A local scholar is heading to Rome this week to participate in events related to Junipero Serra's impending canonization. "I was a bit in shock, and I was excited at the same time, and I thought, 'Oh my, this is really going to change the equation in terms of how I deal with these kinds of issues,' " said Dr. Ruben Mendoza, who teaches at CSUMB and has spent 20 years studying the California missions. He believes his role at the meetings in Rome will be to share his perspective as a man of Native American descent who has researched the missions extensively.

– KSBW, April 27, 2015