March 2022: Accomplishments of the CSULB community

Published March 9, 2022

Making Waves is a monthly feature celebrating the Beach community.

Four students are finalists for Fulbright scholarships

Four Cal State Long Beach students have been named Fulbright finalists of the prestigious international academic awards. 

Cristina Galvan, a graduate student in Translation Studies; Sergio Temores, a graduate student in psychology; and Ashley Guerrero, a geography master’s student, are among the finalists. The fourth student, who did not want to be identified, is a student in the College of Education. 

If awarded a Fulbright scholarship, the students will travel to Italy, Mexico, Taiwan and France, respectively. 

The United States Student Fulbright Program is a globally recognized competitive fellowship that provides full funding for students to undertake an independent research program or teach English abroad. This award is given to students who have shown outstanding academic merit and creativity and who will serve as cultural ambassadors to the United States. 

The Beach looking for students to join new internship program

CSULB has received a $1.75 million grant from the Californians for All College Corps to develop an internship program that would pair students with nonprofits that are tackling issues such as climate change, food insecurity and K-12 education. 

Dr. Beth Manke, director of the Long Beach Community Internship Program, Dr. Juan Benitez, executive director of the Center for Community Engagement, and Dr. Christine Whitcraft, a professor of biology, will be recruiting 100 students for these internships over the next 2.5 years for the Long Beach Community Internship Program. 

Students, namely those who are first-generation, Pell-eligible, Dreamers and other students of color, who complete the more than 400 required hours of internship work each will receive $10,00 - $7,000 in monthly living expenses and a $3,000 education award that can be used for future educational expenses. 

Joe Som is February Employee of the Month

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Joe Som
Joe Som named Employee of the Month.

Joe Som, who has worked as the support lead in Information Technology Services for 16 years, has been named Employee of the Month for February for his dedication in keeping the campus connected. 

“Joe Som goes above and beyond, especially recently, to make sure so many of us are functional and able to work in a variety of ways and settings,” said Jolene Saga, a case manager in Student Health Services. 

Ken Kelly, director of the Basic Needs program, said Som “epitomizes the values of CSULB” by his commitment to student success, citing the time Som worked overnight to get a laptop ready by the time a student arrived on campus the next morning. 

“He helps above and beyond the normal level of service, Kelly said. “He never complains and is extremely knowledgeable. He always takes extra time to make sure you feel comfortable with new equipment, apps and software.”

Mark Zakhour is new Associate Vice President of Beach Building Services

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Mark Zakhour
New AVP Mark Zakhour.

Mark Zakhour has been named Associate Vice President for Beach Building Services, after being a part of the department since 2004.

Zakhour has led several capital projects on campus, including the Anna W. Ngai Alumni Center, Student Recreation and Wellness Center, Hall of Science, Parkside North Housing and the MLSC building. He also has overseen large renovations, including the Los Cerritos/Los Alamitos Residence Halls, Horn Center/Carolyn Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum and Shakarian Student Success Center.

In addition to his Beach Building Service duties, he serves as the Campus Deputy Building Official and the Certified Accessibility Specialist for the campus.

 

Lisa Chattler is honored by fellow speech pathologists

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Lisa Chattler
Lisa Chattler honored by Speech Language Hearing Association.

Lisa Chattler, a part-time lecturer in the College of Health and Human Science, was recognized as a fellow of the California Speech Language Hearing Association for her service and advocacy for individuals and families with communication needs, as well as her work with national, state and community organizations. 

Chattler ’78 works as a mentor in the Department of Speech Language Pathology and serves students with communication needs in the Los Alamitos Unified School District.

Dr. Roudi Nazarinia Roy co-edits, writes for journal

Dr. Roudi Nazarinia Roy, an associate professor of Child Development and Family Studies, is co-editing a special section in the Journal of Child and Family Studies on Multiracial Families that will be published this month. She has also written four articles in the upcoming issue. 

Roy previously co-authored a book on biracial families and transition to parenthood. She serves on several editorial boards for journals focused on families. 

A certified family life educator, Roy teaches courses on the transition to parenthood and family dynamics, family stress and coping, and internships in child development and family life education. 

Partnership to improve online learning at CSULB

CSULB has partnered with an international, three-pronged cooperative, formed for the purpose of making accessible high quality online resources aimed at improving learning and teaching within higher education. 

The Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching (MERLOT), SkillsCommons and H5P is intended to improve the efficacy of teaching and learning by expanding the quantity and increasing the quality of online learning materials and services.

Have an item for Making Waves? Send your ideas to janis.carr@csulb.edu