McNair Scholars and Sally Casanova Scholars Present Research at the Universidad de Puerto Rico

California State University, Dominguez Hills was represented by members of its McNair Scholars cohort and two Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholars, who were among 50 students to present their research at the McNair Research Symposium at the Universidad de Puerto Rico at Humacao (UPRH) in April.

The conference, “Research: The Building Blocks of Knowledge,” celebrated a year of scholarly accomplishments and provided an opportunity for students to meet professors, speakers and fellow students in an academic and research-oriented activity. Highlights of the conference included Puerto Rican music performances, a graduate school fair, a visit to the Casa Roig Museum and a trip to the El Yunque Rainforest.

McNair scholar Janette Diaz (Class of ’07, B.A., Chicana/o studies) presented “Who’s in My Household?: Ethnic Framework of Colonial Mexican Households.” She was assisted in this project by her mentor, Irene Vásquez, chair and professor of Chicana/o studies, who was in attendance.

Monica Lomeli (Class of ’07, B.A., anthropology), spoke on “Aspiring Graduate Study: Familial Influences in the Graduate School Self-Efficacy of Latina Undergraduates.” Her mentors were psychologists Monica Rosas-Baines and Denna Sanchez of the CSU Dominguez Hills Office of Student Development.

Angelica Mendoza (Class of ’07, B.A., psychology) presented “Mathematics Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance in Developmental College Students” which she worked on with her mentor, Larry Rosen, professor of psychology.

Karen Pérez (Class of ’07, B.A., Spanish) gave her talk on “El Burlador de Sevilla: An Analysis of Three English Translations” which she created with the help of her mentors, James Parr of UC Riverside and Benito Gómez, assistant professor of foreign languages, who also accompanied the students to UPRH.

Two scholars from the Sally Casanova pre-doctoral program also presented their research. Eréndira J. Andrade (Class of ’07, M.A., interdisciplinary studies) presented “Lucero: Lighting the Pathway for Latino Students First Year Experience.” Her faculty mentor was also Irene Vásquez. Ruby Ramirez (Class of ’07, M.A., interdisciplinary studies) presented “Más allá del Feminismo: Conexiones Enter el Posfeminismo de Lucía Etxebarria y el ‘Xicanisma’ de Ana Castillo, which she created with Benito Gómez.

UPRH is one of the 11 units that compose the University of Puerto Rico state system. Located in the municipality of Humacao on the eastern seaboard of the island, the four-year institution serves 4,308 students with 329 faculty members and 27 academic programs.

Gómez, who also serves as Student Services Center coordinator for the College of Liberal Arts says, “I was very proud to see our students represent our university so well in an international forum. This was an opportunity they will never forget.”

Vásquez echoes his sentiments, saying, “I was very impressed with the level of organization by the UPRH and the Dominguez Hills McNair program. The students demonstrated their intellectual and research skills in a competitive but nurturing environment.”

For information on the McNair Scholars program, click here.

- Jennifer Vega LaSerna

Jennifer Vega LaSerna is the director of the McNair Scholars program at CSU Dominguez Hills. She can be contacted at (310) 243-2098 or jlaserna@csudh.edu.

Photo above: CSU Dominguez Hills was represented by student researchers and their mentors at the McNair Scholars research symposium, hosted by the Universidad de Puerto Rico at Humacao. (L-R): Graduate student Karen Pérez; assistant professor of foreign languages Benito Gómez; senior Janette Diaz; graduate student Ruby Ramirez; senior Angelica Mendoza; senior Monica Lomeli; graduate student Eréndira Andrade; chair of Chicana/o studies Irene Vasquez and director of the McNair Scholars program Jennifer Vega La Serna.

Photo courtesy of Jennifer Vega LaSerna