Mary Kate Blake

Mary Kate earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of Notre Dame in May 2018 and joined the Sociology & Criminology department at Valparaiso University in August 2018.


Her research interests include sociology of education, social stratification, racial and ethnic self-identification, and research methods. She has completed qualitative and quantitative projects exploring organizational and individual obstacles facing low-income and minority students in educational achievement and attainment. Other work is situated on the racial and ethnic identification process of multiracial individuals.

In addition to this research, she has served as an Editorial Associate for the American Sociological Review, as the student representative for the Sociology of Education section of the American Sociological Association (ASA), and is on the leadership team for the Children and Youth section of ASA.