Professor of history James “Doc” Sefton, pictured at a 2015 event celebrating his 50 years teaching at CSUN, will be one of the keynote speakers at the university’s 2018 Constitution Day event. Photo by Lee Choo.

The United States Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war, while the president is empowered as commander-in-chief. This creates an inherent tension that has unfolded in various ways throughout the years, including in recent decades.

California State University, Northridge will be observing Constitution Day on Saturday, Sept. 15, with a discussion about the Constitution’s war clauses, in a free event hosted by the Tseng College. CSUN history professor James “Doc” Sefton and John Evans, political science professor at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire, will speak about the tension that exists between the president and Congress over the power to declare war.

The public is invited to attend the event at CSUN’s Orange Grove Bistro, located at the southeast corner of the campus near Nordhoff Street and Zelzah Avenue.

“CSUN’s Constitution Day program will examine what the Constitution says about the war powers of both Congress and the president in today’s environment,” said Marcella Tyler, executive director of program advancement for the Tseng College. “Two hundred and thirty-one years ago, 39 forward-thinking delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed a document that constructed the framework of our federal government. The U.S. Constitution is as relevant today as it was then.”

The event starts at 8:30 a.m. with a continental breakfast and will be followed by the presentation at 9 a.m. There is no charge, but reservations are required. Guests are asked to RSVP by Sept. 12 via email to melaine.pemberton@csun.edu or by calling (818) 677-7131.

For more information, please visit: https://tsengcollege.csun.edu/programs/constitution-day 

CSUN has received a $3.81 million grant from the National Science Foundation to increase the number of minority students who study materials science. Photo by Lee Choo.

The field of materials science — the research and discovery of new materials, particularly solids — incorporates elements of physics, chemistry and engineering. Researchers study not only how a material is created, but are often at the forefront of creating new and complex materials, from nanotechnology to biomaterials and metallurgy.

California State University, Northridge has received a six-year, $3.81 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to continue support of a partnership between the university and Princeton University’s Center for Complex Materials. The partnership provides opportunities for minority CSUN students to work alongside scientists at Princeton and CSUN as they conduct research in the field of quantum materials.

“One of the benefits of a grant like this is the opportunity it offers our students to work with some of the leading researchers in the field,” said physics professor Gang Lu, who has headed the project since 2012 with the help of an NSF Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) grant. The new monies are a continuation of that initial award.

“Our students, especially undergraduates, are doing important research in the field of quantum materials, and their work has been published, — and will continue to be published — in some of the leading scientific journals,” Lu said. “We, as scientists, also benefit. Hopefully, we are fostering and encouraging a new generation of researchers interested in entering the fields.

“The greater diversity of people in the field, the greater diversity of questions, ideas and perspectives there are only makes the research better,” he said.

The CSUN and Princeton project focuses on such fundamental challenges as the energetics and dynamics of excited states in quantum materials. Research on quantum materials brings together scientists working on a variety of problems at the frontiers of physics, materials science and engineering. The properties of these systems are uniquely defined by quantum mechanical effects that remain manifest at high temperatures and macroscopic length scales.

Quantum materials have unusual magnetic and electrical properties that, if understood and controlled, could revolutionize virtually every aspect of society and enable highly efficient energy electrical systems and faster, more precise electronic devices. Quantum materials include systems based on metals, semiconductors, oxides and organics that have a range of potential applications including semiconductors, sensors, low-power memory modules, high-density storage devices and quantum computers. Quantum materials also are important components of the infrastructure for energy-related technologies.

“We’re talking about some serious, cutting-edge research that our students get to take part in,” Lu said.
Lu said that since the partnership started 12 years ago, a large cohort of CSUN students have taken part in the project, which includes sending five to six students to Princeton each summer to do research. During the school year, there are ample research opportunities at CSUN, as well as workshops and symposiums. There also are outreach efforts to local high schools to encourage students to consider going into the field.

“If we want the United States to continue to be a leader in the world in materials research, then we need to ensure that the pipeline to graduate school and post-doctoral research has the bodies it needs, particularly when it comes to women and minorities,” he said.

One of the highlights of the project is the interaction between the CSUN undergraduates and the Princeton graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, Lu said.

“Not only are they doing research together, there are numerous opportunities for the CSUN students to be inspired and to ask questions — questions about what it’s like to go to graduate school, possible career paths and things like that,” he said. “So many of our students are first-generation college students. While they can ask us, their professors, those questions, it can have so much more impact when the answers come from another student who appreciates what they are going through.”

CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison, far left, and Interim Provost Stella Theodoulou, far right, pose with the newest cohort of Bridge to the Future scholars at a reception welcoming the students and their families to the university. Photo by Lee Choo.

California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison and Provost Stella Theodoulou welcomed the second cohort of Bridge to the Future students and their families to CSUN, during a special reception on Thursday, Sept. 13.

