Kenneth L. Robinson

PERSONAL DATA

Associate Professor

Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice

Clemson University

Clemson, SC 29634

864-656-1449

EDUCATION

Ph.D., Cornell University, 2001, Developmental Sociology
M.P.A., University of Texas at Austin, 1988, Public Affairs
B.S., Clemson University, 1984, Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Clemson University 2012-Present, Associate Professor of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice, 2011-2012, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, and 2005-2011, Assistant Professor of Applied Economics and Statistics
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Fall 2018, Economics Research Service, Visiting Scholar
Clemson University, Extension Specialist, Sandhill Research and Education Center, Columbia, SC, 2005-
Cornell University, 2006-2007, Visiting Assistant Professor, 2001-2005, Research Associate, Department of Applied Economics and Management
Texas Governor's Washington, DC, Office of State-Federal Regulations, 1993-1994, Housing and Community Development Specialist
U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1990-1993, Economics Research Service, Assistant to the Director for Policy and 1988-1990, Presidential Management Intern (PMI)
South Carolina Coastal Council, 1985-1986, Planner

CONSULTING EXPERIENCE

SC Humanities and Smithsonian Institution, State Scholar (2017-Present), Currently serve as subject expert for the design, implementation, and evaluation of a statewide project featuring exhibit Crossroads: Change in Rural America co-sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service.
U.S. Department of Agriculture National Research Initiative, University of Missouri, Impact of Community Leadership Education in the New Economy, (2009), Conducted focus group interviews to assess the community effects of leadership education programs for four treatment counties in South Carolina
Cornell Business School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Center for Sustainable Enterprise, and S.C. Johnson Foundation, Racine, Wisconsin (October 19-22, 2004), Designed strategies for "base of the pyramid" economies.

MEMBERSHIPS

Member, Planners Network (2013-)
Member, Southern Rural Sociological Association (2010-)
Member, American Sociological Association (2005-)
Member, Rural Sociological Society, RSS (1995-)
Member, South Carolina Economic Developers Association, SCEDA (2006-2009)

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Member, Community Impact Fund Grant Review Committee, SC Association for Community Economic Development (2016-)
Co-Chair, Annual Meeting Program Committee, Rural Sociological Society (2016-)
Mentor, University Professional Internship and Co-op Program, Community Studies Internship (2014-Present)
Reviewer, Journal of Rural Social Scientists (2016-)
Executive Council, Rural Sociological Society (2014-2016)
President, Southern Rural Sociological Association (2015-2016)
Chair, Membership Committee, Rural Sociological Society (2014-2016)
Vice President, Southern Rural Sociological Association (2014-2015)
Program Chair, Southern Rural Sociological Association (2013-2014)
Program Chair-Elect, Southern Rural Sociological Association (2012-2013)
Invited Faculty, Liberty Fellowship Summit (2011)
Advisory Committee Member, Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development (2010-)
Clemson University Small Farm Contact, US Department of Agriculture - National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2010-)
Compliance Academy Advisory Committee Member, SC Association of Community Development Corporations (2010-2014)
Reviewer, US Department of Agriculture - Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Agricultural Prosperity for Small and Medium-Sized Farms Review Panel, CSREES, (2009)
Selected Presentations Reviewer, Annual Meetings of the American Agricultural Economics Association (2007)
Member, Research Team, Southern Rural Development Council, Committee on Strengthening Citizen-Centered Governance in the Rural South (2008-2012)
Member, Carolina Farm Stewardship Association (2008-)
Reviewer, Journal of Ecotourism (2008)
Member, Rural Sociological Society, Awards Committee (2007-2010)
Reviewer, Rural & Community Development Panel, Small Business Innovation Research Panel, CSREES (2007-2008)
Participant, Research Conference on Entrepreneurship among Minorities and Women, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School (2006)
Participant, Entrepreneurship Bootcamp, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School (2005)
Market Matters, Inc., Pretoria, South Africa, Board of Directors (2008-2013)
Market Matters, Inc., Ithaca, NY, Board of Directors, Governance Committee (2003-2011)
Professional Agricultural Workers Conference, Tuskegee University, AL, Advisory Board Member (2002-2006)

