UW Department of Sociology mourns the death of Joseph W. Scott, Professor Emeritus.
“During his long career, Joe was a staunch defender of civil rights and the advancement of all minorities and his teaching and writing reflected this,” says Bob Crutchfield, professor emeritus.
He published several articles and chapters, and two books entitled The Black Revolts: The Politics of Racial Stratification, and Little Ethiopia of the Pacific Northwest co-authored with historian Soloman Getahun.
His research scholarship appeared in leading sociology and political science journals including The American Sociological Review, The American Journal of Sociology, The National Journal of Sociology, and the Political Science Review. He was a pioneer and past president of the Association of Black Sociologists, and a past president and vice president of the North Central Sociological Association.
Professor Scott was honored with numerous awards including the G. Pritchy Smith Multicultural Educator Award given by the National Association for Multicultural Education; the Fulbright Scholar Award to Argentina (twice); the Ford Foundation Lecturer Award to Nigeria; and the Distinguished Alumni Award given by Central Michigan University.
Joseph Walter Scott was born in 1935 and raised in Detroit, MI. He earned his undergraduate degree in sociology at Central Michigan University in 1957, his master's and Ph.D. at Indiana University. After serving two years in the U.S. Army, Scott became the first full-time African American faculty member at the University of Kentucky in the spring semester of 1965. Scott retired as a professor emeritus at University of Washington after a career of 40 years of university professorships. He also taught at four other higher education institutions in the U.S. as well as in Nigeria and Argentina.
“Dr. Scott was a highly respected and admired professor and colleague at the University of Washington Department of Sociology and he will be missed.”