Candace Evans

Year Entered Program

2018

Biography 

Candace M. Evans (she/they) is a doctoral candidate whose interests are broadly centered around chronic illness and disability, social theory, and inequality/stratification. They received their bachelor's degree in sociology and psychology from McMurry University in 2016 and their master's degree in applied sociology from the University of Massachusetts-Boston in 2018. Their dissertation research is focused the political and social construction of medical knowledge/expertise. Evans is also actively engaged in activist and advocacy circles for chronic illness and disability rights, where they draw on sociological insights and their own embodied experiences to raise awareness for invisible chronic illness and disability conditions and the unique needs and challenges of these groups during disaster and disaster recovery.

Candace recently accepted a full-time position as an accounts specialist and research professional at the Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado Boulder, where they have served as a graduate research assistant since 2019. In their current role, Evans supports daily operations at the Center, including managing the accounts for the Center’s federally-funded Research Award Programs and assisting in planning the annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop. Additionally, as the Center’s undergraduate research assistant coordinator, Evans works closely with students, many of which are navigating their first involvement with academic research and professional work experience. Evans is also actively engaged in various ongoing projects for the National Science Foundation-supported CONVERGE facility, where they serve as the co-lead developer of the CONVERGE Training Modules Series. Several of these modules have been supported by federal partnerships, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Geological Services.