Loretta Bass is the Edith Kinney Gaylord Presidential Professor of Sociology at the University of Oklahoma, where she has served as Department Chair for the last six years. She earned her PhD in Sociology from the University of Connecticut and completed a two-year appointment within the Fertility and Family Branch of the Population Division at the U.S. Census Bureau. Loretta is a social demographer who does research and publishes on stratification issues and civil and human rights in the United States, Africa, and Europe. Her book, African Immigrant Families Another France (2014), examines the integration experiences of international migrants from Sub-Saharan Africa to France. Her prior book, Child Labor in Sub-Saharan Africa (2004), offers a window on the lives of child workers in 43 African countries. Empirical research is essential for advocacy and systems change. Thus, Loretta writes with the aim of her research being useful to activists and policymakers. Loretta is currently the Series Editor for the Sociological Studies of Children and Youth (SSCY) and serves on the Editorial Board for the journals Social Problems, Population Research and Policy Review, and Sociology. In addition, she has served in leadership positions in the American Sociological Association's (ASA) Children and Youth Section and International Migration Section and also served on the ASA National Membership Committee. Active in the International Sociological Association (ISA), Loretta has served in leadership positions in the Sociology of Childhood Research Committee and the Thematic Group on Human Rights.

USAID Profile

Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance
Office of Policy, Learning, and Integration

As a Research Scientist in the Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance at USAID, Loretta Bass works in the Office of Policy, Learning, and Integration, which informs sustainable development policies and programs using evidence-informed approaches and considering two or more sectors at the same time to enhance impact. Loretta provides strategic guidance on youth employment and migration for potential oceans and coastal communities activities for the Senegal Mission. She is also supporting a DRG (Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance) Assessment process to gauge the democratic landscape and opportunities in Zimbabwe. In addition, Loretta contributes to the Facty Friday data product series and is preparing a brief detailing the relationships across country-level demographic trends and democratic institutional development. Adding to this, she participates in the workstreams of the USAID Global Migration Working Group, the Inter-Agency Migration Data Working Group, and the Gender Champions discussions.