The McNair Scholars program helps students achieve their educational goals beyond the bachelor degree. Pictured, from left, are program director Patricia Literte, students Ryan Hamilton and Aysha Mabin and assistant director Yamissette Westerband.

For students from low-income, first-generation and underrepresented backgrounds, the goal of a master’s degree and/or doctorate may seem to be an unreachable dream. Thanks to Cal State Fullerton’s Ronald E. McNair Program, those dreams are becoming realities.

“Before joining the program I knew I wanted to obtain a Ph.D.,” says Aysha Mabin, a senior psychology major with a minor in child and adolescent development. “I joined not only because I fit the participation requirements, but because I knew it would be beneficial to have support and learn more about how to reach my ultimate goal.”

“I was curious to learn more about conducting research as an undergraduate and eager to become more involved academically at the university,” said Ryan Hamilton, a senior mechanical engineering major, who learned about the program through a presentation by current scholars. The scholars explained how the program “had changed the course of their academic careers. They also shared their research experiences … through summer research opportunities, and that was the first time I had heard of an opportunity like that and immediately inquired about applying to the program.

“To be honest, the McNair program has been the greatest resource I have had during my college career,” Hamilton added. “I knew very little about the paths available to college students coming into the program. The McNair summer research institute opened the door to graduate school for me!”

Established on campus in 1999, the U.S. Department of Education-funded program has served more than 400 students. Each year, 25 students become a part of the program, which provides faculty mentors, graduate-level research internships and workshops and seminars about graduate school selection, research, technical writing, time management and other subjects focused on getting into graduate programs.

Participants also have the opportunity to travel to McNair symposia and conferences across the country, receive one-on-one advisement and support from their peers.

“Our program is designed to prepare to preparing these scholars for admission and completion of graduate school programs by giving them the essential tools, resources and experiences needed for success at the graduate level,” explains Patricia E. Literte, director of the McNair Scholars Program and an associate professor of sociology.

Mabin agrees. “Although I still have many questions, it is helpful to know that I have the support from advisers and peers within the program in finding the answers.”

“Already this semester, we’ve held daylong seminars on graduate school admissions and professional development. Scholars have visited UCLA, Louisiana State Johns Hopkins and Syracuse universities, and presented research at a variety of conferences, including the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science,” Literte adds. “Scholars also will be attending this month’s Southern California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education at UC Santa Barbara. In addition, seniors in the program are preparing their applications to graduate school.”

In the last ten years, more than 20 scholars have earned doctorates and more than 70 have graduated with master’s degrees.

Cal State Fullerton received $220,000 in program support this year from the U.S. Department of Education as part of a five-year award begun in 2013 that is expected to total nearly $1.1 million.

For more information about the program, contact Patricia Literte, .

~ Story originally posted on CSUF News Center.

CSUF McNair Scholar Blanca Ramirez will be conducting research at Princeton this summer.

Early next month, Cal State Fullerton senior Blanca Ramirez will take her first trip to the East Coast to conduct research at Princeton University.

Ramirez is a McNair Scholar, part of a federally funded program established to provide low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students with opportunities to prepare for and succeed in earning advanced college degrees.

She is one of six McNair Scholars who will experience what could be their future by living and conducting research this summer at a doctoral-granting institution.

“I applied last fall to various research facilities for a summer research opportunity, including Princeton’s Undergraduate Summer Research Experience,” Ramirez explained. She will be one of only 10 students from across the nation selected to take part in the eight-week residency program at the New Jersey campus.

While there, the sociology major will be studying teen relationships. “My research at Cal State Fullerton has been on the role of the immigration experience on culture of honor beliefs and its relation to the treatment of women. My research interests are on violence against women of color and the justifications of violence in society.

“My parents are excited,” added the Anaheim resident. “I hadn’t told them when I was applying … but they know it’s a step in the right direction.”

Ramirez, whose faculty mentor is assistant sociology professor Devon Thacker Thomas, hopes to one day earn her doctorate. “So that’s why it was really important to get into a summer research program as preparation.

“I’m excited and nervous,” she admitted. “But I think it will be a great experience.”

