M.A. - Social Gerontology - University of Pennsylvania, 1991
B.A. - History and Sociology - Rutgers University-Camden, 1988
A.A. - Psychology - Burlington County College, 1985

RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY, Camden, NJ (1992-present)
Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice and Center for Children and Childhood Studies
Adjunct Faculty (1992-present)
Teach a variety of courses (incl., Sociology of Aging, Sociology of the Life Course, Sociology of Work and Careers, Social Problems) which examine how demographic, economic, and social trends are continuously converging with profound social consequences. Dynamic interactions between people and their environments are explored, including how society's beliefs, values, and attitudes are reflected in public policy and in the aging and work experience of individuals.

Consultant (1999-present) Developed websites for the Center for Children and Childhood Studies, Childhood and Migration Working Group, Rutgers-Camden's soprano, Julianne Baird (Professor II of Music, Department of Fine Arts, Rutgers-Camden), the Rutgers-Camden Childhood Studies Program, CSRN, and the Johnson Park Restoration Project.

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, UPHS, Philadelphia, PA (September 2006 - 2007)
Delaware Valley Geriatric Education Center, Division of Geriatric Medicine
Consultant for Web Development
Designed and developed online version of training module, TLC for LTC.

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA (September 2000 - 2006)
Hartford Center for Geriatric Nursing Excellence
Project Manager for Web Site Development
Designed and developed web sites for the Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence, including the online training modules, Restraint-Free Care: An Online Training Module and TLC for LTC and I designed website for the School of Nursing's Office of International Programs.

WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY, Detroit, MI  (96-98)
Consultant
Assisted in the Philadelphia area recruitment and interviewing of a three-year medical anthropological/epidemiological research project on self-reported health, financed by the National Institutes of Health.

PHILADELPHIA GERIATRIC CENTER, Philadelphia, PA
Polisher Research Institute (10/93 - 12/96)
Project Director
Successfully managed operational phases of a National Institutes of Health (NICHHD) funded $ 750,000 medical-anthropological research project titled "Polio disabilities: Personal Meaning, Well-Being and Age." This 42-month, two-site project was a collaborative effort between the Philadelphia Geriatric Center and the National Rehabilitation Research Center, Washington, DC.

• Directed research activities in Philadelphia and Washington, DC from start-up to analysis. Set up administrative protocols, schedules and assisted in the development of research questionnaires. Trained and supervised research staff in both sites, resulting in a coordinated, efficient data management system. Recruited over 300 polio survivors in both metropolitan areas to allow sampling of informants according to the mandates of the grant. Trained staff in effective, culturally sensitive ways of relating with individuals from very diverse backgrounds; used ethnographic, structured and open-ended interviewing techniques.
• Disseminated preliminary findings at professional meetings; published in disability and aging journals. Co-authored a book chapter on aging, disability and ethnicity.

• Coordinated, administered, and evaluated educational programs, including courses and preceptorships in geriatrics; workshops for nursing assistants and family caregivers, and symposia on interdisciplinary topics in geriatrics/gerontology.
• Produced and disseminated teaching aids and curriculum development resources for faculty and health care professionals nationally; provided educational consulting services in geriatrics/gerontology to trainees in the Delaware Valley.
• Lectured on "Food and Culture," "Minority Aging," "Cross-cultural Aging," and "Disability and Aging"

• Edited the Wharton alumni newsletter, The Executive Bulletin. Featured articles on career development strategies and listings of employment opportunities for Wharton MBAs.
• Coordinated presentation schedules with the Wharton On-Campus recruitment office and other departments at the University of Pennsylvania to facilitate matches between MBA students and industry representatives.

• Hired and trained research staff (Rutgers students). Developed questionnaires, evaluated and analyzed data. Arranged and facilitated focus groups on and off-campus. Conducted door-to-door interviewing in African American and Latino neighborhoods. Assisted in the write-up of the research project. Performed content analysis of a local newspaper "Letters to the Editor" column (1880s -1980s).
• Translated articles from German into English from European psychology and psychiatry journals.

Rutgers University-Camden, Adjunct Faculty (1992-present)
Courses taught:

• Sociology of the Life Course (50:920:448), Spring 2000;
• Sociology of Work and Careers (50:920:431), Fall 1999, 2001 and 05, Spring 2002 and 07;
• Sociology of Aging (50:920:438), Fall 1998, 1999; 2000; Spring 2005 and 2006;
• Sociology of Aging (50:920:438), Summer Sessions 1992-1999, 2005;
• MLA Program: Cultural Diversity: Aging, Ecomics & Society (56:606:541), Fall 1998;
• MPA Program: Sociology of Aging (56:834:610), Fall 1998;
• Contemporary Social Problems (50:920:208), Spring 1995;
• Guest-lecturer, Contemporary Social Problems: "An Aging Society," Spring 1992.

