The Class of 2022 has navigated more than their fair share of trials and challenges on their road to commencement. Below, graduates from the CSUDH Presidential Scholars, McNair Scholars, and Toro Guardian Scholars programs share their thoughts on their student experience at the university, inspirational faculty members, future plans—and what makes being a Toro so special. Angela Costes, Presidential Scholars Program (BS, Kinesiology) What have you valued most from your college education? I valued the opportunities and support I’ve received from DH. I wasn’t born in the U.S., and am very much aware of the struggles and lack of support that many students in the Philippines face. ... Read More
Kinesiology
Graduate Illen Barrios Draws Strength from Unimaginable Loss
Illen Barrios may not hear her mother among the thousands of family and friends cheering on graduates at California State University, Dominguez Hills’ (CSUDH) 2019 Commencement Ceremony on May 18, but knowing her mother will be there, and that she is proud of her, is all Barrios really wants. Strength is a dominant trait among the women in Barrios’ family. For her mother, her children’s education was always a high priority, and one of the reasons she left her home and family in the Philippines for a job as a nanny in Saudi Arabia when Barrios was just 2 years old—to earn money for her children’s schooling. Tragically, the job was a lie, and Barrio’s mother was forced into domestic ... Read More
Scott Cheatham’s Research May Help Doctors Get More in Touch with Patients’ Pain
If all goes well, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Scott Cheatham’s research could open doors for new methods of examining people who suffer from fibromyalgia and myofascial pain syndrome—two chronic conditions that cause widespread pain in the muscles and tissues of the body—and related issues such as fatigue. For over a year, Cheatham, who serves as director of Cal State Dominguez Hills’ Pre-Physical Therapy Program, studied more than 90 individuals with fibromyalgia and myofascial pain. Normally, a doctor will apply a self-prescribed amount of pressure to a body region using touch, then document the patient’s reaction to the graded pressure. With Cheatham’s new scale, doctors ... Read More