Bridge to the Future (B2F), part of CSUN’s Institute for Community Health and Wellbeing’s Neighborhood Partners in Action initiative in Canoga Park, provides a four-year, tuition-free education to 25 students from Canoga Park High School annually. Once enrolled, the students receive a number of services, including mentoring, tutoring, access to study space and additional support as they work to complete a bachelor’s degree at CSUN.

First-year student Jose Salcedo said the support he has received so far from the Bridge to the Future program has helped him adjust to college life.

CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison, standing center, and David Boyns, standing right, greet students at a reception welcoming this year’s cohort of Bridge to the Future scholars. Photo by Lee Choo.

“At first, I was so shy but now, in the third week of college, I feel comfortable and I know I can do it,” Salcedo said, at the reception held at the Orange Grove Bistro prior CSUN’s New Student Convocation.

As a Bridge to the Future scholar, Jonathan Lopez said the program eased his parents’ worries about how they would be able to support him as a first-generation college student.“ They we’re even happier when I told them they didn’t have to pay a single penny, since B2F will cover most of my expenses,” he said.

Bridge to the Future is a collaborative creation of CSUN’s Institute for Community Health and Wellbeing and the Canoga Park community. As part of the effort to cement the partnership between CSUN and the community, the university created the Bridge to the Future Program. As B2F scholars, students participate in 20 hours of community service in the community, in an effort to foster a sense of pride within Canoga Park.

The Bridge to the Future programand NPA are designed to help optimize Canoga Park’s resources, collect data about community needs and form partnerships to foster relationships between residents, local businesses and the university. The goal is to establish sustainable relationships between CSUN and the community, and create a college-going culture in Canoga Park.

CSUN has received the 2018 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. Photo by Lee Choo.

California State University, Northridge has received the 2018 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education.

As a recipient of the annual HEED Award — a national honor recognizing United States colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion — CSUN will be featured, along with 95 other recipients, in the November 2018 issue of the magazine. This is the third year in a row that CSUN has been named a HEED Award recipient.

“To receive the award for three years in row demonstrates that CSUN is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive educational environment,” said Natalie Mason-Kinsey, the university’s chief diversity officer. “It’s easy to say you are committed to inclusion and diversity, but CSUN demonstrates every day, in programs across the campus, that its faculty and staff are doing all they can to ensure that all our students succeed.”

Mason-Kinsey pointed to a number of programs that demonstrate the university’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, from CSUN’s nearly 30-year-old Maximizing Access to Research Careers Undergrad Science Training and Academic Research (MARC U-STAR) program, which provides support to underrepresented undergraduate students who are interested in the biomedical sciences; to more recent programs such as Bridge to the Future, which provides a four-year, tuition-free education to 25 students from Canoga Park High School annually; and BUILD PODER (Building Infrastructure to Diversity and Promoting Opportunities for Diversity in Education and Research), which aims to increase diversity in biomedical research fields and prepare participants for Ph.D. programs.

“There are dozens of other programs across the campus that also provide support and encouragement to students from diverse backgrounds to ensure that the students are on the path to success,” Mason-Kinsey said. “What’s important is that not only does CSUN have these programs, but it gives the programs the support and flexibility they need to respond to the ever-changing needs of our students. This institution, to its very core, is committed to diversity and inclusion.”

The HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees — and best practices for both — continued leadership support for diversity, and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion.

“We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a HEED recipient,” said Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity. “Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being accomplished every day across their campuses.”

An international team of archaeologists, including California State University, Northridge anthropology professor Matthew Des Lauriers, received a grant from National Geographic for efforts in unearthing evidence that dates the arrival of Ancestral Native Americans to at least 13,000 years ago, off the coast of Baja California, Mexico.

Des Lauriers’ team of archaeologists includes Oregon State University professor Loren Davis, who received the grant with Des Lauriers to continue investigations that started in 2000. What began as Des Lauriers’ dissertation research is now providing insight into an area locals call “El Piedron” (The Rock), formally known as Cedros Island, on the Pacific coast of Baja California, Mexico.

“From the time I started my undergrad education at Cal State Bakersfield, where I began my training as a California archaeologist,” said Des Lauriers, “I always wanted to do something new that had not been done before. I really wanted to push that boundary.”

Des Lauriers’ work reveals that the early Cedros Islanders harvested resources that were only available by traveling well offshore in watercraft. This provides support for the recent scientific theory that the ancestors of today’s Native Americans arrived from Northeast Asia, traveling along the Pacific coast, as opposed to a route along the east side of the Rocky Mountains. Both alternatives run through or along the massive 1,000-mile-wide land bridge that connected the Chukotka Peninsula in Russia to the peninsula of Alaska during the last Ice Age.

Cedros Island is located in an isolated and largely unspoiled region in the state of Baja California, located on the Pacific coast of Mexico. After being occupied by indigenous populations for more than 13,000 years, the island was used for its natural resources by miners, missionaries and pirates for the past 500 years, according to Des Lauriers.

