Ryan DeCarsky (He/Him)

About Dr. Ryan DeCarsky: 

Dr. DeCarsky is a white, queer, neurodivergent, cisgender man.  He was born and raised in the Bay Area of California to a single mom in a multi-generational, working-class household. Ryan received my BA from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he double-majored in Sociology and American Indian & Indigenous Studies and double-minored in History and Religious Studies. He later received his MA and PhD in Sociology from the University of Washington, Seattle. He also holds graduate certificates in Queer Sexuality Studies and Critical Disability Studies. 

PhD Dissertation: Queering the Toolkit: Sexual Health in the Era of Biomedical Prevention (2026)
Committee: Dr. Sara Curran, Dr.Jelani Ince, Dr. Sasha Johfre, Dr. Steven M. Goodreau, Dr. Oliver Rollins (MIT)
Funded by: The American Sociological Association, The University of Washington's Civic Health Initiative, and the Department of Sociology

MA Thesis: Too Queer for the Deaf and too Deaf (or Disabled) for the Queers: Identity-Based Stigma and Resistance amongst Deaf-LGBTQ+ folk in the United States (2024)
MA Committee: Dr. Judith Howard (co-chair; Emerita), Dr. Heather D. Evans (co-chair), Dr. Julie Brines, Dr. Tristan Bridges
Funded by: The Harlan-Hahn Foundation and the Department of Sociology
 

How I approach Research: Research is a circular process in which actions and reflections influence each other. Research is also a huge privilege; it is an opportunity for me to be a resource, a facilitator, and, most importantly, a learner myself.I strive to practice research that is queer, decolonial, and participatory. For me, this means doing research that centers the communities I work with and actively challenges the systems that produce inequality and harm.