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Toro Makes an Impact as Youth Commissioner

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Ricardo Martinez with fellow youth commissioners at an outreach event in 2022.
Ricardo Martinez, center right, with fellow youth commissioners at an outreach fair in September 2022.

At 23, CSUDH junior Ricardo Ortega Martinez Jr. is already a veteran in California politics. “My advocacy and community organizing started at the age of 17,” says Martinez, a political science major whose early experience with foster care growing up in Huntington Park helped shape the focus of his current advocacy work.

Martinez serves as youth commissioner for California’s 5th District, which encompasses much of Antelope Valley and northeastern Los Angeles County. The Youth Commission was established in September 2021 by the Board of Supervisors to promote involvement by young people in public policy decisions.

Youth commission members have direct experience with foster care, juvenile justice, homelessness, and other social service systems. This is critical for finding more equitable ways to serve the needs of system-impacted youth, Martinez says.

“The county has highly educated, capable people heading social service departments, but they’ve never been a part of the system they work in,” says Martinez. “How can you create long-lasting and positive change when you have never experienced what you’re trying to implement?”

Since the start of his term as a youth commissioner, Martinez has focused on evaluating service systems in his district. His elevation to co-chair of the commission in elections held last month will now expand his portfolio countywide. It’s the kind of work that first drew him to public service as a teenager.

In his sophomore year at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood, Martinez was selected by then-State Senator Ricardo Lara (CA-33) for the district’s Young Senators Program. The eight-month program gives young people the chance to explore potential professional and educational opportunities to nurture the next generation of state leaders.

“As a former system-impacted youth, I had a specific area that I wanted to focus on. That helped me to make the right choices to reach my goals,” recalls Martinez. One of those choices included working with California Youth Connection, an organization that empowers local communities to improve the state’s foster care system through changes in legislation, policy, and practice.

“I worked on AB-2247 with Assemblyman Mike Gipson (CA-65), who authored the bill. This legislation required 14 days prior notice of a change in placement,” Martinez says. “It fundamentally improved the structures in place for determining how and under what circumstances young people could be removed from placement.”

Martinez continues to partner with Gipson on legislative matters as a member of the assemblyman’s Immigration Commission, where he advises on how best to meet the needs of the South Bay’s undocumented population. Gipson said Martinez’ keen interest in public policy has made him an effective voice for some of California’s most vulnerable residents.

“Ricardo Martinez has exhibited a strong interest in his community and the issues surrounding immigration,” says Gipson. “He has contributed greatly to my immigration Commission. He has a passion for fighting injustice and uplifting disenfranchised populations.”

Martinez with Assemblywoman Kathryn Barger (CA-5).
Martinez, right, with Supervisor Kathryn Barger (CA-5).

Martinez’ passion both for politics and advocacy struck a chord with Shari Berkowitz, associate professor of Criminal Justice Administration at CSUDH. She taught Martinez last fall in her online CJA 444 Juvenile Justice Process course, which Martinez took to help him better understand the issues facing young people in the juvenile justice system.

“He has an impressive background. Considering he’s so young and had a tough start, I think he’s very inspiring for our campus.” Berkowitz adds that his commitment to advocacy extends to his fellow Toros. “He’s involved in the Toro Guardian Scholars program, where he brings his knowledge and compassion to assist other system-impacted youth enrolled at CSUDH.”

Martinez says that despite his expanding role as co-chair, he remains committed to serving specific needs in the Antelope Valley. This month he helped launch the Peer Specialist Program to train system-impacted youth for employment in the human services sector. 

In partnership with America Job Centers of California, the program will begin with a cohort of 10 individuals between the ages of 18 and 24 who have lived experience in social service systems and can commit to working in mental health services.

“We’re going to teach them everything,” says Martinez. “Participants will be placed on job sites with mental health providers, or with organizations that coordinate specific events related to mental health. They will see what works and doesn’t work from both sides.”

Martinez says a primary goal for the training is to get participants to commit to remaining in the Antelope Valley area once they find a job. “These kinds of opportunities have been missing in this area.”

Martinez says his future in politics might include a run for his local school board and eventually the county’s Board of Supervisors. Whatever role he ultimately chooses, he will continue to focus on the needs of at-risk and system-impacted youth.

“I was in and out of foster care and group homes as a child. Now I have a career in public service, a new home in Quartz Hills, and I’ll soon by a first-generation college graduate,” says Martinez. “I’ve been able to do all these things despite my early hardships. I want all young people to know that they can do these things as well.”