As part of their graduate research, 13 of Des Lauriers’ CSUN anthropology students have worked on various aspects of the Cedros Island project, ranging from field excavations, laboratory analysis, 3-D scanning and replicative analysis of ancient artifacts, to geographic information scanning analysis of site locations and watersheds.

To test the hypothesis that Ancestral Native American arrivals were in fact using boats to reach a new home, Des Lauriers and his colleague Dustin McKenzie, archaeology professor at Cabrillo College, replicated the fish hook nearly identical to one found in 2009 during an excavation.

Replicated fishhook that was used to test Professor Des Lauriers hypothesis on coastal migration.

“It worked beautifully, catching two large sea bass within 15 minutes of fishing,” Des Lauriers said of the replica fishhook.

Des Lauriers said that archaeologists have identified some of the potential routes of arrival of the first Americans by finding connections between archaeological findings across the world. He said part of his attraction to “the big picture” may come from constant travel as a child of a U.S. Marine. Growing up, Des Lauriers found the different places and travels fascinating.

“Not everything is immediately apparent the first time you see something,” said Des Lauriers. “But you start to wonder, and that can grow into big questions.

“Baja California is one of the areas of North America that has had the least amount of archaeological research,” he continued. “The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH) and the director for the state of Baja California, Julia Bendimez Patterson, have created a very supportive working environment. The indigenous groups of Baja, California, some of the direct descendants of the people we are trying to understand, have been open and supportive of the work. We keep going back because it continues to be productive in terms of research.”

Des Lauriers plans to return to Baja California, to continue excavations in December.

California State University, Northridge students will explore the collective consciousness of men of color at CSUN’s biannual Men of Color Enquiry and Student Research Poster Session on Friday, Oct. 26.

The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the University Student Union’s Grand Salon, which is located on the east side of campus.

“The whole campus and members of the community can get a chance to hear some of our students talk about the black male, which is a topic for the decades in terms of disparities,” said Cedric Hackett, CSUN professor of Africana studies. “[Attendees] get the chance to gain knowledge as it relates to the black male, to start conversations on how to find better, innovative ways to serve and support black men.”

Actor William A. Young, who is known for his roles on the television shows “Moesha” and “Code Black,” will discuss what it means to be a man of color in today’s society. Hackett will lead the event. He described his teaching ethic at CSUN, which uses “Kufundisha,” which means “to teach” in Swahili and is “an innovative teaching approach for student engagement and experiential learning,” the professor said.

“All of the colleges in the university are represented in my classroom,” said Hackett. “Their topics can be anything from racial identity, the black man in the media, mass incarceration or interracial relationships.”

Students from Hackett’s “The Black Man in Contemporary Times” class will present, their work focusing on a variety of research-based questions regarding the black male. Students will use their research to delve into this year’s Men of Color Enquiry topic, “Supporting Men of Color through Collective Consciousness.” Collective consciousness is described as a fundamental concept that refers to the set of shared beliefs, ideas, attitudes which operate as a unifying force within society, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

Since the spring of 2013, CSUN’s Department of Africana Studies has hosted the biannual Men of Color Enquiry sessions.

American Sign Language interpreters and note takers are available for this event. Request for services must be submitted at least five days in advance. For a request or more information on this event, contact Hackett at cedric.hackett@csun.edu or (818) 677-3311.

CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison reads to young people at the 2017 Feria de Educación. Photo by Sarah Dutton.

Univision Los Angeles, the California State University Chancellor’s Office and California State University, Northridge are once again teaming up to host the Feria de Educación, a daylong celebration focused on providing educational resources for thousands of youth and families at CSUN on Saturday, Oct. 20.

The free, annual event, part of Univision’s “Regresa a Classes” (Back-to-School) campaign, has become one of the largest education fairs in the nation and is free for parents, students and educators. Through its award-winning corporate empowerment platform, Univision Contigo, the back-to-school campaign is focused on promoting Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) building blocks, education, opportunities and careers for Latinos.

The Feria is scheduled to take place from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in areas and buildings around CSUN’s Oviatt Library, located in the heart of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St. in Northridge. This is third year CSUN has hosted the community event.

“We are pleased to once again partner with Univision and the California State University system to host this year’s Feria de Educación,” CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison said. “As a university that has launched more than 360,000 bright futures, we are happy to help shape the next generation of college students’ futures. I encourage students and families of all ages to join us in discovering valuable educational information and a better understanding of the financial resources that make higher education affordable and accessible.”

Since 2009, a CSU campus and Univision Los Angeles have partnered to offer this one-day education fair filled with Spanish- and English-language workshops and other activities designed to give parents the tools to help their children achieve their educational and career goals, providing resources and valuable information on the full spectrum of education.

