Metropolitan State University of Denver

Dr Allison Cotton

Personal Biography Statement

Dr. Allison M. Cotton is an Associate Professor of Criminology at Metropolitan State University of Denver. A Colorado native, Dr. Cotton received a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1991, a Master’s Degree in Sociology from Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1995, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2002. Dr. Cotton has published several papers on criminal justice topics, including but not limited to the death penalty, eye-witness identifications, lethal behavior, and expert witnesses. Her research interests include the death penalty, juvenile justice, wrongful convictions, and gender, race and crime. Her first book, Effigy: Images of Capital Defendants was released in the summer of 2008 by Lexington Books (a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group). She is currently working on a second (co-authored) book called Class, Race, Gender & Crime: The Social Realities of Justice in America (4th edition) by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers and a third book, Racialized Perceptions of Crime which has been contracted to New York University Press. Dr. Cotton’s teaching interests include issues related to Women and Crime, Punishment, Crime and the Media, Race and Crime.

Professional Affiliations

Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS)
American Society of Criminology (ASC)
Coloradans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (CADP)

Teaching Philosophy

"Telling is not teaching". I use an active learning-style in my courses. I try to combine lectures with real-life learning experiences such as field trips, guest speakers, out-of-class research projects, internet exercises, group work and in-class technology (iClickers) to provide a well-rounded course from which many different kinds of students can benefit.

Selected Publications

Cotton, Allison. Effigy: Images of Capital Defendants. Lexington Books (a Division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers): Lanham, MD. July 28, 2008.

Cotton, Allison. “Stipulations: A Typology of Citizenship in the United States after Hurricane Katrina”. In Hillary Potter (Ed.), Racing the Storm: Racial Implications and Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina. Lexington Books (a Division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers): Lanham, MD.

Cotton, Allison and Rhonda Ntepp. “Media Portrayals of African Americans.” In Helen Taylor Greene and Shaun L. Gabbidon (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Race and Crime. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Cotton, Allison. “Is There a Relationship Between Death Anxiety and Engagement in Lethal Behavior Among African-American Students?” in Omega: Journal of Death and Dying 34 (3): 233-245.

Courses Taught

CJC-1010,CJC-3350,CJC-3410,CJC-3470,CJC-405J,CJC-4230,CJC-4260,CJC-498Z
,PSC-390C,WMS-425G,WMS-425I

Office Hours

Monday - [16:00 to 18:00]
Tuesday - [16:00 to 18:00]
Wednesday - [16:00 to 18:00]
Thursday - [00:00 to 00:00]

Current Semester Schedule