BOOKS AND MONOGRAPHS

Lori A. Dickes and Kenneth L. Robinson. Chapter 30 Rural Entrepreneurship in Rural American in a Globalizing World, edited by Conner Bailey, Leif Jensen and Elizabeth Ransom (2015), Morganton, West Virginia: West Virginia State University Press.
Tihanyi, Krisztina and Kenneth L. Robinson. Chapter 1 Setting the Scene in Case Studies of South Africa's Emerging Farmers and Agribusinesses, edited by Edward Mabaya, Krisztina Tihanyi, Mohammed Karaan, and Johan van Rooyen. Stellenbosch, South Africa: SunMedia. October 2011.
Robinson, Kenneth L. et al. The Arkansas Delta Produce Marketing Association: Rural Entrepreneurship in the US Delta Region. Chapter 11 in The Handbook of Research on Entrepreneurship in Agriculture and Rural Development, edited by Gry Alsos, Sara Carter, Elisabeth Kiunggren, and Friederike Welter. (2011), Northhampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing, Inc.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Ralph D. Christy, and Ntam Baharanyi (editors), Empowering Rural Communities through Entrepreneurship: Experiences from the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, (2004), USDA Rural Development, Washington, DC.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS

Robinson, K.L. and David W. Hughes, "Towards Reform: A Du Boisian Examination of Food Insecurity and Rural Development in the Southern United States", Social Problems (Under Review)
Robinson, K.L. "Food Deserts in Upstate South Carolina: How do We Both Ethically and Sustainably Feed the Region's Food Insecure", Journal of Healthcare, Science and the Humanities, Vol. 1, No. 1 (2015)
Dickes, Lori and Kenneth L. Robinson, “An Institutional Perspective on Rural Entrepreneurship,” American Journal of Entrepreneurship, Vol. 7, No. 2 (2014).
Dickes, Lori and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Community Partnerships as a Tool to Reduce Regional Labor Gaps: A South Carolina Regional Case Study,” Journal of the Community Development Society 2012.
Slocum, Sue, Kenneth L. Robinson, and Kenneth F. Backman, “Tourism Pathways to Prosperity: Perspectives on the informal economy in Tanzania” Tourism Analysis: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 16, No. 1/2 (2011).
Dickes, Lori A. and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Enhancing Cluster Effects to Reduce Regional Labor-Supply Gaps: An Example in South Carolina,” Journal of Extension (October 2010).
Young, Frank W. and Kenneth L. Robinson, “An Ecological Regional Analysis of South Carolina,” Social Indicators Research (August 2010).
Robinson, K.L., K. Wilson, C.E. Carpio and D. Hughes, “Linking Sustainable Agriculture and Community Development: The Lowcountry Food Bank’s Use of Locally Grown Foods,” Journal of the Community Development Society, Vol. 38, No. 3, Fall 2007.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Wylin Dassie, and Ralph D. Christy. “Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development as a Rural Development Strategy. Journal of Southern Rural Sociology, Vol. 20, No. 2, 2004.
Rainey, D.V., Robinson, K. L., Allen, I., and Christy, R.D., “Essential Forms of Capital for Sustainable Community Development,” American Journal of Agricultural Economics, (August 2003).
Robinson, K. L., T. A. Lyson, and R. D. Christy, “Civic Community Approaches to Rural Development in the South: Economic Growth with Prosperity,” Journal of Applied and Agricultural Economics, (August 2002).

CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS (REVIEWED)

Robinson, Kenneth L., Wylin Dassie, and Ralph D. Christy, “Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development as a Rural Development Strategy,” Empowering Rural Communities through Entrepreneurship: Experiences from the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, USDA Rural Development, Washington, DC (December 2004).