“Our joint mission to provide access to education and empower our community has been the driving force behind our ten-year partnership with CSU system and why we are proud to do this event,” said Luis Patiño, president and general manager of Univision Los Angeles. “Knowledge is powerful and empowering, it opens doors and helps our community rise and succeed.”

Workshops will include how to navigate the California educational system, preparing for college early, financial aid and scholarships, and services for undocumented students.

The Feria will include a “reading garden” and a variety of age-appropriate books and learning materials will be distributed to encourage children and their parents to read together. There will be exhibits explaining the “pathway” to education with additional resources and information, beginning with pre-K and continuing through post-graduate services.

Univision talent joining Feria include: Liz Alvarado (KLOVE), Yarel Ramos and Oswaldo Borraez, as well as Cecilia Bogran and Gabriel Teissier (A Primera Hora).

The Feria de Educación supports the CSU’s Graduation Initiative 2025that is focused on increasing the completion rates of first-time freshmen, transfer, low-income and underserved students. The Graduation Initiative 2025 will add 100,000 more college graduates to California’s workforce over the next 10 years, bringing the total number of expected CSU graduates between 2015 and 2025 to more than 1 million.

“The future of California and the nation will depend on our ability to ensure that all students — regardless of background, belief, circumstance or status — have equitable opportunities for academic achievement and lifelong success,” CSU Chancellor Timothy P. White said. “As a product of California’s public higher education systems, I am proud that the California State University stands committed to building pathways to higher education for all qualified students.”

For more information about the Feria de Educación at CSUN, visit www.csun.edu/feria. To learn more about Feria events across California, visit www.calstate.edu/feriadeeducacion.

The Family Focus Resource Center is hosting its annual Special Needs Resource Fair on Sunday, Oct. 21.

The Family Focus Resource Center at California State University, Northridge will host its annual Special Needs Resource Fair – a daylong celebration focused on connecting families with special needs children to resources that can help them thrive – on Sunday, Oct. 21.

The fair is one of the largest of its kind in Southern California and will feature more than 75 exhibitors. Informational exhibits will include recreational therapy, educational resources and legal services. Each exhibit offers a variety of resources for various ages, abilities and needs.

The fair will include recreational therapy, educational resources and legal services. Each exhibit offers a variety of resources for various ages, abilities and needs.

“This is our biggest event of the year, and it’s really an opportunity to showcase all the services available at CSUN for the disability community,” said Victoria Berrey, program manager for the Family Focus Resource Center.

The event will take place in the University Student Union and will include food trucks, a photo booth, therapy dogs, a carnival, music and other entertainment.

“We want this to be a day where people can really come out and enjoy themselves, meet other families and know that this a place where they can come and just have fun,” said Berrey.

The fair’s sponsors include Newman Aaronson Vanaman, a law firm which offers assistance to children with special needs and families whose members are disabled; LA Care HMO, Shield Healthcare and A Change in Trajectory.

Actors on the autism spectrum from the Netflix show “Atypical” and ABC drama “The Good Doctor” will also be appearing with acting coach Elaine Hall of the Miracle Project.

For more than a decade, CSUN’s Family Focus Resource Center, housed in the Michael D. Eisner College of Eucation, has provided parent-to-parent support, education and information to parents and caregivers of children with special needs and the professionals who serve them.

Parking for the University Student Union is located in the G3 parking structure, which can be accessed by entering Prairie Street from Zelzah Avenue.

For more information about the Special Needs Resource Fair and for a full list of the exhibitors, call the Family Focus Resource Center at (818) 677-6854 or visit the its website at https://www.csun.edu/family-focus-resource-center.

A number of rankings have been released recently, and each named CSUN among the best. Photo by Lee Choo.

A combination of academic quality, diversity and size have helped California State University, Northridge garner recognition as one of the leading institutions of higher education in the United States.

A number of rankings have been released recently — including the U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 Best Colleges, the 2019 Wall Street Journal (WSJ)/Times Higher Education (THE) College Rankings, the 2018 Washington Monthly College Rankings, the 2018-19 Chronicle of Higher Education Almanac and The Hispanic Outlook on Education’s Top 100 Colleges and Universities for Hispanics — and each named CSUN among the best.

“This year, CSUN is celebrating 60 years as a life-changing public university,” CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison said. “Throughout all those years, we have strived to provide access to excellent higher education to our region and beyond. These rankings are a recognition by national publications of what our students, faculty, alumni and friends have always known — CSUN provides an inclusive, quality environment for learning that makes a difference in the lives of everyone who walks through our doors.”

U.S. News & World Report ranked CSUN 10^thamong West region institutions in the proportion of international students its serves, and 21^stamong the top public colleges overall in the West region. It also ranked the university 35^thin the same region for its undergraduate engineering programs.

The WSJ/THE College Rankings placed CSUN second in the nation for its diverse learning environment based on student and faculty diversity, as well as the number of international students who study at the university. The WSJ/THE US College Rankings, now in its third year, puts an emphasis on student success and included a survey of student opinions in its methodology.

