Stephen Klineberg is a demographics expert and sociologist in Houston, Texas. As a professor at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

, Klineberg and his students began conducting an annual survey in 1982, now called the Kinder Institute Houston Area Survey, that tracks the area's demographics and attitudes. Klineberg is also the founding director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research, a think tank affiliated with Rice University that focuses on urban issues and challenges facing Houston, the Sun Belt and other major metro areas. Klineberg founded the institute in 2010 with a $15 million gift from philanthropists

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

and Nancy Kinder.

Education

Born in 1940 to a Jewish family in New York City, New York, Klineberg earned his B.A. in psychology from

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), began accepting non-Quakers in 1849, and became coeducational ...

in 1961 before going on to graduate school at Harvard University. While enrolled there, Klineberg studied at the University of Paris, where he received his M.A., before returning to Harvard to complete his Ph.D. in social psychology in 1966. He served as an assistant professor of social psychology at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

for several years before joining Rice University as an associate professor of sociology in 1972.

Work

Klineberg's work focuses on social change. Driven by the findings of the annual Kinder Institute Houston Area Survey, Klineberg has become an expert on Houston's diversity, arguing that it foreshadows the country's own demographic trajectory. As the survey has expanded from Harris County to include neighboring Fort Bend County and Montgomery County, Klineberg has been frequently cited as claiming that Fort Bend County, to the west of Houston, is the most ethnically diverse county in the country. The survey's annual findings provide insight into the area's religion, economic outlook and attitudes toward a range of issues, including the death penalty, immigration and politics. Klineberg has become an expert on the Houston area, often cited in both local and national publications, including, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', ''

The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' and ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' as well as National Public Radio. Klineberg is co-author of The Present of Things Future: Explorations of Time in Human Experience. In 2020, he published Prophetic City: Houston on the Cusp of a Changing America, based on the findings from the Kinder Institute Houston Area Survey.

Awards

Throughout his career, Klineberg has earned several awards and honors, including the George R. Brown Award for Superior Teaching. In 1996, he earned the George R. Brown Prize for Excellence in Teaching, Rice University's highest teaching award.

References

External links

Rice University Sociology Department Faculty Page

Kinder Institute Houston Area Survey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klineberg, Stephen American Jews Harvard University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Haverford College alumni Princeton University faculty Rice University faculty