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Erynn Beaton

Associate Professor

Erynn Beaton studies the ways in which the nonprofit sector and its organizations combat, reflect, and sometimes reproduce structural inequalities. Dr. Beaton’s research builds organizational theory by holding up nonprofits and the nonprofit sector for critical inspection. Her expertise is in qualitative methods, with a particular passion for ethnography. She draws on institutional, social movement, and critical perspectives to understand the nonprofit sector’s role in social and economic inequalities.

Through her teaching Dr. Beaton aims to empower students to make the changes they wish to see in the world. She teaches the undergraduate Introduction to Nonprofit Organizations, a course intended to acquaint future nonprofit leaders with the diversity, nature, and debates inherent to the sector. She also teaches the master’s Nonprofit Capstone course, in which students partner with a local nonprofit client to build capacity. At the doctoral level, Dr. Beaton teaches Qualitative Research Methods and the Nonprofit Research Seminar. She also serves in an appointed position on the Charitable Advisory Council to the Ohio Attorney General.

Dr. Beaton earned her Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts Boston in the business school’s program on Organizations & Social Change. She was also privileged to receive an M.B.A from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

In a previous career, Dr. Beaton worked in advertising and marketing at big Chicago corporations, the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. and Starcom Worldwide. During that time, she assisted in leading the board of Reading in Motion, a nonprofit literacy program. These experiences, and a lifelong dedication to volunteering, motivate her teaching and research at the intersection of organizational theory and nonprofit management.

The Yoke of Objectivity in Public Administration (and Beyond)
Perspectives on Public Management and Governance
August 06, 2024

This article problematizes the concept of "objectivity" as it applies to research and practice in public administration and beyond.

Giving Voice: Examining the Tactical Repertoires of Nonprofit Advocacy for Disadvantaged Populations
Nonprofit Policy Forum
July 08, 2024

This research study empirically examines the ways that service-providing nonprofit organizations advocate on behalf of their disadvantaged clients.

Sexual Misconduct: Policies to Improve Institutional Accountability and Reduce Individual Burdens
Nonprofit Policy Forum
August 09, 2022

This report provides a brief overview of research on sexual misconduct in the nonprofit sector, a summary of the colloquium discussion, and suggested directions for resolution.

A Review of Sexual Harassment Prevention Practices: Toward a Nonprofit Research Agenda
Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action
August 01, 2022

Professors Erynn Beaton, Megan LePere-Schloop and Rebecca Smith use qualitative analysis to explore the anti-harassment practices recommended to nonprofit practitioners and compares these practices to academic research to develop a nonprofit scholarly research agenda. 

Sexual Harassment Policies in Nonprofits
Nonprofit Management and Leadership
June 29, 2022

Erynn Beaton and colleagues examine rates of SXH policy adoption among nonprofits and the relationship between SXH policy adoption and organizational characteristics.

Speaking Truth to Power in Fundraising: A Toolkit
Association of Fundraising Professionals
May 16, 2022

Erynn Beaton and Megan LePere-Schloop study the fundraising workplace, address sexual harassment in the profession, and set resources for taking action. 

Ohio Nonprofit COVID-19 Survey: A Report of Wave 3 Results
Social Science Research Network
September 17, 2021

Erynn Beaton's Wave 3 survey results tell a story of the nonprofit sector’s resilience and contribution, and how organizations rallied during the pandemic to provide new services to new populations and to create partnerships with other organizations.

Ethnography: Tales of the Nonprofit Field
International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations
August 17, 2021

Professor Erynn Beaton describes how nonprofits can use ethnography to enrich research.

Institutional Leadership: Maintaining Mission Integrity in the Era of Managerialism
Nonprofit Management and Leadership
March 22, 2021

Professor Erynn Beaton develops a framework of practices nonprofit leaders can use to maintain mission integrity

Whatever it Takes: Sexual Harassment in the Context of Resource Dependence
Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory
March 09, 2021

Professors Erynn Beaton, Megan LePere-Schloop and Rebecca Smith suggest powerful resource dependencies are present in the public and nonprofit sectors.

Responding to Failure: the Promise of Market Mending for Social Enterprise
Public Management Review
January 03, 2021

Professor Erynn Beaton examines the role social enterprise plays in society as more non-profits embrace it.

The Lived Experience of Managerialization: Understanding Values Conflict in Nonprofits through a Pragmatic Institutionalism
Journal of Management Studies
October 23, 2020

Professor Erynn Beaton focuses on the lived experiences of organization members and advancing a pragmatic institutionalism.

Combining Nonprofit Service and Advocacy: Organizational Structures and Hybridity
Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action
September 23, 2020

Professor Erynn Beaton examines how the logics of service provision and political advocacy are combined and managed across a sample of nonprofits.

Ohio Nonprofit COVID-19 Survey: A Report of Wave 2 Results
Social Science Research Network
September 04, 2020

This report contains the results of the Ohio Nonprofit COVID-19 Survey, Wave 2.

Ohio Nonprofit COVID-19 Survey: A Report of the Results
Social Science Research Network
May 04, 2020

This report provides early reactions of the nonprofit sector to the pandemic, including their actions and concerns, to inform policymakers, funders, media, and other decision makers about how to best support the sector during this time.

No Margin, No Mission: How Practitioners Justify Nonprofit Managerialization
International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations
December 17, 2019

Professor Erynn Beaton examines how nonprofit practitioners respond to pressures to enact business practices.

A Dialogue on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Nonprofits
Academy of Management
August 01, 2019

Professors Erynn Beaton and Rebecca Smith compare practice-oriented recommendations and academic research regarding sexual harassment in nonprofit workplaces.

Office

350P Page Hall

Expertise

Qualitative Methodologies; Nonprofits; Philanthropy; Inequality; Social Change; Advocacy