Washington Monthly ranked CSUN 21^stnationally among master’s level universities and 21^stamong universities of all types in the western United States on their “Best Bang for the Buck” rankings, recognizing CSUN’s success in elevating the economic prosperity of its students.

The Chronicle of Higher Education cited CSUN as the second-largest public master’s-level university in the country, and credited it with having the third-largest international student population among public master’s-level universities in the nation.

The Hispanic Outlook on Higher Education ranked CSUN third in the nation for the total number of bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanics or Latinos in 2017, based on data collected from the National Center for Education Statistics. CSUN also ranked 10^thin the nation for the total number of master’s degrees it awarded Hispanics or Latinos in 2017. The education magazine ranked CSUN sixth in the nation for total enrollment of Hispanic or Latino students at a four-year institution in 2016.

Finally, Diverse Issues in Higher Education placed CSUN at seventh in the nation among colleges and universities awarding undergraduate degrees to minority students and fourth for Latino students.

CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison

California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison has been reappointed by Gov. Jerry Brown to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), an interstate organization that facilitates resource sharing among the higher education systems of 15 states in the western United States as well as U.S. Pacific territories.

This is Harrison’s third appointment, beginning in 2011, to WICHE, a nonprofit organization established by Congress that houses a broad array of initiatives to support states, students and institutions throughout the American West. WICHE facilitates collaboration between state governments, undergraduate and graduate student interstate exchange agreements and provides data and policy analysis for educators, policymakers and governors. WICHE programs help save students hundreds of millions of dollars in tuition annually.

“It is an honor to continue representing California as WICHE works to advance student access and success,” said Harrison, who in 2014 served as chair of the commission. “Strengthening higher education provides a positive impact in people’s lives and on the economy.”

Harrison’s service to higher education includes prominent leadership positions for more than 80 national, state and local organizations. This summer she became the first academic leader elected to serve as vice chair of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC).

“President Harrison’s service with WICHE provides access for students and advances prosperity for our entire region,” LAEDC CEO Bill Allen said. “Her dynamic leadership on the national stage continues to return resources and opportunities that benefit not only CSUN’s nearly 40,000 students but our local economy as well.”

In March Harrison was elected to a three-year term as a member of the American Council on Education (ACE) Board of Directors. ACE is the major coordinating body for the nation’s colleges and universities, representing nearly 1,800 college and university presidents and the executives at related associations.

Harrison also serves on the board of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), the NCAA Division I Committee on Academics, and the NCAA Board of Governors’ Committee to Promote Cultural Diversity and Equity, which she chairs.

Megan Marcus

The Center for Teaching and Learning at California State University, Northridge will explore how teachers can improve their “emotional intelligence” to be better educators in the classroom at its next Education on the Edge presentation on Wednesday, Nov. 14.

The Education on the Edge Speaker Series sponsored by Schools First Federal Credit Union will feature Megan Marcus, CEO founder of FuelEd, a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve student outcomes by developing the social and emotional competencies of educators.

Her talk will focus on sharing research on how to improve the emotional intelligence among developing educators, so they can do a better job of addressing therapeutic issues for which teachers are usually not prepared for.

“We want educators to have an understanding that they’re not alone, and to feel like they have the resources for addressing the needs they have in the classroom and how to collaborate with parents,” said Wendy Murawski, Executive Director & Eisner Endowed Chair at the Center for Teaching and Learning.

The Education on the Edge lecture is scheduled to take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Northridge Center of the University Student Union, located on the east side of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St. in Northridge.

Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley; a master’s degree in psychology from Pepperdine University and a master’s degree in education, policy and management from Harvard University.

This is the sixth year that The Center for Teaching and Learning will host the now renamed Schools First Credit Union Education on the Edge speaker series.

While the Education on the Edge speaker series is free and open to the public, attendees must register to ensure their seats. To register, visit www.CTLmarcus.eventbrite.com. American sign language interpreters will be provided.

Off campus guests are required to have parking passes, which may be purchased for $8 at any campus information booth.

Madeleine Walker

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) recently honored five California State University, Northridge alumni as 2018 Teachers of the Year.

Christina Bludau (from Sherman Oaks Elementary), Wendy Lucia Lozano (from Canoga Park Elementary), Monica Multer (from Melvin Avenue Elementary School), Joyann Sofio (from Walter Reed Middle School) and Madeleine Walker (from Palisades Charter Elementary School) were all recognized at the LAUSD Teacher of the Year Luncheon in July.

CSUN’s Michael D. Eisner College of Education is one of the largest public colleges of education in California and routinely produces teachers who are recognized as being at the top of their field.

Each 2018 Teacher of the Year shared how CSUN played a part in their commitment to education.

“I was lucky enough to have teachers and counselors who believed in me and gave me the strength to persevere and continue forward,” said Christina Bludau ’93 (Home Economics – Business). “These professors were role models in what a teacher should be like.”

