John J. Macionis was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree from Cornell University and a doctorate in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania.
John Macionis' publications are wide-ranging, focusing on community life in the United States, interpersonal intimacy in families, effective teaching, humor, new information technology, and the importance of global education.
In addition, John Macionis and Nijole V. Benokraitis have edited the best-selling anthology Seeing Ourselves: Classic, Contemporary, and Cross-Cultural Readings in Sociology. Macionis and Vincent Parrillo have written the leading urban studies text, Cities and Urban Life (Pearson). Macionis' most recent textbook is Social Problems (Pearson).
John Macionis is Professor and Distinguished Scholar of Sociology at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, where he has taught for almost thirty years. During that time, he has chaired the Sociology Department, directed the college's multidisciplinary program in humane studies, presided over the campus senate and the college's faculty, and taught sociology to thousands of students.
In 2002, the American Sociological Association presented Macionis with the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Teaching, citing his innovative use of global material as well as the introduction of new teaching technology in his textbooks.
Professor Macionis has been active in academic programs in other countries, having traveled to some fifty nations. He writes, "I am an ambitious traveler, eager to learn and, through the texts, to share much of what I discover with students, many of whom know little about the rest of the world. For me, traveling and writing are all dimensions of teaching. First, and foremost, I am a teacher-a passion for teaching animates everything I do."
At Kenyon, Macionis teaches a number of courses, but his favorite class is Introduction to Sociology, which he offers every semester. He enjoys extensive contact with students and invites everyone enrolled in each of his classes to enjoy a home-cooked meal.
The Macionis family-John, Amy, and children McLean and Whitney-live on a farm in rural Ohio. In his free time, Macionis enjoys tennis, swimming, hiking, and playing oldies rock-and-roll (he recently released his first CD). Macionis is as an environmental activist in the Lake George region of New York's Adirondack Mountains, working with a number of organizations, including the Lake George Land Conservancy, where he serves as president of the board of trustees.
Nijole V. Benokraitis, professor of sociology at the University of Baltimore, has taught the marriage and family course for almost 25 years. It's her favorite class, but her courses in racial and ethnic relations and gender roles run a close second. Professor Benokraitis received a B.A. in Sociology and English from Emmanuel College, an M.A. in sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana, and a doctorate in sociology from the University of Texas at Austin.
She is a strong proponent of applied sociology and requires her students to enhance their study through interviews, direct observation, and other hands-on learning methods. She also enlists her students in community service activities such as tutoring and mentoring inner-city high school students, writing to government officials and other decision makers about specific social problems, and volunteering research services to nonprofit organizations.
Professor Benokraitis, who immigrated to the United States from Lithuania with her family when she was 6 years old, is bilingual and bi-cultural and is very empathetic of students who try to balance several cultural worlds. She has authored, co-authored, edited, or co-edited eight books, including Contemporary Ethnic Families in the United States: Characteristics, Variations, and Dynamics; Feuds about Families: Conservative, Centrist, Liberal, and Feminist Perspectives; Modern Sexism: Blatant, Subtle, and Covert Discrimination; and Seeing Ourselves: Classic, Contemporary, and Cross-Cultural Readings in Sociology.
Dr. Benokraitis has published numerous articles and book chapters on such topics as institutional racism, discrimination against women in government and higher education, fathers in two-earner families, displaced homemakers, and family policy. She has served as both chair and graduate program director of the University of Baltimore's Department of Sociology and has chaired numerous university committees.
She has received grants and fellowships from many institutions, including the National Institute of Mental Health, the Ford Foundation, the American Educational Research Association, the Administration on Aging, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. She has for some time served as a consultant in the areas of sex and race discrimination to women's commissions, business groups, colleges and universities, and federal government programs. She has also made several appearances on radio and television on gender communication differences and single-sex educational institutions. She currently serves on the editorial board of Women & Criminal Justice and reviews manuscripts for several academic journals.
Professor Benokraitis lives in Maryland with her husband, Dr. Vitalius Benokraitis, associate chair and director of graduate studies in computer science, Loyola College in Maryland. They have two adult children, Gema and Andrius.