Michael S. Walker, MS
Research Scholar and all around fun guy
Mike Walker holds a joint appointment with the Sociology Programs and the Docking Institute of Public Affairs at FHSU.
He joined the Docking Institute in 2000 as a research scientist. He was promoted to assistant director in 2006 and director in 2017. In the fall of 2019, Mike transitioned to a research scholar position. His academic specialties/interests include rural sociology, community theory, population change, research methods, the sociology of cinema, and environmental sociology. His applied research specialties include research design, survey and focus group research, strategic planning, and program assessment. He has been the lead researcher for more than 100 of labor and employment studies in Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Mike is a member of the Rural Sociological Society, the Community Development Society, wKREDA, and the Population Association of America. He served on the USD 489 Board of Education from 2018-2021 (VP from '18-'19 and Pres. from '19-'21). Mike received a master of science degree in sociology from Utah State University.
Prior to coming to FHSU, Mike performed ethnographic work in California, Colorado, Utah, and Idaho; and carried out survey research in California, Colorado, and Nebraska. He also worked on a few archaeological digs in southern Utah, worked as a journalist in the Washington, D.C. area, and served in the U.S. Army. While in the military, he received extensive survival and tactical training, and completed month-long training exercises in the deserts of California, the mountains of Utah, and the swamps of Georgia. This training, he says, comes in handy during faculty and staff meetings. He was nominated for the FHSU Pilot Aware in 2003, 2008, and 2013, but has never won. Sad. Loser.
Mike spends his free time with his kids, Michelle, pets, and enjoys the latest Star Trek-related stuff (such as STARFLEET).