Moving brush and hand across canvas, often with the motion of a conductor's baton, mixed-media artist Toni Scott created two original “live paintings” in harmony with the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles as it played through the dramatic peaks and valleys of Gershwin's “Rhapsody in Blue” and “Beethoven's 5th Symphony.” Titled “The Intersection of Art and Music,” the unique artistic collaboration was prerecorded and shown during CSUDH President Thomas A. Parham's Spring 2021 Presidential Distinguished Lecture Series on Wednesday, March 24. Before and after each of the performances, Parham led an in-depth discussion with Scott and Dickerson that examined the symbiotic ... Read More
Archive
CSUDH Names Dena Freeman-Patton Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics
(Carson, Ca.) Today, California State University, Dominguez Hills Vice President for Student Affairs William Franklin announced that Dena Freeman-Patton has been named Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics. She will assume her new role April 12. Freeman-Patton comes to the Cal State Dominguez Hills Toro Athletics program from the University of New Orleans, where she served as the Privateers' deputy athletic director and chief operating officer for the last two years. Freeman-Patton is also no stranger to the California State University system, as she spent six years as CSU Bakersfield's deputy athletics director before joining the Privateers. “I am more than enthusiastic to ... Read More
Professor for a Day Aces the Virtual Format
While it is hard to compete with in-person instruction, the lectures delivered by CSUDH alumni during the annual Professor for a Day event on March 15-18 offered a unique glimpse at how faculty can work with guest lecturers to elevate engagement in the virtual classroom. Organized by CSUDH's Office of Alumni Relations, Professor for a Day (PFAD) pairs each alumna/us with classes that match their fields. Since its launch eight years ago, and despite the challenges of navigating the virtual space during COVID-19, the popularity of PFAD has continued to grow. This year, a large pool of alumni from diverse industries served as honorary professors over several days, including several ... Read More
Faculty Highlights: March 2021
Our faculty members participate in conferences around the world, conduct groundbreaking research, and publish books and journal papers that contribute to their field and highlight their expertise. We feature those accomplishments and more in this section. To share faculty news, email ucpa@csudh.edu. College Arts and Humanities Nancy Erbe, professor of Negotiation, Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding (NCRP), co-edited the book “Preventing and Reducing Violence in Schools and Society,” a collection of innovative research on the evolution and implementation of nonviolence concepts within social settings in order to prevent oppression and violence among global communities. The book explores ... Read More
CSUDH Student Turns Hobby into Start-Up Business
When the COVID-19 lockdown first took effect in March 2020, CSUDH student Alexandra Carrasco suddenly found herself stuck at home with a lot of extra time on her hands. She decided to put that time to good use, building a customized computer keyboard for herself. In the months since, she's been able to turn those skills into a fledgling business, creating custom keyboards for clients by hand. Carrasco, a junior majoring in business administration with an entrepreneurship concentration, first became interested in “mechanical keyboards” when she was still in high school. “Mechanical keyboards have a physical switch in them,” Carrasco explains, “so when you press it, it actually hits a ... Read More
CSUDH Alumna Gracie Ann Dinkins Impacts Lives at Home and Abroad
From an early age, CSUDH alumna Gracie Ann Dinkins ('87, BA, Chemistry) was taught the value of giving back to the community. “My mother instilled the importance of service and sacrifice very early in all of her children,” she says. These days, Dinkins is living out those lessons, working as a trauma and acute care surgeon at a pair of Southern California hospitals while also helping rescue an elementary school in Liberia. Dinkins, who grew up in Liberia, was attending the University of Liberia in 1984 when political and social upheaval that would devolve into a 14-year civil war in the country disrupted her educational journey “The country experienced serious civil unrest and student-led ... Read More
Student Research Conference Elevates Student Achievement Despite Challenges
While COVID-19 altered the format and dynamics of the 16th Annual Student Research Conference (SRC) at California State University, Dominguez Hills, the important things remained the same - the need for rigorous research to enter, vigorous dedication to be competitive, and steadfast mentorship to win. Showcasing the high standards for student research and faculty mentorship at CSUDH, 29 students garnered top honors in 17 categories during SRC on March 1-5. This year, the annual conference was retooled to a well-orchestrated virtual event. From pre-recorded oral presentations and digital research posters, to live Q&A sessions filled with dozens of student researchers for judges to ... Read More
During Super Sunday, CSUDH Offers Messages of College’s Transformative Opportunities
To prevent the pandemic from stifling one of the California State University's (CSU) most empowering outreach programs, CSU Dominguez Hills President Thomas A. Parham and other leaders recorded videos for churches across the state for the annual CSU Super Sunday. Played during virtual services at predominantly Black churches on Feb. 28, their messages pressed the importance and accessibility of a college education for young students of color. For more than a decade, the CSU's top leaders have delivered Super Sunday messages in person during services, reaching more than 100,000 churchgoers annually. The event is produced by the CSU African American Initiative - a partnership between ... Read More
Alumna Julie DeVaney Helps Lead Frontline Fight Against COVID-19
As a member of the San Diego-based Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT), part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), California State University, Dominguez Hills alumna Julie DeVaney ('05, MS, Nursing) has traveled across the country, assisting local health care workers in emergency situations. She has helped deal with the aftermath of everything from hurricanes to terrorism (her first deployment was in 2001, after the World Trade Center attacks). So it is no surprise to see DeVaney on the frontlines in the fight against COVID-19. In 2020, DeVaney spent time at rural hospitals caring for COVID-19 patients, working with or replacing overwhelmed staff and ... Read More
New Latinx Center Up and Running–Virtually
Responding to calls from students, California State University, Dominguez Hills officially opened the Latinx Cultural Resource Center (LCRC) in January, joining other campus affinity centers such as the Rose Black Resource Center and the Queer Culture & Resource Center. “We're here to build community, hear the needs of our students, and connect with them,” says the center's interim director, Rony Castellanos Raymundo. Chicano/a Studies major Janneth Najera was the driving force behind the push to establish a Latinx Center on campus. Janneth worked with faculty, staff, and community members to make sure the center came to life,” according to Castellanos Raymundo. “It's thanks to her ... Read More