New Book Explores the Resilience of the Ancient Maya

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Ken Seligson with The Maya and Climate Change book in foreground

Throughout human history, civilizations have had to adapt to ever-shifting environments in order to survive–whether sudden, catastrophic climate events, or gradual changes that span centuries. These human-environmental relationships are at the center of The Maya and Climate Change (Oxford University Press, Nov. 2022), a new book by CSUDH Assistant Professor of Anthropology Ken Seligson.

Since 2010, Seligson has worked on archaeological excavations and mapping in the northern Maya lowlands of Yucatán, Mexico. He wanted to research and write a book shifting the focus away from the oft-cited “collapse” of the Classic Maya civilization, and instead toward their centuries of socioecological resilience and adaptation.

“I understand why people are fascinated by collapse, but it’s a disservice and misleading to just focus on the end of the Classic Period,” Seligson says. “The main point of the book was to reach a broader audience and promote the 700 years of human-environment relationships that allowed the Maya to flourish.”

The Classic Maya period, from 200-950 AD, was a period marked by sustained population growth. The Maya’s innovative use and management of natural resources–particularly of water–helped to support burgeoning, sophisticated cities with thousands of inhabitants.

“They had elaborate, complex mechanisms for maintaining water systems,” Seligson says. “They funneled rain into reservoirs, mimicked natural biosystems with plants, and used sand and other minerals to filter the water.”

However, from the late 700s to early 800s AD, climate destabilization began to occur, with increased drying periods and geographical pockets of megadroughts. Though the Maya used mitigating measures to try to preserve more rainfall, many resorted to migration in pursuit of water. Seligson says that Maya in the south moved north, intermingling with northern Maya communities and adapting to different local traditions.

“We tend to think of migration as a modern thing, but people were moving around all the time–and may have been dealing with similar issues we see today with cultural differences,” he notes.

In addition to a changing climate and mass migration, other destabilizers including warfare, political jockeying, and civil unrest marked 750-950 AD, known as the Terminal Classic Period. Seligson resists the use of the word “collapse” as it connotes suddenness, instead referring to this period as one of breakdown and transformation.

“People ask me what happened to the Maya, as if they disappeared–they didn’t,” Seligson says. “There are still more than 7 million Maya people thriving today, it’s just a different sociopolitical system. Like with every civilization around the world, everything is cyclical and nothing lasts forever.”

Seligson acknowledges that parallels can be drawn between the effects of climate change and social upheaval today with those faced by the Maya. However, he points out that Maya people living 1200 years ago may not have considered themselves to be living in a historical time of decline.

“Someone living in 767 or 812 AD could look out their window and see everyday things, like people going to the market,” he says. “They wouldn’t see the broader trends that we can see in hindsight.”

He added that one of the main lessons he hopes we can learn is the importance of “being willing to adapt, and recognizing that life is not going to be the same forever.”

“We have to find ways to make the new reality work.” 

Watch Seligson’s overview of his new book in a talk given to the Archaeological Institute of America.

Helping Student Vets Chart a Path to Success

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Dr. William Franklin with CSUDH student veterans at a lunch commemorating this year’s Veterans Day holiday.

Tucked away on the third floor of Leo F. Cain Library, the Veterans Resource Center (VRC) may be small, but it exerts an outsized influence on the lives of students making the challenging transition from military service to academic life.

“The Veterans Resource Center is the reason I’m here today and about to graduate with my bachelor’s degree in business administration in December,” says Luigi Torres, 30, a former artillery cannoneer in the U.S. Marines. “It’s the family that you don’t think you need and that you don’t know you have.”

The VRC currently serves about 350 student veterans at CSUDH -250 who attend using the GI Bill, and another 100 who get support through the Cal-Vet program. VRC’s small but dedicated staff provide critical academic support, personal coaching, and assistance in understanding what benefits are available to student veterans and how to access them.

It’s also much more than that, says Brett Waterfield, director of the Office of Educational Partnerships at CSUDH, which oversees operations at the VRC. “Student veterans are probably one of our most unique communities on campus. It’s hard for anyone who is not a veteran to truly understand the experiences they bring with them to campus.”

Luigi Torres, a former U.S. Marine

This is what makes the work of the VRC so important and worth considering now as we prepare to honor armed services members on Veterans Day, says Waterfield. In addition to helping student veterans adjust to the rigors of academic life, the VRC also helps the university “understand the culture around student veterans and how best to contribute to their success,” he says.