RESEARCH REPORTS

Barkley, David L., Daniel C. Eades, Lori A. Dickes, Mark S. Henry, David W. Hughes, and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Workforce Occupations and Skills Projections: Upper Savannah Council of Governments Region 2000-2016 Executive Summary,” EDA University Center for Economic Development and Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development, Clemson University, UCED Research Report 06-2008-01, (June 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L., Katherine Leith, and Rebekka M. Dudensing, “SCACDC Survey Report,” Clemson University, South Carolina Association of Community Development Corporations (SCACDC), (February 2007).
Hanrahan, Charles and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Agricultural Trade Legislation in the 100th Congress,” Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service Report, (Summer 1987).

OTHER SCHOLARLY PUBLICATIONS

David W. Hughes, Daniel Eades, Kenneth Robinson, Carlos Carpio, Olga Isengildina, and Cheryl Brown, “What Is the Deal with Local Food Systems: Or, Local Food Systems from a Regional Science Perspective,” UCED Working Paper 11-2007-01, EDA University Center for Economic Development.
Nyankori, James and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Emergency Department Visits and Implications for Health Care Disparities in South Carolina,” Clemson University AES Department Working Paper Series, May 2007.
Falk, William W., Kenneth L. Robinson, et. al., “Rooted in Place: Author Meets Critics,” The Rural Sociologist, Vol. 25, No. 4, December 2005.
Robinson, K. L. “Sunset over the Sunbelt: An Empirical Analysis of Two Alternative Theories of Development in the Southern United States.” Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (2001).
Reeder, Richard J. and Kenneth L. Robinson, "Enterprise Zones: Assessing Their Rural Development Potential," Policy Studies Journal, Vol. 20, No. 2, 264-75, (1992).
Reeder, Richard J. and Kenneth L. Robinson, "State Enterprise Zones in Nonmetro Areas: Are They Working?" Rural Development Perspectives, 30-35, (June-September 1991).

