Tracy Dehaan

About Me

I'm a former student of De Anza College. I took classes in 2007-2008 to make up transfer units I needed after switching from the Michigan to the California Community College system. De Anza is where I fell in love with Sociology. I remember walking out of my Intro to Sociology class with Dr. Jennifer Myhre and saying, "I've thought this way my whole life. You can study this!?!" I was hooked.

I graduated from San Jose State and immediately went on to graduate school at the University of Oregon (go Ducks!). I specialized in the following research areas: suicide, new media, social psychology, family, sexuality, and gender. My dissertation, titled "Dying to Succeed" focused on media discourse of the teen cluster suicides that occurred at Gunn High in Palo Alto and Cornell University in Ithaca from 2009-2014.

I also have published research that I conducted in collaboration with my colleagues at the University of Oregon and researchers at WorkLife Law (UC Hastings). Our research was a catalyst for getting San Francisco's "Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance" passed.

I've been teaching part-time at De Anza College since the summer of 2011. I frequently teach SOC 1, SOC 29, and SOC 35. Occasionally, I teach SOC 20. I feel privileged to work with such amazing students and colleagues!

In my free time, I enjoy cooking, going for walks with my husband, going out for beer and coffee (in that order), and playing with my three cats.

Classes I Teach

Winter 2025

CRN	Course	Sec.	Title
30482	SOC 1	63Z	Introduction to Sociology

Fall 2024

CRN	Course	Sec.	Title
20294	SOC 1	03Y	Introduction to Sociology
28172	SOC 1	53Z	Introduction to Sociology