"Following the Paper Trail: Putting Institutional Ethnography into Practice"

A Lecture by Dr. Jeremy L. Brunson

Description: Institutional ethnography adopts a different ontology from traditional approaches to research than traditional sociologies. Rather than exploring a particular phenomenon at either the micro- or macro-level, institutional ethnographers begin in the everyday and trace its organization back to the remote apparatuses that co-ordinate it. In order to do this, an emphasis is placed on the role of texts as they are the means by which the everyday is organized and are how people in various locales are connected to one another. This is particularly true in an industrialized society. This talk provides an overview of institutional ethnography as a method of inquiry and explores the use of texts in two milieus in which interpreters work: video relay and legal.

Bio: Dr. Jeremy L. Brunson is an associate professor in the Department of Interpretation at Gallaudet University. He is a sociologist by training and holds graduate degrees in Justice Studies and Sociology from Arizona State University and Syracuse University, respectively. While at Syracuse University he earned a Certificate of Advance Study in Disability Studies and his Ph.D. in sociology. His dissertation, which was later published by Gallaudet University Press as Video Relay Service Interpreters: Intricacies of Sign Language Access (2011), explored the social organization of video relay service work. In addition to his academic credentials, Dr. Brunson holds the Certificate of Interpretation, Certificate of Transliteration and Special Certificate in Legal Interpreting all from the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf.

Dr. Christopher Stone will provide a response to the lecture.

Date and Time: 29 August 2013 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM
Location: Merrill Learning Center (MLC) - B111