Among the many unfortunate side effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was the loss of in-person instruction for most courses at CSUDH. Some fields of study were impacted more than others by this loss, but for students in the chemistry department it was especially troublesome. Because so much chemistry education relies on in-person lab work, most students missed out on vital hands-on experience. This summer, faculty members of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry decided to do something about it. They created and held a pair of “Chemistry Lab Bootcamps” that were designed to get students up to speed—teaching them all the valuable lab skills they missed during their many months of ... Read More
College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences
CSUDH Biology Professor Making Big Waves With Her Shark Studies
Sitting offshore in a small boat in the Florida Keys, CSUDH Assistant Professor of Biology Samantha Leigh tosses chum into the shallow water. The pungent slurry of chopped-up fish parts is the best way to attract her targets, so she keeps a close eye on the long gillnets she has laid perpendicular to the shoreline. When Leigh spots a disturbance in a net, she jumps in and makes her way to a snared bonnethead shark, which she untangles and places in a live tank inside the boat. After netting a couple more, Leigh takes her catches to a lab facility, where the bonnetheads are released into tanks with ocean water flow-through systems. These allow the sharks to acclimate to their new ... Read More
CSUDH Graduate Student Takes Second Place in Statewide Thesis Competition
Condensing two years of study and research into a three-minute presentation is a daunting task, but that’s just what CSUDH graduate student Nicole Roberts managed to do for the inaugural California State University (CSU) Grad Slam Three-Minute Thesis Competition (3MT), held on May 6. She clearly did a great job, as her presentation earned Roberts a second-place finish in the statewide competition against a slate of graduate students from throughout the CSU system. Roberts, who will attain her master’s degree in biology this spring, took the prize with a pared-down version of her master’s thesis, “Where will threatened bats be under climate change in 2050?” “My whole project was trying ... Read More
Faculty Highlights: April 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 of Business Administration and Public Policy Larry Press, professor emeritus of information systems, participated in an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers online forum that addressed options and plans for extending high-speed internet access to under-served areas of New Hampshire. Press has followed internet satellite projects since the first generation of low earth ... Read More
Joanna Perez Receives the 2021 Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Award
As the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, Joanna Perez understands first-hand the struggles that immigrant communities undergo due to structural inequality. In her role as an assistant professor of sociology at CSUDH, Perez uses her research, teaching, and service to highlight the various social issues that impact immigrant communities and to advocate for social change. “When I first began my educational journey, I would have never thought I’d end up as a sociology professor,” says Perez, “but honestly it’s been the best decision of my life. Doing the kind of work that I get to do through sociology, particularly at Dominguez Hills, is very rewarding.” Perez’ dedication to and research ... Read More
