Dr. Ryan joined UNH in 1999 and researches and teaches about a number of issues related to contemporary culture; including transgender issues; weight- and weight-based stigma; sex workers’ rights; and disability justice. She explores the plight of oppressed social groups in the United States and looking at the prejudice, discrimination, and stigma that they face.

In addition to better understanding the diverse experiences of minoritized groups, Dr. Ryan delves into the ways in which people from these groups resist oppression and form social movements to advance cultural and political change. Using an intersectional feminist approach to social justice, she explores activist strategies to change the perceptions of transgender people, people of size, sex workers and people with disabilities, as well as ongoing efforts to challenge structural, institutional oppression through legal advocacy, media activism and grass-roots organizing.

Dr. Ryan also has an interest in film, media, and popular culture; particularly how stigmatized groups are framed in media culture and how these groups attempt to subvert these narratives in mainstream media.