Faculty and staff across the California State University are working together to narrow the academic equity gap with help from an innovative professional development program. By: Hazel Kelly It's the little things that count. As simple as it sounds, sometimes just connecting with a student or showing concern can have an impact on their performance in class. For historically underserved and first-generation college students, these connections really count. That's what CSU Dominguez Hills sociology professor Katy Pinto, Ph.D., along with a team from her campus, discovered when they analyzed data for courses in which underrepresented students were performing better than their peers to ... Read More
Sociology
Katy Pinto Recognized with CSU System’s Faculty Innovation and Leadership Award
(Carson, CA) –Katy Pinto, a professor of sociology at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), has been honored by the California State University (CSU) with the Faculty Innovation and Leadership Award (FILA) for her innovative approach to student advisement that encourages self-advocacy and professional development. Pinto was one of 19 CSU faculty members to receive the award, which honors faculty who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership to advance student success. Awardees receive $5,000, as well as $10,000 allocated to their academic department in support of ongoing innovation and leadership to advance student achievement at the CSU. “I was ecstatic when I heard I ... Read More
Katy Pinto Helps Students Turn Research into New Knowledge
When she was a graduate student, Katy Pinto didn’t feel that her professors understood her research interests. Worse yet, she felt that she had to convince them that the populations she wanted to study—Latinx immigrants and ethnic minority groups—mattered enough to be considered as research topics. Now, as a professor of sociology at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), she lets her students decide what matters most. “I don’t want my students to feel the same way. I want them to know that their questions and ideas are important,” said Pinto, who has been teaching at CSUDH since 2007. “Instead of dismissing students’ research ideas outright, we work together to make ... Read More
Cal State Dominguez Hills Wins Federal Grant for HIV-Infection Prevention Pilot Program
Cal State Dominguez Hills, in Carson, has received a $656,000 federal grant to set up a program to improve the access young gay African American men have to an anti-viral drug treatment program that can help prevent HIV infection. The National Institutes of Health awarded the grant to sociology professor Matt Mutchler this week to address the disproportionate rate of new HIV infections among young black men. A daily drug protocol called PrEP can reduce the risk of contracting HIV by as much as 99%, research has shown. Mutchler, the director of the CSUDH Urban Community Research Center, will develop a pilot program called PrEP-Talk that pairs friends with a counselor to discuss the ... Read More
Sociology Professor Matt Mutchler Awarded $655,000 to Develop HIV PrEP Uptake Intervention
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) Professor of Sociology Matt G. Mutchler a three-year $656,000 grant to create a support program that addresses the disproportionate rate of new HIV infections among young African American men, and help improve their overall health and well-being. Mutchler and a team of investigators, including student and community health educators, are working with a community advisory board and participants to develop, pilot, and evaluate “PrEP-Talk,” an innovative intervention support program for young gay African American men and their close friends who use or would benefit from the preventative ... Read More