Monica Multer ’02 M.A. (Educational Administration), ’02 (Cred.), said CSUN provided the guidance, information, and support to meet the daily challenges of being a teacher.

“I was given realistic expectations while challenged to think in a way that I had not thought of prior to attending [CSUN],” Multer said.

The journey to teaching is one that didn’t come without hard work for Joyann Sofio ’08 M.A. (Educational Administration), ’08 (Cred.), who despite having a teaching credential and experience, still needed to take other courses to earn a California credential.

“I turned to CSUN because they offered classes in the late afternoon, evenings and on the weekends,” Sofio said. “Not only was I able to successfully complete the program while working full-time and being a mom to my young children, but I had the opportunity to study with inspiring teachers in my cohort.”

Wendy Lozano ’07 M.A. (Early Childhood Education), ’08 (Cred.), was inspired to become a teacher during her undergraduate studies at the University of California, Irvine. Lozano initially went to college to study law but learned that a good education punctuated by dedicated teachers and protective school environments was the best deterrent to keep youth out of the juvenile justice system. She decided to teach instead.

“Teaching gives me the opportunity to stop the ‘school to prison pipeline’ by empowering students to improve their academics and to believe in themselves through good teaching practices, meaningful interactions and modeling a growth mindset,” Lozano said.

Madeleine Walker ’84 (Liberal Studies), ’85 (Cred.), ’92 M.A. (Personalizing Elementary Education) knew she wanted to be a teacher ever since finding inspiration through her fourth-grade teacher Donna Archambeau.

“She took the time to get to know every one of her students. I have always hoped that I would impact children in the same positive manner that she affected me,” said Walker.

Walker believes that students’ interest is the most powerful thing to drive instruction.

No two teachers share the same journey, but what they do have in common are the rewarding memories that come with teaching.

“Working with these students, who were mostly from underprivileged families, made me realize the difference teachers can make on a child, having belief in them, taking the time with answering questions, or simply listening to a concern they might have, made a difference in their future education,” said Bludau.

Lozano finds joy in seeing her past students maintain resiliency during hard times.

“My favorite teaching memory is every time an old student who is struggling with adversity in their life returns to visit me and tells me they are still motivated to go to college or a trade school,” she said.

When asked for advice for any aspiring teachers, these former Matadors had some encouraging words.

“I would tell a new teacher to hang in there, ask for help, and celebrate the successes no matter how small,” said Multer.

Lozano said, “always believe in yourself, your students, and their families because we are all interconnected in this important educational journey of every student.”

Walker said it’s important for new teachers to show compassion and get to know your students so that lessons can be developed in ways to meet educational, social and emotional needs.

“Be thankful that you are able to impact the lives of others and know that your words and actions make a huge impact on those beautiful minds in your classroom,” she said. “They are our world’s future, so don’t waste a moment with them.”

Dana Stone (left) and Shyrea Minton lead a training workshop for CSUN student counselors.

The California State University, Northridge Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling has taken on the journey to impact adolescents through offering counseling services to students and their families at four K-12 Catholic schools in the San Fernando Valley. ​​The schools include: Guardian Angel School in Pacoima, Our Lady of the Holy Rosary School in Sun Valley, St. Patrick Catholic School in North Hollywood and St. Genevieve Parish School in Panorama City.

Originally, the idea for this program sprung from various private schools that expressed their need for counseling services. CSUN’s school counseling program and Mitchell Family Counseling Clinic in the EPC department heard their requests and decided to fulfill them.

The grant process however, would prove itself to be a challenge. Joyce Medley, director of Mitchell Family Counseling Clinic – a community service site for the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling in the Michael D. Eisner College of Education at CSUN – started building relationships for the grant process in 2015. In June 2018, a three-person grant team along with Medley were awarded $301,000 for an 18-month program by The Counseling Services for Catholic Schools Collaborative grant, funded by the Well Being Trust, national foundation dedicated to advancing the mental, social and spiritual health of the nation.

“Mental health challenges do not exist in isolation — they are intertwined with chronic health conditions, lack of safe and clean housing, substance use disorders, economic and transportation deficiencies and a myriad of other issues,” Tyler Norris, chief executive of Well Being Trust, said in a press release. “With both rounds of grants, we intend to meet people where they are and where they need help and focus on all of the issues that impact one’s mental health and well-being.”

The grant is coordinated at CSUN by a four-person team: adjunct professor of ​Educational Psychology and Counseling, Deborah Buttitta; Medley; and associate professors Minton and Dana Stone.

The CSUN grant-funded Counseling Services for the Catholic School Collaborative will provide school wide preventative interventions and counseling services to an estimated 2,000 students across the four schools. All students will be eligible to receive counseling services for themselves and their families. Many of the students attending the target schools are low-income from first generation families from Mexico and Central America. Each school will have a plethora of counseling services for themselves or their parents or guardians.

