Denton (Spud) Morrison received his Ph. D. from UW in Rural Sociology in 1962. Denton was on the faculty of Michigan State University for twenty-five years, and retired in 1990. (His wife, Bonnie Maas Morrison, retired from an endowed chair at the University of Minnesota.) They were in the antique business in Michigan for ten years (“Spud’s Shop: Good Old Stuff”). In 2002, they moved to Sarasota, FL, where they’ve enjoyed writing some poetry and humor (Spud) and watercoloring (Bonnie). Other than that, they spend all day doing what they used to do during the noon hour. Denton is proud to be one of the fathers of environmental sociology, and he’s glad to see the offspring is doing well at Wisconsin and elsewhere. The picture on the left is one of Bonnie’s paintings (titled “Central Park”).
Max Pfeffer, who received his PhD from the UW’s combined Sociology-Rural Sociology program in 1986, was recently appointed senior associate dean in Cornell University’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). As an associate dean, Max will oversee half the departments and programs in the college. He will assist these programs with strategic plans and budgetary issues. Max is also an international professor of development sociology and the chair of the Department of Development Sociology. Pfeffer’s research focuses on the sociology of labor markets and land use policy and management.