Department of Sociology and Criminology

Professional Bio

Kira England is a PhD Candidate in her fifth year studying Sociology & Demography. Her research centers on medical sociology, high-risk drug use, mortality, and geography, using primarily quantitative methods. More specifically, she examines the medicalization of social problems, stigma, medical access and drug prescribing, population-level patterns the in use of substances associated with overdose, bereavement, and urban/rural differences. She also plans to expand her research agenda to examine medical education in the future. Overall, she is particularly interested in trends, change over time, and sociohistorical contexts.

Kira is also passionate about teaching, and sharing and exploring sociology with her students. She enjoys teaching by using current events and issues to illuminate social processes, and is a proponent of inquiry-based learning to encourage student research and personal interest in material. Prior to earning her M.A. in her current program here at Penn State, she earned a M.S. Ed. in Educational Policy from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, a M. Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction from Bloomsburg University, and a B.S. in Biology from Bloomsburg University.