RESEARCH AREAS OF EXPERTISE
nonprofits, inclusion, exclusion, immigration, citizenship, vulnerable populations, urban inequality, theory building and theory testing, measurement, scale development, mixed method research
PUBLICATIONS
Sorrell-Medina, Z., Tessler, T., Chung, E. (2025). Expanding Citizenry Exclusion: The case of Asian Americans during COVID-19. Journal of Race and Social Problems. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-025-09457-x
Sorrell-Medina, Z. (2025). National goal trends: Understanding the goals of US immigrant-serving nonprofits. Immigrant and Refugee Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/15562948.2025.2494022
Sorrell-Medina, Z (2024). Testing the relationship between local context and immigrant-serving nonprofit strategies. Nonprofit Policy Forum. doi.org/10.1515/npf-2023-0063
Sorrell-Medina, Z. (2024) Optimizing immigrant and ethnic participation in qualitative research. In Sage Research Methods: Diversifying and decolonizing research. Sage publications, https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529691108
Sorrell-Medina, Z (2024). The theory of citizenry exclusion: Understanding why immigrant-serving nonprofits emerge. Journal of Ethnic and Racial Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2023.2259448
Nicholls, W. & Sorrell-Medina, Z. (2023). Undocumented immigrant activism: The struggle for rights and recognition. In Van Liempt, I., Schapendonk, J., Campos-Delgado, A., (Eds.), Research handbook on irregular migration. (pp. 106-117). Edward Elgar Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800377509.00017
Sorrell-Medina, Z. (2022). A Strategy Typology: Unearthing How U.S.-Immigrant-Serving Nonprofits Contribute to Immigrant Inclusion Outcomes. Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/15562948.2022.2132571
WORKS UNDER REVIEW/IN PROGRESS (SELECTED LIST)
Sorrell-Medina, Z, Aparacio, M., Juarez, A. (under review). Nonprofit exclusion: The case of U.S. foster and adoption agencies.
Sorrell-Medina, Z & Aparicio, M. (Article in Progress). A scoping literature review of immigrant-serving nonprofit organizations
Stamps, T. & Sorrell-Medina, Z. (Article in Progress). Media Depictions of Foster Youth in U.S. Film.
Sorrell-Medina, Z (under review). An Autoethnography: Foster Care, Adoption, and Youth Homelessness
REPORTS
Sorrell-Medina, Z., Aparacio, M., Juarez, A. (2025). Foster and Adoption Agency Exclusion in the United States. California State University Northridge.
Sorrell-Medina, Z, Gisler, K., Goose, K. (2025). Research Report: Foster parent training trends in LA County. California State University, Northridge.
Sorrell-Medina, Z., Gonzales, L., Townley, H., Caballero, M., Quijano, M., Collins, S. (2021). A Report on the state of Immigrant inclusion in Florida. Welcoming Gainesville & Alachua Co.
Sorrell-Medina, Z., Madueke, K. (2021). Evaluating the effectiveness of an art-based peace program in contributing to processes of peace in Jos, Nigeria. Yemaya Productions, LLC.
DATA
US Film Data on Foster Teens
The data encapsulates more than 100 scenes of US films that center on foster teens between 2010 to 2023. The five films reviewed are: The Great Gilly Hopkins, Crescent Gang, Found, Short Term 12, and The Broken Rose.
Access data here.
APA Citation
Stamps, T., & Sorrell-Medina, S. (2026). US Film Data on Foster Teens [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20113677
Asian American Exclusion During COVID - 19
The data includes 50 Reddit posts shedding light on COVID 19 discrimination in 2020 and 2021 among Asian Americans. To access, click here.
APA Citation
Sorrell-Medina, Z. (2025). Asian American Exclusion During COVID 19 [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15312209
Foster Parent Exclusion Data
This data set includes self-reported foster parent discrimination in the United States based on 13 Reddit posts. Most of the occurrences are between 2018 to 2025 with one incident occurring in 2012. To access, click here.
APA Citation
Sorrell Medina, Z. (2025). Foster Parent Exclusion Data [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15802068