“This program aims to meet the individual mental health and emotional needs of kids who wouldn’t, in other circumstances, be able to receive these services,” said Stone. “The program will also offer family counseling services as well as parenting workshops at the schools for parents.”

The counselors will be CSUN Educational Psychology and Counseling graduate students who will receive class credit for participating and field work experience.

“We did a lot of preparation beforehand with each school to make sure they were getting exactly the care and help they need from us,” said Buttitta. “Each school will have its own plan of action so we are really excited to start.”

The program began in September and will run for 18 months. Future plans for the program are to maintain funding after the grant to make the services permanent and expand their reach.

As awareness about crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence continue to grow in the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, national and local advocates for survivors and assault prevention are seeking to continue to build successful tools and resources to meet the growing needs of women, children, men, families and the LGBTQ+ community. For decades, Strength United staff, faculty and student volunteers have devoted themselves to fortifying the community and making the San Fernando and Santa Clarita Valleys safer for families and individuals.

Operating through California State University, Northridge, Strength United is a nonprofit organization committed to aiding victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse.

This fall, Strength United hosted a Legislative Brunch for the Valley Reps, a group of legislative representatives from the offices of elected officials who represent the San Fernando Valley at the local, state and federal levels. These representatives hold regular meetings to learn more about community resources and services, like those provided by Strength United.

The program was held at Strength United’s Family Justice Center in Van Nuys, which was the first of its kind in Los Angeles County when it opened in 2015. Launched by Dignity Health Northridge Hospital’s Center for Assault Treatment Services (CATS), the center functions as a one-stop haven for victims of violence, providing them with myriad services they would otherwise have difficulty accessing.

CATS relies on Strength United to help victims through the next steps after being rescued from a violent or abusive situation, said Joni Novosel, Dignity Health Northridge Hospital director, at the legislative brunch in late September.

“When we turn them over to our partner Strength United, they take them from victim to survivor,” Novosel said.

She also shared updates about the progress taking place in efforts to aid local survivors. One such change involves removing the need for those who need services to specify themselves as male or female.

“This is the first year we’ve been able to track people who do not identify as male or female,” Novosel said. On forms, visitors to service centers such as the Family Justice Center may now indicate “other” as their gender, so as to not be “put in a box,” she said.

Novosel also emphasized the shift from intervention to prevention taking place through CATS and other Strength United partners. Prevention programs in the works include Safe Dates, which targets dating abuse among adolescents; Escape Now (in collaboration with New Horizons), which aims to assist those with cognitive and developmental disabilities — a group who are 70 percent more likely to be a victim of abuse; Beyond Trauma, a peer support group; and domestic violence prevention workshops at Los Angeles Unified School District parent centers. A partnership with the Valley Care Community Consortium is also helping to create a domestic violence committee dedicated to preventing violence between nontraditional partners.

One in three adolescents in the United States is a victim of physical, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse, Novosel told the civic leaders. Additionally, “violence begets violence,” as 70 percent of people in U.S. prisons were brought up in homes affected by domestic violence, she said.

“We don’t want to keep saving 1,106 victims,” said Novosel, citing the number of victims served by CATS in 2018. “We want to be here if they need us, but we don’t want to be so needed, because that’s a sad state for our country.”

Kim Roth, executive director of Strength United, said she believes the CSUN organization and the Family Justice Center can further extend their capacity to intervene in and prevent crises. To achieve that, “we need more space, and we need more partners,” she said.

Roth also emphasized the need for increased access to more data and more input from local government agencies, to help the Family Justice Center track its successes and proceed with evidence-based practices.

Strength United’s origins in and partnership with CSUN’s Michael D. Eisner College of Education is one of the most important things about the organization, Roth said.

“CSUN is very committed to making a change in our community in meaningful ways,” she said. “We’re very proud of that relationship.” Strength United serves as CSUN’s largest childhood center and is currently training 118 volunteers.

An initiative to apply the model of the Family Justice Center throughout the city of Los Angeles is currently in the works, Roth said. With this development, as well as plans to obtain more space and expand the building itself to serve more people, the organization hopes to inch closer to bringing an end to domestic violence and sexual assault in Los Angeles County — and beyond.

Strength United aims to ensure that aid and services are available for anyone in need, at any time of day or night. Their 24-hour support and resource telephone lines may be reached at (818) 886-0453 or (661) 253-0258. These hotlines are open to provide information, crisis intervention and emotional support seven days a week, year-round.

For more information, visit www.strengthunited.org or visit the Family Justice Center at 14651 Oxnard Blvd., Van Nuys.

In November, California State University, Northridge students got a chance to see how leading-edge technology can be a powerful tool for societal change at the “Artificial Intelligence x Social Entrepreneurship” workshop. The workshop was co-sponsored by CSUN’s Information Technology department and campus Amazon Alexa Fellow Tim Tiemann, managing director of the CSUN Innovation Incubator.