Other McNair Scholars participating in summer research programs, cities of residence and majors, are:
Christina Acosta of Fullerton, psychology, UC Irvine
Alyssa Bormann of Bellflower, biochemistry, Stanford University
Robert Cortes of Fullerton, philosophy, UC San Diego
Jessica Sanchez of Costa Mesa, psychology, UC San Diego
Shaina Sta Cruz of Fullerton, communicative disorders, UC San Diego

The Ronald E. McNair Scholars program was established by the U.S. Department of Education in 1986 and named after the late astronaut, who was the second African American to fly in space. The program offers a variety of activities and services, including one-on-one advising, research under a faculty mentor, participation in graduate school tours and funding for conference attendance and presentations.

Cal State Fullerton instituted the program in 1999. This month, 10 Scholars graduated from the University and have been accepted into graduate programs across the country, including Baylor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Texas A&M and University of Pennsylvania.

This article was originally posted on May 22, 2015 on CSUF News Center. See more at: http://news.fullerton.edu/2015su/Blanca-Ramirez.aspx#sthash.ANcNy1Bu.dpuf

When Christian Banas learned he had been accepted into Cal State Fullerton’s music program four years ago, he was taken aback.

After all, he hadn’t applied for entrance into the program – or had he?

Upon review of his application, Banas discovered that instead of checking the “kinesiology” option on his application as he had intended, he had mistakenly marked “music” as his choice of major.

Although Banas, who grew up in Rowland Heights, had been involved in school bands since fifth grade, he had no intention of pursuing music in college.

Never one to bow down from a challenge, he decided to stick with it for “one or two semesters,” Banas said.

“I was just happy I was going to college,” he said.

The 21-year-old is graduating Saturday from the university’s School of Music.

On the first day of classes his freshman year, Banas realized he couldn’t read any of the music in the book in front of him.

“I had no idea what I was doing, but I bought the books anyway,” he said. “It’s basically like learning a new language.”

His first semester, a professor recommended Banas look into pursuing a different major because he didn’t seem to be doing all that well in the program.

“It was one of the biggest blows I’ve ever had,” Banas said. “I had never been told I couldn’t do something.”

Banas decided he needed to prove to himself that he could succeed in the music program.

“I’m really stubborn,” Banas said. “I would have lessons for an hour and after then, I would pull out my trombone for another five hours.”

He would practice singing exercises in his car because he was too embarrassed to do it anywhere else.

“Since it was new to me, I had to get used to that process,” he said. “I was already years behind everybody.”

Until he reached his third year at CSUF, Banas struggled immensely. Everything that other students already knew, he had to first learn and then excel in – quickly, he said.

Banas is a teacher’s assistant for music classes at Alvarado Intermediate School and John A. Rowland High School, both in Rowland Heights.

“It’s one of the best experiences I’ve had, just teaching them how to play,” Banas said.

“Being able to work with them, I saw that I was able to impact people’s lives,” he said. “The kids wanted to be there and hear what we had to say.”

Next for Banas is the Single Subject Credential Program at CSUF in the fall. Completing the program will allow him to teach kindergarten through 12th grade. He hopes to teach music at the middle school level.

“I will use my experience as one of my major teaching tools,” Banas said. “Since I know how hard it is to be at the bottom, I know how to connect at all levels.”

Although his original plans included obtaining a degree in kinesiology and pursuing a career as a sports therapist, Banas is glad he botched his application more than four years ago.

“I’m glad I went through that. It changed the course of how I view life,” he said. “I have gotten to meet so many amazing people.”

Although he felt like he wasn’t improving at the time, Banas said he often looks back and can’t believe what he managed to overcome.

“I learned how to fail a lot those first years, which is not something a lot of people in the music department can say,” Banas said.

“The struggle, that is what makes success,” he said. 

Angelica Ruiz 

Angelica Ruiz is graduating with a double major in health science and women and gender studies.

The 23-year-old from Anaheim is finishing up a study on food access and food disparities in low-income communities. Ruiz decided to focus her research on the city of Santa Ana because of its high prevalence of Latinos and obesity, she said.

In 2013, Ruiz was named a CSUF McNair Scholar, which allowed her to conduct the study alongside a CSUF mentor of her choosing. Ruiz chose Erualdo Gonzalez, associate professor of Chicana and Chicano studies.

The McNair Scholars Program encourages low-income, first-generation college and underrepresented students to pursue graduate programs.

By conducting interviews with Santa Ana residents, Ruiz researched the affordability, access and quality of fruits and vegetables in the community.

“There is this gap between low-income access to healthy food and high-income access to healthy food,” Ruiz said.

In the future, Ruiz plans to move to Sacramento and pursue a career in health policy.

“I want to focus on health policy and changing policy at a higher macro level,” she said.

