals. She is the former Director of the Africana
Studies program at Union College. She was the POSSE 5 faculty mentor. She
is an affiliate faculty member in the Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies
Program, American Studies Program, and Religious Studies programs at Union
College. She is a co-founder of the Union Coalition for Inclusiveness and
Diversity (UCID). She served as the Feminist Mothering Caucus Chair for the
National Women's Studies Association. Dr. Hill Butler curated two
community-engaged photo exhibits based on ethnographic interviews with
North Nashville residents and the interviews are part of the Nashville
Public Library Digital History Project. Both exhibits display images of
Black community resilience in the Bordeaux neighborhood of Nashville,
Tennessee since the 2010 devastating flood. She is also a Life Member of
the Association of Black Women Historians. She is an active member of the
Professional Women of Color Network of the Capital Region. She is a
frequent participant of the Faculty Resource Network and a staunch advocate
for and participant in academic writing retreats. She is on the leadership
team for the Capital Region Anti-Racism Alliance, on the Boards of Safe
Inc. of Schenectady and Cocoa house Inc. She is a member of the Duryee AME
Zion Church; Delta Mu Omega Graduate Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
Inc.; the Greater Albany Chapter of Jack and Jill of America; the
Schenectady Silhouettes; and the Schenectady Chapter of the NAACP. She is
co-teaching a Minerva online course this fall, Critical Perspectives and
Action on Inequality, Power, & Privilege, designed to engage students and
colleagues to develop action plans for social justice.
