About

Dr. Melanie Escue is an Assistant Professor in the Sociology and Criminal Justice Department at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. She earned her B.S. in Psychology (2013) and M.S. in Criminal Justice (2014) from the University of Central Florida. In 2023, she received a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of South Florida. She is intentional in cultivating transformative classroom experiences that put student experiences in conversation with course content in Social Statistics, Introduction to Sociology, Social Problems in Modern Society, and Health Inequalities, among others.

Dr. Escue is committed to serving the UNCP and Pembroke community. She brings years of experience working on multiple projects and in various service roles focused on serving im/migrant and Latinx communities – experiences she draws from in her role as faculty advisor to the Latin Student Union student organization. Additionally, she serves on the Board of Directors for the NC Farmworkers Association and is a regular volunteer for the Teen Court diversion program here in Robeson County, NC. 

As a published scholar, Dr. Escue’s current research interests include im/migration and health and well-being. Since 2020, she has worked on National Science Foundation grant funded projects exploring the incorporation experiences of post-disaster Puerto Rican migrants and the experiences of undocumented young adults. Her work has been published in a variety of journals including the American Behavioral Scientist, Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, Journal of Cultural Geography, and Latino Studies. 

Select Publications:

Aranda, Elizabeth, Elizabeth Vaquera, Heide Castañeda, and Melanie Escue. 2024.“ Normalized Expendability: Navigating Immigrant Legal Status during a Global Pandemic.” American Behavioral Scientist. 

Escue, Melanie, Elizabeth Aranda, Alessandra Rosa, and Rebecca Blackwell. 2023. “The Subjective Well-Being and Mental Health of Puerto Rican Post-Disaster Migrants.” Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 45(1), 3-22. 

Castañeda, Heide, Melanie Escue, and Elizabeth Aranda. 2023. “ ‘A Lot of People There Were Undocumented, or at Least They Looked Like Me’: Race, Legal Status, and Immigrant Place-Making in Florida.” Journal of Cultural Geography 40(2):118-42. 

Blackwell, Rebecca, Elizabeth Aranda, Melanie Escue, and Alessandra Rosa. 2023. “Cascading Disasters: The Impact of Hurricane Maria and Covid-19 on Post-Disaster Puerto Rican Migrants’ Adaptation and Integration in the United States.” Latino Studies 21:138-61.