PRESENTATIONS

Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Paper Presentation, “Assessing the Effectiveness of the Service Learning Approach to Teach Social Impact Analysis.” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Portland, OR, July 2018.
Robinson, Kenneth L. and Bruce Ransom, Invited Paper Presentation, “The 2016 Presidential Election in South Carolina Lowcountry Promise Zone.” Citadel Biennial Symposium on Southern Politics, Charleston, SC, March 2018.
Robinson, Kenneth L. and Bruce Ransom, Invited Paper Presentation, “The 2016 Presidential Election in the South Carolina Lowcountry (Rural) Promise Zone,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Columbus, OH, July 2017.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Paper Presentation, “Federal Rural Promise Zone Designation: Potential Impact on Persistent Poverty Counties in South Carolina.” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada, August 7-10, 2016.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Panelist, Exploring Your Institutional Fit, Future Professors Institute, Cornell University Graduate School, June 28, 2016.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Presidential Address, “Exploring SRSA’s Role in Leading the Conversation toward Positive Social Action and Change across the South: Pivotal Dialogue Sociological Deconstruction of Today’s Critical Issues.” Southern Rural Sociology Association Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX, February 8, 2016.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Panelist, Cornell University Alumni Forum on Environmental Justice, Africana Studies and Research Center, Ithaca, NY, October 6, 2015.
Robinson, Kenneth L. and David W. Hughes, Invited Paper Presentation, “Potential Impacts of Locally Grown Foods on Upstate S.C. Food Deserts.” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, WI, August 5-9, 2015.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Panelist, “Food and Culture: Strategies to Address Food Access in Local Food Systems.” Carolina Farm Stewardship Association Annual Meeting, Greenville, SC, November 11, 2014.
Robinson, Kenneth L. Invited Paper Presentation, Respondent for plenary address titled “Social Justice, Food Systems and the Agricultural Black Belt South.” Public Health Ethics Intensive Course (PHEI), Tuskegee University, AL, April 1-4, 2014.
Robinson, Kenneth L. and Kimberley Brown. Paper Presentation. “Establishing Local Food System Networks: The Prospect of Linking Small Farmers with Food Banks and other New Markets.” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, New York, NY, August 6-9, 2013.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Using Local Food Banks to Promote Sustainability of Small and Limited Resource Farms,” AFRI Project Director Meeting Prosperity for Small and Medium-Sized Farms and Rural Communities Programs, Washington, DC, February 21-22, 2013.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Paper Presentation, “Progress and Innovation in Regional Food Systems: Perspectives from SC, VT, and MI,” Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food (KYF2) Interagency Taskforce Meeting, Washington, DC, February 20, 2013.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Paper Presentation, “An Examination of the Prospect of Linking Small Farmers with Food Banks and other New Markets,” Southern Rural Sociological Association, Orlando, FL, February 4, 2013.
Robinson, Kenneth L. Invited Presentation, “Working with Local Government,” South Carolina Association of Community Development Corporations (SCACDC) Compliance Academy, Charleston, SC, November 16, 2012.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Faculty Advisor, “Graniteville and the Horse Creek Valley: A Social Impact Analysis & Demographic Profile,” a Clemson student presentation at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region IV Regional Environmental Justice Conference, Atlanta, GA, August 16-17, 2012.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Presentation, “Using Local Foods Banks to Improve Sustainability of Small and Limited Resource Farms,” Clemson Local/Regional Food Systems Development Summit, Clemson University Outdoor Lab, March 9, 2012.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Invited Paper Presentation, “Healthy Living: Implications of access to locally grown foods in the Lowcountry,” Southern Rural Sociological Association, Birmingham, AL, February 6, 2012.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Using Local Food Banks to Promote Sustainability of Small and Limited Resource Farms,” AFRI Project Director Meeting Prosperity for Small and Medium-Sized Farms and Rural Communities Programs, Miami, FL, November 7 – 9, 2011.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Ken Robinson: A Personal Exploration of the Discipline through Teaching, Research and Outreach,” ProSem Presentation, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, October 7, 2011.
Robinson, Kenneth L., Paper Presentation, “The Probability of Entrepreneurial Development Programming in South Carolina,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Boise, ID, July 28-30, 2011.
Hughes, David W., Kenneth L. Robinson, and R. David Lamie, “Sustainability and Locally Grown Markets.” 2010 Southern Outlook Conference, Atlanta, GA, September 28, 2010
Robinson, Kenneth L., Panel Organizer, “Thinking Outside the Box: Jobs for RSS Grads with Government and Nonacademic Organizations,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia, August 14, 2010.
Dickes, Lori and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Community Partnerships as a Tool to Reduce Regional Labor Gaps: A South Carolina Regional Case Study,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia, August 13, 2010.
Robinson, Kenneth L. and Victoria T. Chanse , “Partnering with PSA Institutes for Off-Campus Service-Learning Activities,” Service Alliance Faculty Fellows Workshop, Office of Teaching Effectiveness and Innovation, Clemson University, February 19, 2010.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “An Ecological Regional Analysis of South Carolina,” Paper Presentation, Southern Association of Agricultural Scientists/Southern Rural Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL, February 7-9, 2010.
Hughes, David W., David Lamie, and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Clemson Institute
for Economic and Community Development, Clemson Extension Community Development, Activities and Programs,” SC State Legislative Staff Presentation, Sandhill Research and Education Center, Columbia, SC, November 16, 2009.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Clemson Student Organic Farm Panel/Workshop,” The Student Organic Farm as a Multidisciplinary Teaching Resource, Office of Teaching Effectiveness and Innovation, October 23, 2009
