About Me:

  Susan L. Thomas is an Associate Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies, and Political Science at Hollins University. She was born and raised in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, where she enjoyed the mountains, and picking avocados and oranges off the family trees. Today, Professor Thomas is focused on working for animal rights. She is President of The Institute for Critical Animal Studies, Associate Editor of The Journal of Critical Animal Studies, published by the Institute for Critical Animal Studies, and Associate Editor of The Green Theory and Praxis Journal.  Her other major avocation is working in her large and diverse garden and collecting rare and unusual plants. She has been employed by Hollins University since 1995.

  

My Education:
Professor Thomas earned her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside (1990).

Lori and Cais

Cais at Ahwahnee Hotel
eating Tiramisu

Cais and her violin,
2009

Cais at the Taubmann Museum,
2009

Ling Ling

My Family:
Professor Thomas and her partner, Lori Rehfeldt, are the proud parents of a daughter, Cais F. Fu Feng (‘Lucky Wind”), whom they adopted in 2004 from Chengdu, Sichuan, China, when she was 4 years old. Cais is a vegetarian and animal rights activist, and plays the violin with the Roanoke Junior Strings of the Roanoke Youth Symphony Orchestra. She also loves karate and swimming.

Our other family members include 4 dogs and 6 cats: Shai Ming, Hera, Ling Ling, Lucky Wind, Da Xia, Tasche, Little Bear, Pellet, Kirby and Romeo. We are fortunate they have adopted us.