“I know a lot of people who have immigrant families and for whatever reason were not able to go to college,” Ruiz said. “I feel very grateful to have had the opportunity.”

Karla Arriaga-Lopez 

When she was a young girl growing up in Pomona, Karla Arriaga-Lopez used to visit free community health clinics with her family.

She, along with her parents, grew up undocumented.

Arriaga-Lopez, now 26, recalled looking up to the physician assistants who treated her and hoping that one day, she too would be able to help those in need.

“Growing up not only as an undocumented person, but in a low-income family, we never had the privilege of having health insurance,” said Arriaga-Lopez, who is the first in her family to graduate.

After graduating from high school, Arriaga-Lopez attended Citrus College with the intention of specializing in nursing.

Without a Social Security number, her aspirations of becoming a physician’s assistant came to a halt.

Discouraged, Arriaga-Lopez stopped going to school for nearly two years.

In 2012, she began a research program – STEM² Summer Research Experience – at CSUF. The program encourages community college students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to transfer to four-year institutions and, as a result, increase the number of Hispanic or Latino low-income students in STEM fields.

Soon after, Arriaga-Lopez transferred to CSUF as a biology major.

“It was a huge change for me going from Citrus community college to Cal State Fullerton,” Arriaga-Lopez said. “But I felt really comfortable really fast.”

Throughout her time at CSUF, Arriaga-Lopez participated in internships at local hospitals, hoping to gain experience in the health profession.

Last year, she obtained her U.S. residency.

Next up for Arriaga-Lopez is more internship work for the remainder of the year. Next year she plans to enroll in a physician’s assistant program.

“I come from a very hardworking family, so my parents have always encouraged me and my siblings to go to school and go above and beyond to succeed,” she said. “I am proud of myself.”

Jonathan Garcia 

Jonathan Garcia, labeled as a nontraditional student because of his age, believes his life story has helped reach the place he is at today.

Garcia was 29 when he decided to go back to school after taking a break from college years earlier due to personal issues.

Now married and father to a 20-month-old son and with another baby on the way, the 32-year-old is a group counselor and recreation director at the Orangewood Children’s Foundation, an Orange County organization that aids children who are victims of abuse, neglect and abandonment.

This weekend, Garcia, who lives in Yorba Linda, is graduating with bachelor’s degrees in sociology and Chicana and Chicano studies.

“This has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life,” Garcia said of his time at CSUF. “This is something that I can treasure and eventually pass on to my kids.”

One of Garcia’s main goals at Orangewood is to help the children he works with overcome their backgrounds, he said.

“I want to give them that exposure and help them see that there is a big world out there,” he said.

Garcia has been working full time since he was 18. He and his wife keep alternative schedules in order to care for their son.

“I am completely in love with education like I never have been,” said Garcia, who hopes to one day teach at the collegiate level.

He credits CSUF with allowing him to learn about his Chicano roots and culture, something he says motivated him to stick with school and earn his degree.

His goals while at CSUF were “to just grow as a man, as a father and as a student,” he said.

He believes he has accomplished all three.

David Rhodes 

When he was a student in CSUF’s Single Subject Credential Program 10 years ago, David Rhodes began an internship at Lathrop Intermediate School in Santa Ana.

Ten years later as a student in CSUF’s Master of Science in Education program, Rhodes is a seventh grade mathematics teacher at the school.

Rhodes, who was raised as part of a military family, was named the education graduate program’s Carr Fellow, an award that recognizes a graduating master’s degree student’s achievement and promise for making significant contributions in education.

Rhodes’ favorite part of the job is when he sees his students “start believing in themselves as students and people,” he said.

Recently, Rhodes, 45, presented his end-of-the-program research project to fellow classmates and professors. The project focused on using screencasting as a group-learning activity to create learning opportunities for students that would positively affect their mathematical self-efficacy.

“If students like to go to math class, it no longer becomes this hated math class,” he said. “They start enjoying it and once they start enjoying it, they feel better about it.

“I really enjoy working with kids and will hopefully be doing this for a while,” Rhodes said.

This article was originally posted by the Orange County Register on May 11th, 2015 and can be viewed at http://www.ocregister.com/articles/banas-661407-program-csuf.html.

Ten scholars from Cal State Fullerton’s McNair Scholars Program will be graduating this spring and advancing to graduate and doctoral programs all across the country.

The federally funded McNair Scholars Program was established at CSUF in 1999 to provide low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students with opportunities to prepare for and succeed in advanced degrees.

As part of the program, McNair Scholars take part in special seminars and are paired with professors who mentor and conduct research with them. Scholars present their findings at conferences throughout the world and publish research articles in academic journals, boosting their chances of getting accepted into graduate programs.

Four of this year’s graduating class will be attending doctoral programs this fall with full scholarships. They are:

• Robert Cortes of Fullerton, Texas A&M University doctoral program in philosophy
• Sirena Ibrahim of Riverside, Stony Brook University/State University of New York, doctoral program in psychology
• Jennifer Spencer of Rancho Santa Margarita, Baylor College of Medicine, doctoral program in molecular virology and microbiology
• Jose Zavala of Chino, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, doctoral program in chemistry

In addition, Christina Tran of Glendora, received a full scholarship to attend the master of science in mathematics program at Portland State University.

Other graduates, their cities of residence and the programs they are entering this fall:

• Ashley Adams of Irvine, MFA program in design, California College of the Arts
• Jaime Cabrera of Santa Ana, master of science in computer science, Cal State Fullerton
• Kelly Logan of Long Beach, master of social work, University of Pennsylvania
• Donald Nguyen of West Covina, master of arts in psychology in education, Teachers College at Columbia University
• Lucelli Porron of Santa Ana, master of science in psychology, Cal State Fullerton

– This article was originally posted April 24, 2015 on CSUF News Center. See more at: http://news.fullerton.edu/2015su/McNair-Scholars-Graduate.aspx#sthash.T6dbq42v.dpuf

Some of the new McNair Scholars this year are, from left: Amber M. O’Hara, Jenny C. Chang, Ashley D. Adams, Geselle Sarmiento, Gabriela Yates, Rebecca A. Fisk and Sofia I. Laguna

Clifford Frez, Omar Khalid and Nicole M. Merino have a few things in common: All first-generation college students, they graduated from Cal State Fullerton with full scholarships to complete doctoral degrees. As undergrads, they were McNair Scholars and today, they credit the program for their success.

Undergraduates who are selected to be McNair Scholars are encouraged to attend graduate school and attain doctoral degrees. The program was established by the U.S. Department of Education in 1986, and named for the late astronaut, Ronald E. McNair, who was the second African American to fly in space. CSUF has received more than $2.5 million in federal grants for the program, which was instituted on campus in 1999. Another $1.1 million is expected to continue the program, which provides low-income and first-generation college students opportunities to seek advanced degrees, for at least six more years.

Clifford Frez

Clifford Frez on the job at JPL.

Class of 2002 chemistry alumnus Frez, who earned his doctorate in chemical engineering at Brown University in 2008, now works in his dream job as a microdevices engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

“Right now, I’m working on making new semi-conductor lasers for the purpose of space exploration,” he said, adding that the research he enthusiastically pursues today is due in large part to his experience as a McNair Scholar.

As an undergrad, Frez was paired with A. Scott Hewitt, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, who taught him the fundamentals of research by guiding him through the study of gaseous reaction of chlorine atoms and aromatic compounds, among other research.

“The McNair program really helped me,” Frez said. “I learned what it takes to make it in grad school by participating in research, giving presentations and writing about research results.”

He said working at JPL “is something I never imagined when I was younger, and I really credit a lot of my preparation and excitement for science to Dr. Hewitt and the McNair program.”

Omar Khalid

Khalid, who earned his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry in 2003, said that being a McNair Scholar exposed him to different opportunities in research and led him to seek research as a career. He graduated with a doctorate in pharmaceutical sciences from USC in 2009.

“I’ll always be very grateful to the McNair program for all it did for me,” he said.

Today, Khalid is a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA, where he is conducting stem cell research.

“I’m trying to figure out what makes a stem cell a stem cell,” he said. “We know stem cells are great, that they can cure diseases, but we don’t fully understand why that is. What causes stem cells to act as a cure? We want to figure that out.”

Khalid said his love for research bloomed under the tutelage of his McNair faculty mentors — Robert A. Koch, interim dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Christina A. Goode, professor of chemistry and biochemistry.

“Dr. Goode and Dr. Koch were fantastic,” he said. “Looking back, I realize that their mentorship was exceptional. They really care about you, which is rare. People care but not like my Cal State Fullerton mentors. I’m a first-generation U.S. college student, and they really helped prepare me for graduate school like no one else.”

Nicole M. Merino

Following her 2002 graduation from CSUF with a degree in child and adolescent studies, Merino earned her master’s and doctorate in education at UC Santa Barbara, and now is director of performance assessment for California teachers at the Stanford Center for Assessment Learning and Equity.

“When I applied for graduate school and scholarships, UC Santa Barbara officials were really impressed with the amount of research and conference presentations I had done as a CSUF McNair undergrad,” Merino said. “They saw it as commitment to getting my advanced degrees, and they gave me a five-year fellowship and research assistant position.”

Guiding her as her McNair faculty mentor was Kari Knutson Miller, chair and professor of child and adolescent studies.

“She provided me a learning experience I never would have gotten outside the McNair program,” Merino said. “I feel very fortunate that I had that experience that led me to grad school and to a job that I love.”

One of the most important lessons she learned as an undergrad, she said, was “how to advocate for myself, especially as a female minority.”

“I am really prepared to be able to argue for myself and express my ideas in higher-education discussions with national leaders,” Merino added. “How I learned to do that directly connects to my experience in the McNair program.”

New McNair Scholars

The following undergrads were selected as the newest CSUF McNair Scholars, listed with their majors and cities of residence:

• Ashley D. Adams, graphic arts, Irvine

• Jenny C. Chang, mathematics-applied mathematics, Walnut

• Danielle Delany, psychology, Santa Ana

• Rebecca A. Fisk, psychology, Fullerton

• Alexa M. Harris, ethnic studies and sociology, Pomona

• Sofia I. Laguna, psychology, Chino Hills

• Amber M. O’Hara, biology, Fullerton

• Keith T. Reed, radio-TV-film and ethnic studies, Los Angeles

• Audrey Rodriguez, psychology, Rowland Heights

• Geselle Sarmiento, kinesiology, Whittier

• Jennifer Spencer, biology, Santa Margarita

• Gabriela Yates, philosophy, Chino Hills

Melinda A. Blackman will receive the Western Psychological Association’s “Outstanding Teaching Award” in April.

By Mimi Ko Cruz, California State University Fullerton Staff Writer | Originally posted on Jan. 8, 2013

“I am just thrilled beyond words and am delighted to join the ranks of the amazing and accomplished past winners of this award,” said Blackman of Newport Beach.

Nominating her for the award were her fellow Cal State Fullerton psychology professors Jack Mearns, department chair; Allen W. Gottfried and Richard A. Lippa; and David Funder, a UC Riverside psychology professor.

“Melinda’s commitment to teaching is pervasive and profound,” Gottfried wrote in his nomination letter, which included a long list of examples of Blackman’s teaching and mentoring skills. “She turns every aspect of her scholarship into an educational benefit for psychology students.

“Melinda’s contribution to educating students extends beyond the boundaries of her academic institution,” Gottfried noted, adding that Blackman serves as a mentor in the university’s Ronald E. McNair Scholars program and as coordinator of the department’s graduate program.

Blackman’s students have rated her among the best professors on campus, characterizing her as a “caring,” “enthusiastic” and “motivational” teacher and role model.

Author of “Mind Your Diet” and “Nutrition Psychology,” Blackman, who holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Stanford University and a master’s degree and doctorate in social/personality psychology from UC Riverside, joined CSUF’s faculty in 1996.

Her tenure has been marked with a number of teaching awards, including the CSUF Carol Barnes Excellence in Teaching Award in 2007 and the 2011 Distinguished Faculty Member Award from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, as well as five Psychology Teacher of the Year awards bestowed by psychology majors.

Gerald Bryant, center, interacts with McNair Scholars. Photo: Matt Gush

Gerald Bryant Honored as Outstanding Staff Member

By Mimi Ko Cruz, University of California Fullerton Staff Writer | Originally posted on June 13, 2012

Gerald Bryant credits mentors for his success at work, in school and in life.

Today, he serves as a mentor himself as director of the university’s Ronald E. McNair Scholars program. Under Bryant’s tutelage over the past dozen years, 81 McNair Scholars have gone on to complete master’s degrees, nine have earned doctoral degrees and 38 are presently enrolled in doctoral studies, many with full scholarships.

For their success and for his care for, guidance and mentorship of McNair Scholars, Bryant has been chosen one of three recipients of this year’s Outstanding Staff Award — the highest university honor bestowed on staff members. The other two are Mony Nhong, analyst and programmer in the Information Technology Division, and Thao Nguyen, an information technology consultant in the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

Thanks to mentors who guided him through college and career, Bryant said he’s landed in the perfect job — one where he carefully pairs undergrads with inspiring faculty mentors, who help prepare them for admission and success in grad school.

