2011 40 Under Forty: Ravi K. Perry
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, Clark University
Company location: Worcester
Residence: Worcester
Favorite color: Purple
Age: 29
Career highlights: My interest in politics began at an early age. A native of Toledo, Ohio, I have worked as a volunteer and campaign staffer for numerous campaigns there. The experience of seeing how local politics affects everyday people led me to study politics and also how politicians can best represent their constituents. Through eight years of study in college and graduate school, I honed my political interests around, how, given changing demographics, politicians can effectively represent minority interests in majority-Caucasian communities.
Biggest success: My current position as assistant professor of political science at Clark University, while having graduated with a Ph.D. from an Ivy League institution, all before I turned 30 — that’s pretty cool. I’m hopeful, that as a member of the millennial generation, that the educational environment will continue to help me create in others a desire to achieve a society not only based on fairness and equality, but equity as well.
Biggest challenge: The effort to eliminate transparent and veiled forms of racism, classism, ethnocentrism, homophobia, sexism and prejudice remains a challenge. The challenge begins with helping all of us remember that such structures of privilege still exist and we all are complicit in sustaining them to some degree.
Mentor: My father, Robert L. Perry. My father created the first university diversity curriculum requirement in the nation and served as director and chair of one of the earliest ethnic studies departments in the nation. Through his leadership, I was raised around many of the nation’s ethnic leaders and have truly learned the value of diversity. A sociologist by training, he has mentored dozens of undergraduate and graduate students. A professor can be many things to many people, but to me, my dad is the best ever.
Hidden talents: In addition to conflict mediation experience, public speaking and diversity workshop training, I’m pretty good with a tennis racquet, although my fiancé Paris is much better.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments