Biography

Colby Kopf is a second-year doctoral student in the Sociology Department here at UCF, focusing on social inequalities and completing a graduate certificate in Geographic Information Sciences (GIS). His research interests span a broad range of topics but tend to center around the intersections of identity and space/place, more specifically, he studies the creation and regulation of social spaces & places, including policing of the people within them. Colby’s current research seeks to understand perceptions of police legitimacy among LGBTQIA+ Orlando residents 10 years after the Pulse nightclub shooting. This line of research seeks to understand how tragedy impacts community, the turbulent processes of memorializing minoritized victims, and how identity as a sociocognitive structure stratifies experiences.

As an emerging leader within the department and beyond, Colby is actively involved in the American Society of Criminology, serving as Student Executive Counselor for the Division of Queer Criminology (DQC), chairing the Mentorship committee, and serving as a member of the ASC Meetings committee. Concurrently, Colby also serves as President and Graduate Student Representative of the Sociology Graduate Student Association (SGSA) at UCF, where he fosters departmental cohesion and collaboration among students and faculty. Upon completion of his PhD, Colby plans to pursue a tenure-track position within academia so he may continue to build knowledge, community, and professional development on the college campus and beyond.