Research Interests:  Inequality; Political Economy; Urban Governance; Schools; Carceral State

Mo Torres is a PhD candidate in Sociology, Stone PhD Scholar in the Multidisciplinary Program in Inequality and Social Policy, and Democracy Doctoral Fellow at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance. Previously, he was a Fulbright Scholar in Brazil (2019) and an Urban Fellow at the Taubman Center for State and Local Government (2017-2018).  

Mo's research interests include inequality, urban politics, schools, and the carceral state. His dissertation uses mixed and historical methods to explore the causes and consequences of economic and democratic decline in Detroit, Flint, and other Rust Belt cities. Concurrent projects include work on race-class stratification and financial institutions, police militarization, the sociology of Du Bois, and race theory.

Before graduate school, Mo taught middle and high school Spanish in Detroit and worked in the nonprofit K-12 sector. A first-generation college graduate, Mo is originally from Sacramento, CA.

Previous Degrees:
Master of Public Policy, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan (2015)
Bachelor of Arts, History (honors) & Chicana/o Studies (honors), University of California, Davis (2010)