“You can’t do it on your own,” he tells his charges. “You have to have a network, you have to have resources. That’s what the McNair program provides for underserved and underrepresented students.”

Another lesson Bryant instills in the scholars is that “life throws you many curves, so you always have to be aware of change and embrace it. You must be able to improvise.”

Bryant, a Vietnam veteran, said he learned to improvise when he narrowly escaped death five times in his life, four times as a civilian and once on the battlefield, when his plane was shot down over Vietnam.

“Because of those experiences, I have a whole different view of life,” he said. “I look at it through a different lens. I have been given so much in life, so I feel it’s my responsibility to give back. Passing on what I know to students is so rewarding for me. I have the best job in the world because I realize I’m touching the future leaders of the world. And, the little input I have to give them will make a difference somewhere down the line.”

Gratitude from Alumni

Past and present scholars wholeheartedly endorse Bryant, praising him for everything he teaches them and for opening doors for them.

Alumna Suzette M. Puente (B.S. mathematics ’10) said she greatly benefited from being a McNair Scholar.

“I honestly don’t know where I would be without the McNair program,” Puente said. “Because of the program, I was presented with many research opportunities, but most importantly, it taught me how to be proactive about my education and achieving my academic goals.”

With the completion of her undergraduate degree, Puente had her choice of doctoral programs. She now is studying at UC Berkeley with a full scholarship.

Carmen J. Cortez (B.S. biological science ’09), agrees. Cortez is studying in the ecology doctoral program at UC Davis with a $101,500 National Science Foundation (NSF) research grant that she garnered as a McNair senior.

“In my freshman year, I heard Gerald Bryant talk about graduate school, the McNair program, the importance of undergraduate research and the opportunities we have here at Cal State Fullerton,” explained Cortez, who attributed her success winning the NSF grant to Bryant and the McNair program.

“It’s all about good mentors,” he said. “That’s the overarching thing. I’m the son of a steel mill worker and my high school counselor told me college was not for me, that I should work with my father, but my mother told me otherwise. I followed her advice and that of many other mentors. They saw something in me.”

Kudos from Colleagues

Jeremiah W. Moore, assistant to the vice president for student affairs, called Bryant “an inspirational leader and exemplary role model.”

In a letter of recommendation for Bryant, Benjamin J. Hubbard, emeritus professor of comparative religion, wrote that when he served as chair of the McNair Faculty Advisory Board from 2000-2005, he was impressed by the former Air Force captain.

“It was always his students — his scholars — that mattered to Gerald,” Hubbard noted. “He cared for them, guided them and was immensely proud of their accomplishments.”

More About the McNair Director

Bryant, who lives in Glen Ivy with his wife, Romelia Madrigal-Bryant, has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Tennessee State University and an MBA from National University. He is a doctoral candidate in education administration at the University of the Pacific in Stockton.

A motivational speaker often asked to appear before community and youth groups, Bryant has presented at hundreds of high school, university and community events, and has served as a facilitator for diversity training for the California Department of Social Services.

Before joining CSUF, Bryant was director of Upward Bound at the College of the Siskiyous in Northern California.

A former president of 100 Black Men of Sacramento, he was a member of the National Board of Directors for 100 Black Men of America, Inc. and presently serves as the Western Regional Mentor Trainer for 100 Black Men of America, Inc., in California, Nevada and Arizona.

Bryant, president of the honor society of Phi Kappa Phi at CSUF, is a life member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.

June 13, 2012

Eduardo Garcia has completed his bachelor’s degree in American studies and psychology, and Cindia Velasco completed her bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in philosophy.

Eduardo Garcia. Photo by Karen Tapia

Eduardo Garcia

Garcia leaves his hometown of Anaheim this month to participate in the summer fellowship program of Humanity In Action, an international educational organization promoting human rights around the world. He is one of 44 college students throughout the nation chosen as HIA summer fellows.

Garcia will travel to the Netherlands to learn about the history and theories of resistance to legal and institutional abuse of minority populations and the development of international human rights institutions and doctrines after World War II and the Holocaust.

He will conduct research and produce a written report on human rights violations. Once he completes his studies abroad, he will create an action project, engaging human rights or minority issues, back home in Orange County.