The workshop focused on how artificial intelligence (AI) and voice technologies might be used to improve housing, food insecurity and sustainability conditions in at-risk communities. Tiemann was joined by Tyler Bell, a technology and human-resources education consultant from the Annenberg Foundation, who spoke to the more than 80 students about the importance of social entrepreneurship and technology.

The workshop was partly inspired by participation by CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics in the inaugural Amazon Alexa Innovation Fellowship program. The fellowship aims to help support on-campus entrepreneurial programs through funding, Alexa devices, hardware kits and regular training. The resources must be used for student scholarships and to further support innovation programs, operating costs and sponsorships.

Students learning the art of music composition for film and television at California State University, Northridge’s Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication are getting one of the best such educations in the world, according to entertainment professionals surveyed by T​he Hollywood Reporter.

CSUN appears on the magazine’s Top 25 Music Schools for Composing for Film and TV list, putting it in the company of the world’s elite music programs, along with the USC Thornton School of Music, UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, The Juilliard School in New York, Berklee College of Music in Boston, and Royal College of Music in London. The Hollywood Reporter polled more than 600 entertainment pros to compile the annual ranking.

Gryllus Navajo; new species of Red-colored cricket found in Red Rock county of South-Eastern Utah and North-Eastern Arizona. Photo by: J. Hogue, Collections manager of biology department

The world is filled with billions of insects that creep, crawl, fly or buzz, but few are more well known in our society than crickets.

California State University, Northridge biology professor David Gray – with 20 years’ experience researching the ubiquitous, chirping insects – recently unveiled something new in the world of crickets: Gray and his team discovered 17 new species of cricket in the western United States.

“I think people sort of aren’t surprised if there are new insect species found in the Amazon jungle, but something new that’s in the U.S. and as big, noisy and conspicuous as a cricket surprises people,” said Gray. “Everyone knows what a cricket is and, that there are undiscovered species here now, is quite remarkable.”

With the help of sound recorders, Gray was able to distinguish the songs of male crickets and classify them accordingly – classifications later confirmed by DNA sequencing.

“I listen for them, catch them and record them while they’re captive,” said Gray. “The fieldwork to catch the crickets could be anywhere, from the remote wilderness to small towns.”

There are an estimated 1,000 species of cricket around the world. More than 100 species can be found in the U.S., with many sharing physical characteristics in shape and appearance.

“The key to identifying different species is the call of the males,” Gray said. “When you hear crickets ‘chirp chirp,’ those are the males calling to attract females for mating, and those calls differentiate the various species.”

Adult males are the only the ones capable of producing chirp songs, he said.

Gray, who joined CSUN’s faculty in 2001, specializes in behavioral ecology and evolution. His research initially focused on birds but soon transitioned to crickets.

“Working with birds was super fun, but there wasn’t a lot of data,” Gray said. “I thought I should switch to something that was easier to collect a lot of data. faster. I switched to crickets not knowing anything about them or having any real love for them, but because they would be a good research system.”

During his years at CSUN, more than 50 undergraduate students have participated in his research program.

With immense biodiversity in the world, Gray said, there are many things still to be discovered in our own backyard.

Gray is working to submit his finding to the scientific journal Zootaxa for review. He expects his work to be published in July of next year.

For more information on Gray’s work, visit https://gryllid.wordpress.com/.

The New Journal of Student Research Abstracts Volume 23

California State University, Northridge biology professor Steven Oppenheimer is celebrating 23 years of collaboration with Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) teachers to promote science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) research done by K-12 students with the debut of volume No. 23 of The New Journal of Student Research Abstracts – on Dec. 19.

A symposium scheduled for 1 p.m. on March 10 at CSUN’s University Student Union will feature the work of hundreds of participating LAUSD students.

The annual symposium brings together CSUN faculty, teachers, students and parents to celebrate their science projects.

“Students receive medals, and when the kids hear their names [called], the cheers are louder than any baseball or football game,” Oppenheimer said.

The journal is composed of several different research topics like “organic vs. nonorganic apples,” “testing PH level of different brands of water” and do video games improve your reflexes,” to name a few.

The New Journal of Student Research Abstracts was first published in 1995 and was designed to help educators come up with creative research materials and ideas for their classrooms to engage students in scientific research.

“The United States is in need of top research scientists, and to create interest in research at the college level is in many cases too late, because many students have already made up their minds in terms of what type of career they want,” Oppenheimer said. “Our program begins stimulating kids to do research in middle school, and even sometimes elementary school,”

Over the years, the journal has garnered numerous awards for its outstanding impact on young science students. The accolades have included the CSUN Delmar T. Oviatt Library Open Access Award, the Presidential Award presented by President Obama at the White House and, most recently, the Ed Peckham Award presented by the CSUN Alumni Association.

All 23 volumes of the journal are available online for free and can be accessed by visiting: http://scholarworks.csun.edu/handle/10211.3/206671.