Adams, Keenan J., Drew Lanham, and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Initial Findings of Land Ethic Among African American Landowners in South Carolina,” Poster Presentation (Awarded First-In-Show), Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, Wisconsin, July, 30 - August 2, 2009.
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Networking, Mentorship and Success in Rural Sociology, Panelist, Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, Wisconsin, July 31, 2009.
Barkley, David L., Daniel C. Eades, Lori A. Dickes, Mark S. Henry, David W. Hughes, and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Integrating Skills Gaps and Occupational Demand into Regional Economic Development Policy: The Upper Savannah Region as a Case Study,” Paper Presentation, Annual Meeting of the North American Council for Regional Science, Brooklyn, NY (November 19-22, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Civic Community Approaches to Rural Development in the South: Economic Growth with Prosperity,” Invited Research Presentation, Kettering Foundation, Dayton, OH (November 12, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Heir Property and Its Impact on Housing and Poverty in SC,” Invited Speaker, World Habitat for Humanity Day, Clemson University, Clemson, SC (October 6, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Growing Foods Locally Creative Inquiry at Clemson University,” Invited Speaker and Coordinator of Student Volunteers, Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, On-Farm Benefit Dinner, Greenbrier Farms, Easley, SC (October 4, 2008).
Barkley, David L., Daniel C. Eades, Lori A. Dickes, Mark S. Henry, David W. Hughes, and Kenneth L. Robinson, “Workforce Occupations and Skills Projections: Upper Savannah Council of Governments Region 2000-2016 Executive Summary,” Presentation to the Upper Savannah Council of Governments, Greenwood, SC (June 25, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L. Invited presentation sponsored by Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development to Clemson University Trustee Dr. Louis Lynn and Development Director Mr. Brian O'Rourke on my ongoing efforts to integrate community and economic development outreach efforts into my teaching and classroom activities. Sandhill Research and Education Center, Columbia, SC (June 17, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L. "Goal-Setting," Invited presentation sponsored by the Center for Research on Health Disparities to a group of Anderson-area middle school students during the Summer Enrichment Program at Westside Community Center, Anderson, SC (June 16, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L. “Community Economic Development: Integrating Teaching, Research, and Outreach across South Carolina.” Invited Seminar Presentation, Social Sciences Division, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO (March 3, 2008).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Cooperation in the Delta: A Case Study of the Arkansas Delta Produce Marketing Association, LLC,” Frameworks for Entrepreneurship Research in Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development, Kansas City, MO (October 18-19, 2007).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Promise or Pipe Dream: Rural Entrepreneurship in a Global World,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Louisville, KY (August 2006).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Author Meets Critics: William W. Falk’s ‘Rooted in Place,’” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL (August 2005).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Designing and Implementing Successful Community Projects: A Discussion,” Making Markets Matter workshop, Stellenbosch, South Africa (September 2002).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Civic Community and Income Inequality,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL (August 2002).
Robinson, Kenneth L. and Ralph D. Christy, “Emerging Markets and the Hip-Hop Community,” State of Black America Conference, Cornell University (April 2002).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Civic Community: An Alternative Way of Thinking about Rural Development,” Department of Rural Sociology Seminar, Cornell University (February 22, 2002).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “Emerging Markets in Southern Africa,” Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics Seminar, Clemson University, SC (October 2001).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “An Analysis of Sociological and Neoclassical Models of Development: A Case for the Civic Community Approach,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (August 2001).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “What Sociologists Can Tell Economists about Poverty and Inequality,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (August 2000).
Robinson, Kenneth L. “Do Sociological Concepts Matter? Civic Community in the American South,” Professional Agricultural Workers Conference, Tuskegee University, Alabama (December 1999).
Robinson, Kenneth L. “The Impact of Land Tenure Pattern on Monthly Household Income in Rural South Africa,” Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Portland, Oregon (August 1998).
Robinson, Kenneth L., “How to Conduct Research and Live in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa on a Fulbright Fellowship,” U.S. Information Agency (USIA), Fulbright Pre-Departure Orientation Conference, Washington, DC (June 1998).

HONORS AND AWARDS

Distinguished Service Award, Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management (PRTM) Department, 2018
Presidential Award, Southern Rural Sociological Association, 2016
Southern Region Excellence in Community Development Work – Team Award, Turning the Tide on Poverty, National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP), NACDEP Conference, 2011
Nominee, Rural Sociological Society, Nominations Committee, 2011
Nominee, SC Commission on Higher Education Service Learning Award, 2009
“Preparing Future Faculty” Professional Development Certificate, Rural Sociological Society, August 2009
Service Alliance Fellow, Clemson University, 2008-2010
Certification in Social Impact Assessment, International Association for Impact Assessment, June 2008
State University of New York Fellow, Cornell University, 1995-1996
U.S. Department of Agriculture Superior Service Award, June 1992
Alpha Zeta Agricultural Honorary Society (1983)
Omicron Delta Epsilon International Economics Honor Society (1983)