“As the first in my family to go to college, I never imagined something like this could ever be a possibility for me,” Garcia said, adding that he’s felt a responsibility to give back since the day his ninth-grade high school English teacher commented in his journal.

“She wrote in red ink, ‘I believe in you.’ I still have that note,” the 22-year-old said.

Garcia engages in community improvement projects through volunteer work for the Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development, a nonprofit organization that advances the rights of Orange County’s working families.

“I help organize communities for social justice causes and I help people apply for U.S. citizenship status,” Garcia said. “I’m really interested in public policy. By learning to work together, we can improve our community and make long-term change that is sustainable.”

Last summer, Garcia was one of 30 students nationwide chosen to take part in UC Berkeley’s seven-week public policy institute, where he took courses designed to improve the analytical and quantitative skills required by top-level graduate programs in public policy and international affairs.

Once he completes the HIA program, Garcia plans to find a job in Washington, D.C. and eventually pursue his master’s degree in public policy.

Cindia Velasco. Photo by Karen Tapia

Cindia Velasco

As an intern in Cal State Fullerton’s Washington, D.C., Internship program, Velasco, of La Puente, spent last summer witnessing the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. This summer, she will begin a two-year stint teaching in a Chicago elementary school with Teach for America.

It’s all part of her grand plan to become a lawyer and, eventually, a judge.

“I want to understand what problems kids face in the classroom,” she said, adding that she will earn a teaching credential at Dominican University as part of the program. “During my second year, I’ll be attending the University of Chicago to earn my master’s degree in public policy. I am committed to closing and learning more about the achievement gap that plagues our urban cities.”

After she completes the program, Velasco plans to pursue a law degree.

“I want to become a lawyer to reform our education system, and the Teach for America program will give me a better understanding of what needs to be done,” the 23-year-old said.

As an undergraduate at Cal State Fullerton, Velasco has written papers about education reform and lobbied for education in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

The daughter of Mexican immigrants who never attended college, Velasco said higher education has been her key to success. She credits her political science professors and mentors for giving her a solid foundation for her future career.

“They believed in me when I didn’t, and they empowered me with knowledge,” she said. “Cal State Fullerton inspires me. I gained ambition here.”

For her undergraduate work, Velasco has received various awards, including being named a Future History Maker by the statewide organization Hispanas Organized for Political Equality.

“I’m excited about the future,” Velasco said. “My dreams are coming true.”

-Article originally posted by Mimi Ko Cruz on May 18, 2010 in the California State University, Fullerton Inside.

Cal State Fullerton Scholar - Erica A. Nieblas

Like Matilda Wormwood, the 4-year-old genius heroine in “Matilda,” her favorite Roald Dahl children’s book, Erica A. Nieblas was a ravenous reader at a young age.

“My parents fought a lot in those days,” Nieblas said, “There were a lot of worries.”

Born in Mexico, the second of four children in a family struggling to make ends meet in the inner-city, she used to lock herself in the bedroom to escape in her books. She spoke Spanish before she began learning English in 1989, the year her family immigrated to California. She was 2.

Now 23, the McNair Scholar recalls learning her second language by going through a set of encyclopedias with her father.

Her parents had barely completed grade school and realized that they had to teach her and her siblings to read before they entered Kindergarten to prepare them to take advantage of any potential opportunities.

Nieblas, who lives in Highland with her husband Michael, is completing her bachelor’s degree in English and philosophy cum laude. She was honored as the speaker at the Philosophy Department’s commencement ceremony last month.

She will complete her undergraduate studies in August and hopes to pursue doctoral studies in philosophy.

Perhaps she chose this path as a first-grader when she checked out Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” from her school library. Alice’s adventures, Nieblas said, influenced her to become “curiouser and curiouser” about life.

As a McNair Scholar on campus, Nieblas and other high-achieving students are paired with professors on research projects. Nieblas has been working with Emily S. Lee, assistant professor of philosophy, on a project dealing with philosophical interpretations of the human body.

In particular, “I am drawing from Henri Bergson’s ‘Introduction to Metaphysics’ and ‘The Creative Mind’ to explore deterioration and deconstruction of the body and how this influences our conceptions of time and space,” Nieblas said.

She and Lee are writing a paper on the topic and plan to present it at upcoming philosophy conferences nationwide.

Nieblas also will be attending the 2010 Colorado Summer Seminar in Philosophy at the University of Colorado, a program geared for outstanding undergrads who are considering graduate school in philosophy.