DaWayne Denmark, director of the VRC at CSUDH, spent six years in the U.S. Air Force as a firefighter before graduating from Chapman College and running the veterans resource center at Concordia College. He’s seen a lot of student veterans make the transition to higher education, and he says the key to providing effective help is to make it personal.

“We want to build relationships. We don’t want the work we do to be merely transactional,” says Denmark. “You need help getting books or figuring out what classes to take? We can do that. But we want to invest time in getting to know student veterans on a deeper level to find out where they want to be and how we can help get them there.”

Rosalva Rios, a former U.S. Marine administrative specialist, grew up not far from CSUDH in Compton. She joined the military because she felt she was destined for a life of service. Rios says the VRC helped clarify her future goals. “I knew I had a passion for helping people, but I didn’t really know what to do about that.” Now she’s on track to complete her degree in child development in 2024 and plans to get her master’s degree in social work.

Visit the VRC’s Resources page to learn more about the programs and opportunities available to student veterans.

Encouraging student veterans to pursue post-graduate degrees is something Waterfield is most proud of about the work the VRC does. “It helps our veterans see themselves not just as students trying to get a degree but as scholars who are fully capable of mastering a discipline and becoming lifelong learners.”

It’s not always easy for student veterans to ask for the help they need, says Rodrigo Rodrigo, program advisor at the VRC. “They’ve accomplished so much at a young age. They’ve deployed, carried out difficult missions, and often feel like they can handle anything all by themselves. But they didn’t do any of that on their own. They had support from commanding officers and their fellow soldiers. You won’t get to where you want to be without help from others. That’s where we try to fill the gap.”

This Veterans Day also marks the 247th birthday of the U.S. Marines.

When the VRC isn’t helping student veterans take full advantage of their GI Bill or audit their course loads to make sure they align with their educational plans, it serves as a refuge for fellow veterans to study, socialize, or simply take a quiet moment for themselves. “It’s a community here,” says Edgar Alvarado, a former U.S. Army infantryman who started at CSUDH in 2019.

The 30-year-old from Bell Gardens is a first-generation student who needed a lot of guidance to find the right career path. He says it hasn’t been easy making connections with students from non-military backgrounds, and that the VRC has been a social anchor for him. “It’s a wonderful place to come, even if you don’t have a specific question about anything. Sometimes, you just want to talk, and they always welcome you in.”

Denmark knows that each student veteran comes to the VRC with a common background but unique needs. They all want to make the most of their experience and to secure a better future for themselves and their families, and they’ve chosen education as the best pathway to that success.

“A lot of our student veterans are transfers from community colleges. We’ll only have them for two or three years. I tell them that by coming here, they’re not simply making a two- or three-year decision. They’re making a 20- to 30-year decision,” says Denmark. “All these things that we provide at the VRC have the opportunity to change not only their life, but the lives of generations to come.”

CSUDH is Changing the Face of Sustainability

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A student shops at the CSUDH Farmers Market at the South Walkway on campus.

Sustainability is about more than just greenhouse gas reduction and better waste management, says Jenney Hall, lecturer in environmental studies at CSUDH.

“Sustainability is ultimately about perpetuating systems. When you perpetuate systems, you must ask if those systems are serving everyone,” Hall says. “I think that our unique perspective is incorporating social justice, environmental justice, and climate justice into that transition.”

Integrating sustainability with social and educational inequities is critical to CSUDH’s approach, says Ellie Perry, manager of the university’s Office of Sustainability. “We’re a small, under-resourced institution that caters predominantly to under-served communities of color, [which] bear the biggest burden of our failure to embrace sustainable living.

“The fact that Dominguez Hills is a leader in this space puts people on notice that this is what sustainability is supposed to look like.”

October marks Sustainability Month, promoted annually by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) to raise awareness about innovative sustainability solutions. CSUDH became a member of AASHE in 2017, and since that time has gone from unranked to a STARS Silver Institution in 2020. Perry expects the university to reach STARS Gold early next year.

STARS evaluates criteria that include campus and public engagement, sustainable operations, planning and administration, and innovation and leadership. “After Gold, there’s Platinum,” says Perry. “It’s not a linear progression from rating to rating. It’s exponential, and it gets harder. Right now, not a single CSU school is Platinum. If we work hard enough, we can be the first.”

This year’s Sustainability Month comes amid CSUDH’s rapid progress toward its sustainability goals. In 2022, the administration included sustainability as one of the core institutional values of its new Strategic Plan. It also adopted an aggressive new Climate Action Plan in August that puts the university on the road to carbon neutrality by 2045 or sooner.