• Cross-cultural Communication, 1992, 1993; Food, Culture and Aging, 1992, 1993;
• Minority Aging, 1993.

• Introduction to Social Work: "Aging and Disability," October 1993.

University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing (GNP graduate program) guest lecturer.

• Introduction to Web Design and Development, March 2006.

Deppen, M., "Social Security Reform: What's At Stake For Women?" Women's History Month lecture series, March 9, 1999.

Deppen, M., "How Culture Shapes Disability over the Life Course: Experiences of Aging with Polio Impairments." Presented at the Eastern Sociological Society Conference on April 2, 1995.

Easton, D. and M. Deppen, "Cultural Sources of Conflicts and Dilemmas in Disability: The Experiences of Aging with Polio Impairments." Presented at the Eastern Sociological Society Conference on April 2, 1995.

Wood, R. and M. Deppen, "Cultural Tourism: Ethnic Options and Constructed Otherness." Presented at the XIIIth World Congress of Sociology, July 20, 1994, in Bielefeld, Germany.

Deppen, M., "On the Dynamics of Socialization in Java, Indonesia." Presented at the 10th Anniversary Conference of the international journal, Theory, Culture & Society, held at Seven Springs, Champion, PA, on Aug 16-19, 1992.  

Wood, Monika Deppen, "Experiential Learning About Aging: A Simulation Exercise For Undergraduate Students." In Dena Shenk and Jay Sokolovsky, eds.  Teaching About Aging: Interdisciplinary and Cross-cultural Perspectives, 3rd ed., Association for Anthropology and Gerontology and Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, 1999.

Deppen-Wood, M., Luborsky, M. and Scheer, J. "Aging, Disability and Ethnicity: An African-American Woman's Story." In Jay Sokolovsky, The Cultural Context of Aging: Worldwide Perspectives, 2nd ed., New York: Bergin and Garvey, 1997.

Kurn, C., M. Wood, M. Luborsky, and J. Scheer. "Defining and Managing Health and Disability Over the Lifespan: Cultural Inquiries". In AAGE, Sociocultural Anthropology Section, Vol. 17(4), Fall 1996.

Scheer, J., M. Luborsky, M. Deppen, and K. McGowan. "My Good Leg Doesn't Like Me Anymore." In Makas, E., and Schlesinger, L, eds. End Results and Starting Points: Expanding the Field of Disability Studies. Portland, ME: The Society for Disability Studies and The Edmund S. Muskie Institute of Public Affairs, 1996.

Deppen, M. "Sociology of Aging." In The Life Course: A Handbook of Syllabi and Instructional Materials. Washington, DC: American Sociological Association, ASA/Teaching Resource Center, 1993.

Lavizzo-Mourey, R.J., N.B. Ellis, L. Taylor and M. Deppen, "The Impact of a Geriatric Education Center on Former Trainees." In Gerontology and Geriatrics Education, Vol 12(3), 1992.

Goertzel, T., M. Deppen and L. Haye. "Camden Women's Evaluation of Planned Parenthood and Other Women's Health Care Services." Rutgers/Camden Forum for Policy Research and Public Service, 1987.

• Interview with Jason Wilson, editor of The Smart Set from Drexel University, and co-editor (with Bill Bryson) The Best American Travel Writing 2000 "Old Like Me" - The hottest subject in sensitivity training? The elderly. http://www.thesmartset.com/article/article09280701.aspx
  
  
• quoted in "Changing our perceptions of aging," a 'Nature Top 50' science blog by the editors, staff and friends of The American Journal of Bioethics. http://blog.bioethics.net/2007/10/changing-our-perceptions-of-aging/
  
  
• quoted in Harry Moody's "TEACHING GERONTOLOGY," a national electronic newsletter from AARP.

***

• Rutgers University: Mentor - Early Student Participation Program (ESP) to reduce attrition rates of minority freshmen. Counseled African American and Latino students, 1987-1988.
• University of Pennsylvania, Institute on Aging: Mentor - Clinical Preceptorship Program for Health Care Professionals, 1990-93.
• University of Pennsylvania: Group facilitator - Diversity Education Program for incoming freshmen, 1991-1993.
• Hopeworks, Camden, NJ: Mentor to Trainee, 2003-05.

***

• City of Philadelphia, Office of Mental Health - Planning Committee Member, 1994;
• Lincoln University, Center on Aging - Advisory Board Member, 1993-1995;
• Philadelphia Mental Health and Aging Advocacy Committee, Member, 1991-1993;
• Hahnemann University: Consultant - Certificate Program in Gerontology, 1995;
• Theory, Culture and Society, Reviewer, 1994;
• Association for Anthropology in Gerontology: Margaret Clark Student Award, Reviewer, 1995-1998;
• Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, Reviewer, 1996-1997;
• Social Gerontology: An International Assessment. Storm King Publishing, Reviewer, 2005;
• The Transformation of Work in the New Economy, Roxbury Publishing Company, Reviewer, 2006.