She’s kept busy in both her disciplines. She chaired this year’s 18th annual Shakespeare Symposium and responding to a talk by Charles Mills, profesor of philosophy from Northwestern University, on the topic of race and historical materialism at Cal State Fullerton’s 40th annual Philosophy Symposium.

This summer, she is serving as a research assistant for J. Chris Westgate, assistant professor of English, on his forthcoming book “Slumming and Realism in Progress-Era Theater.”

On her reason for pursuing philosophy, Nieblas said: “I wonder about human motivations for truth, knowledge and moral choice; about the lived experiences of individuals in various socio-political and historical contexts; and the formation of identity and values.”

Mitch Avila, chair and associate professor of philosophy, calls Nieblas an “exceptional, mature and thoughtful student of the highest moral character.”

“I expect that Erica soon will be an outstanding member of our profession,” he said. “She received more perfect paper scores than any other student in recent memory. Each paper had a thoughtful and carefully-written summary and critical analysis.”

Nieblas’ goal is to “live, learn and teach.”

“I have the responsibility to learn and to impart that knowledge,” she said. “That’s what makes life worth living. If I become a professor, I can do what I think I’m meant to do.”

-Article originally posted by Mimi Ko Cruz on May 18, 2010 in the California State University, Fullerton Inside.

McNair Scholar, Josue Guaddarama

When he reached Cancun Airport on his way to the Western Psychological Association’s 90th annual convention recently, Josue Guadarrama realized he had lost his cell phone and began to fret.

“Then, I talked to this guy who was cleaning the bathroom in the airport and learned that he works all day and barely earns $20 a week,” Guadarrama recalled. “There I was complaining about a phone that costs me more than what this poor worker makes in an entire month.”

The encounter reinforced Guadarrama’s passion for serving the underserved.

The Santa Ana resident has completed his bachelor’s degree in human communication studies with a minor in psychology, and has accepted a full scholarship to Washington State University, where he will pursue a doctorate in counseling psychology.

His plan is to become a university professor and researcher, as well as a counselor for low-income immigrants.

“I think that as educated individuals, we have a moral obligation to help others who are less fortunate,” Guadarrama said. “I want to focus on those most in need because they’re the ones who suffer the most.”

Guadarrama transferred to Cal State Fullerton from Santa Ana College in 2007 and became a volunteer peer mentor in the university’s Freshman Programs. He works for the Diocese of Orange, teaching courses on self growth, human development and social justice to the underprivileged and underrepresented in Orange County.

His own background drives him.

Born in Mexico City, he was raised by his grandmother until he was 9 years old, when his parents sent for him to join them in Santa Ana.

“I remember crying as I was ripped from the arms of my grandmother and feeling great depression in my new homeland where I could not speak English and my parents were working all the time,” Guadarrama said. “I didn’t have anyone to guide me to college, so I found a job working at a department store after I graduated from high school, but I always felt a void inside of me.”

That void began to disappear when he discovered opportunities in higher education.

Guadarrama was selected as a CSUF McNair Scholar and paired with Alexandro José Gradilla, assistant professor of Chicana and Chicano studies, Guadarrama’s mentor and McNair adviser since 2007.

“From when I first met Josue, I could tell he was a very driven student, a special person who realizes the responsibility, or urgency, to be successful so that he can give back,” Gradilla said. “We don’t see enough of this kind of student. He will be sorely missed at Cal State Fullerton but we will be cheering him on as he pursues his doctoral degree and begins his career.”

As a McNair Scholar, Guadarrama has been researching issues that affect the Latino community and the structural and behavioral patterns that hinder it. He has presented his research nationwide, most recently at the April Western Psychological Association Conference.

In 2008, he won a competitive National Science Foundation fellowship. As part of the fellowship, he participated in research at Oklahoma State University on how family communication patterns affect assertiveness in the classroom. In 2009, Guadarrama was chosen to participate in the Summer Research Opportunity Program at the University of Michigan, where he researched cultural differences of depression.

Growing up poor, Guadarrama said, his present path could not have been predicted and he credits the McNair Scholars Program for preparing him for graduate school and helping him find the career best suited for him. His late grandmother gets the credit for teaching him about generosity and helping others. “For me, reaching my goals will be a way to honor my parents for their sacrifices and their strong work ethic, and my grandmother, who taught me about responsibility, humility and dedication,” Guadarrama said. “She always gave to people who were poorer than us.”

-Article originally posted by Mimi Ko Cruz on May 18, 2010 in the California State University, Fullerton Inside.