Read about CSUDH’s new rooftop solar panel installations.

CSUDH has also embraced similarly aggressive sustainability goals approved in early 2022 by the CSU Board of Trustees, which has taken notice of the university’s unique record of achievement. “The specific projects of the CSUDH Office of Sustainability provide a model for aligning broader sustainability goals campuswide with supporting critical student services that bridge the equity gap,” says Tamara Wallace, CSU sustainability programs manager.

What distinguishes CSUDH’s approach to sustainability is its foundation in meeting the needs of communities most at risk from the effects of global climate change. This includes a campus farm where students learn sustainable agriculture techniques.

All produce grown on the farm supports students experiencing food insecurity. CSUDH is also a recognized charter of the national Food Recovery Network.

Sustainability at CSUDH also has significant buy-in from the faculty, and not just from the usual suspects like earth science. Perry says professors in philosophy, sociology, and health sciences, among others, have incorporated sustainability into their curricula.

“Faculty from a surprisingly wide variety of disciplines now see sustainability as fundamentally important not only to our survival as a species but to the success of the university and the work they do each day,” says Perry.

Sustainability is not a zero-sum effort, Perry explains. It weaves through everything we do, like championing diversity and equity. Everyone has a role to play.

“Why are we so good at sustainability?” Perry asks. “We don’t treat it as just an environmental problem. It’s a catalyst for all the other challenges we face socially and economically.”

Student Janelle Nelson Attends Reproductive Rights Summit with Vice President Harris 

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CSUDH's Janelle Nelson Attends Reproductive Rights Summit with Vice President Harris

CSUDH criminal justice major Janelle Nelson was among 75 student leaders who participated in a meeting at the White House with Vice President Kamala Harris to discuss the fight to protect reproductive rights.

Nelson, a CSUDH senior and Presidential Scholar who will graduate this December, was one of two students chosen from the 23 CSUs across the state. She joined students from 65 other campuses and 33 different states at the forum.

“It was amazing,” says Nelson. “I was only there for two days, but I slept a lot on the plane, so I had time to walk around and see as much as I could–to just soak it all in, because I don’t know when I’ll be going to Washington DC again!”

In selecting a student to represent CSUDH, “We wanted a student who was bright, mature enough to manage the responsibilities of independent travel, and poised enough to represent the campus is this special invitation-only summit,” said President Thomas A. Parham. 

“Janelle has distinguished herself in her academic achievements, is capable of articulating her position on the topic being discussed, and has the poise, maturity, and intellect we were looking for.”

During the conversation, student leaders spoke to Vice President Harris about reproductive health care access on their college and university campuses, and shared stories about how students are organizing in their communities following the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.

“Basically, the summit was about how abortion access is up to the states now, and there’s a lot of misinformation and confusion,” says Nelson. “There’s not one standard. If you’re in one place, there might be one law, but another just across the state line. And a lot of students don’t really have access to that kind of information sometimes because we’re so focused on school.”

The student leaders highlighted how young people are mobilizing to oppose restrictive abortion laws and noted the intersection of attacks on abortion access and attacks on voting rights and LGBTQI+ rights–underlining the importance of building coalitions to defend rights and freedoms.

“Hearing how passionate they were and how involved they were in the topic really underlined how serious this is,” says Nelson. “I feel like it ignited a passion in me about something that maybe I wasn’t focused on enough before.”

“I got to meet a lot of the other students there,” she continues. “I can definitely say that these women will be a part of amazing change–they already are part of amazing change! Trading stories and contact information with them was really important to me.”

After the meeting, the student leaders got to meet Vice President Harris and had a group photo taken. “It was like Hunger Games, I’m telling you,” Nelson laughs. “As soon as they said, ”˜Let’s get a photo,’ everybody started posting and running over. I didn’t know we were doing it like that! It was really fun, though.”

Being one of two student leaders from the CSU system “definitely made me feel proud,” says Nelson, who plans to pursue a master’s degree in social work after graduating from CSUDH. “It’s been an amazing, whirlwind experience. I’m so honored to have been able to represent Dominguez Hills.”

“As a college student, you can find yourself just focused on your diploma. When you’re in the middle of it, it seems like you’re just waiting for the next essay, the next assignment. But things like this are shaping my future and are going to change my life. I know once I graduate, it’ll hit me and I’ll be an emotional wreck.”

“But right now I have two papers due on Sunday, so that’s what I’m thinking about!” she laughs.