Susana Avalos is queer victimologist and criminologist. They research transgender people’s social, criminal legal, and online experiences. Specifically, Susana is interested in how transgender people navigate safety, resist victimization, and the role of community support in overcoming trauma. Their dissertation titled "We Are Trans, But We're Not Transitional": Exploring Safety, Place, and Space in the Lives of Transgender Individuals in Southeastern Virginia was an extensive and intersectional examination of the relationship between safety, place, and space in the lives of transgender individuals, a topic not explored in the field. Briefly, the findings highlighted that for transgender folks, safety is an intersectional, multidimensional concept encompassing physical, social, emotional, and intersectional well–being influenced by systemic issues of transphobia and cisnormativity. In documenting trans people’s protective strategies, this research highlights how they exert agency within these constraints—transgender people are more than mere subjects to systems of oppression, they are active agents shaping their own spatial and social experiences.
Susana's work is nationally recognized by both the American Society of Criminology and the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. Their recent scholarly work has appeared in a variety of journals including Crime and Delinquency, Homicide Studies, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, Policing and Society, Critical Criminology, and Gender Issues, as well as in various edited book volumes.
At their previous institution (Old Dominion University) they were the recipient of an Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award – Classroom Instructor and received two Certificates of Commendation from ODU’s Academic Success Center for making a positive impact on the educational experiences of first-year students. Susana was drawn to the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at UMKC's due to their interdisciplinary approach to teaching, preparation for a career in various fields, and their community-based approach to teaching and research. Susana brings with them their passion for research, learning, community advocacy, and mentoring.
Ph.D., Criminology and Criminal Justice, Old Dominion University (2025)
M.A.S., Criminology, Law and Society, University of California Irvine (2021)
B.A. Criminal Justice, Minor: Psychology, California State University Bakersfield (2019)
AS-TT, Administration of Justice, Bakersfield College (2016)
LGBTQ+ Populations, Queer Victimology/Criminology, Place and Space, Public Policy, Gender and Crime, Social Inequality, Police and Queer Identities, Cultural Criminology
Ruth D. Peterson Fellow for Racial and Ethnic Diversity, American Society of Criminology (2024)
Teaching Award, Division on Queer Criminology, American Society of Criminology (2024)
Doctoral Summit Fellowship, Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (2024)
Seigel Fellowship (Honorable Mention), Division on Feminist Criminology, American Society of Criminology (2023)
Student Paper Award (Honorable Mention), Division on Queer Criminology, American Society of Criminology (2022)
Reed, S. M., Kibler, M. and Avalos, S. (2024). “...It’s just the barriers that can be so vast and different”: Domestic violence advocates’ perceived barriers for service across survivor subpopulations. Crime and Delinquency, 70(13-14), 3582-3606.
Avalos, S., Jackey, H., and Wickel, I.* (2024) 404 page not found: A mixed-method analysis of the news media framing of gender non-conforming victims of homicide in the U.S. from 2012-2022. Critical Criminology, 31(4), 913-931.
Avalos, S. and Carrillo, A. (2024) “Took my money, called me a guy and made me sleep in jail overnight” Police procedural failings identifying and interacting with trans folx. Policing and Society, 34(6), 489-504.
Avalos, S. (2023). A comparative content analysis of the media framing of trans homicide between trans men and trans women in the United States from 2016-2022. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 39(11-12), 2602-2628.
Avalos, S., DeJong, C., and Wood, H.* (2023). “La loca” y “La Victima”: An analysis of penalizing gender non-conformity after death. Homicide Studies, 28(3), 292-312.
Avalos, S. (2022). The Trans Experience with the Criminal Justice System. (Eds.) Maria Joao Lobo Antunes and Sarah E. Daly. Crime and Delinquency, Special Issue on Intersections of Gender, Race, and Criminal Justice, 70(5), 1505-1515.
Avalos, S., Kibler, M., and Monk Turner, L. (2022). Out of the closet and onto the Olympic floor: A qualitative look at social media user’s perceptions of transgender Olympic athletes. Gender Issues, 39(4), 437-454.