Association of Black Sociologists

What Association of Black Sociologists does

The Association of Black Sociologists (ABS) is a U.S.-based non-profit professional membership organization founded in 1970, headquartered in Ellicott City, Maryland. It serves Black and minority sociologists, sociology students, and community activists engaged with social justice, operating as the only national professional society dedicated specifically to this constituency. Core offerings include an annual conference (53rd held in Philadelphia in August 2023; 56th scheduled for New York City in August 2026), the Griot newsletter, the Relationship and Mentoring Program (RAMP) for multigenerational mentoring, a career listings service ($100 minimum per advertisement), six named scholarly and service awards, and public statements on civil rights and social justice issues.

The organization does not operate proprietary technology; member services and event registration run on a third-party Wild Apricot membership platform. Its business model combines recurring membership dues, one-time conference registration fees, transaction-based career listing advertising, corporate and institutional conference sponsorships, and donations through the "Friends of ABS" program. Marketing is primarily community-led — driven by word-of-mouth in academic networks, the website, social media (Twitter, Facebook), the newsletter, weekly email announcements, and the annual conference.

Governance is via an elected Executive Committee; Marcus Anthony Hunter has served as President (since at least 2018) and Loren Henderson as Executive Officer. The 56th Annual Conference (2026) lists ~25 sponsoring institutions, anchored by the William T. Grant Foundation and Russell Sage Foundation at the highest tiers, with a long tail of sociology and Black studies departments from universities including Columbia, Harvard, Princeton, Northwestern, NYU, Penn, and Georgetown.

Name

Association of Black Sociologists

Legal name

The Association of Black Sociologists

Website

https://associationofblacksociologists.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Association of Black Sociologists is a U.S. non-profit professional membership organization founded in 1970, serving Black and minority sociologists, students, and activists through annual conferences, mentoring, publications, awards, and advocacy for professional and civil rights.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAFAC

Racial & Ethnic Justice Organizations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Civil Rights, Advocacy & Public Policy Organizations

SECONDARYBPAGADAN

Education Policy, Research & Advocacy Organizations (Nonprofit)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Education & Youth Development Nonprofits

SECONDARYBPAGAFAB

Human Rights & Anti-Discrimination Organizations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Civil Rights, Advocacy & Public Policy Organizations

Keywords

• Professional sociology association
• Academic mentoring programs
• Scholarly conferences
• Member-driven organization
• Social justice advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Ellicott City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues providing access to the organization's newsletter, conference discounts, mentoring networks, and community of scholars.
2. Conference Registration: Revenue generated from annual conference registration fees. The 53rd Annual Conference was held in Philadelphia, PA in August 2023.
3. Career/Job Listings: Career opportunity listings advertised on the website, in the organization's newsletter The Griot, and on the member list-serve, starting at $100 per advertisement.
4. Donations: Donations accepted through the 'Friends of ABS' program to support the organization's mission, conference, and historical archiving projects.
5. Conference Sponsorship: Corporate and institutional sponsorship of the annual conference, with tributes appearing on the Friends of ABS page and in conference programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Association of Black Sociologists is a national nonprofit professional membership organization that maintains and cultivates scholarship, mentoring, and social justice for Black sociologists, social scientists, community activists, and students. It delivers member services through annual memberships, an annual conference, the Griot newsletter, career listings, scholarly awards, and the ABS Relationship and Mentoring Program (RAMP).

Product overview

The Association of Black Sociologists (ABS) is a national professional organization founded in 1970, not a commercial product company. It provides member services including an annual conference, the Griot newsletter, career listings, and multiple awards recognizing excellence in Black sociology. The organization also runs the ABS Relationship and Mentoring Program (RAMP) and facilitates professional development through its committees. ABS operates primarily through its website and a Wild Apricot-powered membership platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Annual Membership Annual subscription-based membership for individual professional sociologists, students, and community activists, providing access to the Griot newsletter, discounts on annual conference registration, mentoring networks, and a community of Black scholars at multiple intersections of Black life.
• Annual Conference Annual in-person conference event for ABS members and the broader academic community, providing networking, professional development, scholarly exchange, and awards recognition. Conference registration fees are charged to attendees, with discounts available to ABS members.
• Career Listings Service

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Society for the Study of Social Problems: SSSP is a sociology professional association with annual meetings, awards, and a focus on social justice-oriented scholarship. It overlaps with ABS in mission (socially engaged sociology) and operating model (membership, conference, awards).
• Sociologists for Women in Society: SWS is an identity-focused sociology professional organization with a mentoring focus, awards, and annual meetings. It is structurally analogous to ABS — a niche, identity-based association within the broader sociology field.
• African Heritage Caucus: The African Heritage Caucus is an ASA-affiliated caucus representing Black sociologists within the larger professional association. It overlaps significantly with ABS's constituency and advocacy focus, serving as an adjacent organizational peer.
• National Council for Black Studies: NCBS is an academic association focused on Black Studies across multiple disciplines, with annual conferences, awards, and advocacy. It directly parallels ABS in mission, structure (membership, conference, awards), and audience (Black scholars and students), making it the closest comparable peer.
• Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora: ASWAD is an interdisciplinary scholarly association focused on the African diaspora, with conferences, prizes, and member services. It overlaps with ABS in audience and mission around Black/diasporic scholarship and serves a comparable academic community.
• National Association of Black Anthropologists: NABA is the American Anthropological Association's affiliated society for Black anthropologists. It mirrors ABS's model — a focused professional association within a broader disciplinary parent — and serves a similarly structured scholar constituency.

Broad incumbents

• American Sociological Association: The ASA is the largest professional sociology organization in the US, serving all sociologists with journals, an annual meeting, and career services. It is the dominant incumbent in the broader sociology membership space within which ABS operates as a focused, identity-based counterpart.

Regional players

• Southern Sociological Society: SSS is a regional sociology professional association serving the US South with annual meetings and member services. It is a comparable membership-organization model operating in a defined geographic segment, with similar operational scale.
• Eastern Sociological Society: ESS is a regional sociology professional association serving the US East Coast. Its membership, conference, and award structure parallel ABS's operational model at a comparable organizational scale.

Others

• Association of Black Sociologists (UK): While no direct US-UK peer exists with identical name, the British Sociological Association and its race/ethnicity networks serve as a thematically related comparator, illustrating how similar identity-based sociological communities are organized internationally and what scaling ABS into a diaspora-focused organization could resemble.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/absociologists
• Facebookfacebook.com/blacksociologists

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Association of Black Sociologists