SEASIDE, Calif., May 7, 2019 – Two CSUMB seniors, both CSU Sally Casanova Scholars for the 2018-2019 academic year, have been awarded summer research fellowships for summer 2019 through the CSU Pre-Doctoral Program.

Jordin Simons, an Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center (UROC) scholar and environmental studies major, will head to the Center for Regional Change at the University of California, Davis, this summer. She will research youth participatory action in rural communities, developing methods for adolescents to voice their perspectives and influence change. Simons will continue her studies at UC Davis in the fall in pursuit of a fully-funded master’s degree in community development.

Jorge Cabrera, a psychology major and UROC researcher, will head to the University of California, Los Angeles, where he will conduct research in the Community Health Sciences department. Cabrera's research will support the BRAVE study. BRAVE stands for Building Community, Raising API Voices for Health Equity. The study will examine the health status and health utilization patterns of undocumented Asian and Pacific Islander (API) and Hispanic and Latino populations in California. Furthermore, the research will examine the effect of social policies on those communities.

As Sally Casanova Scholars, both student-researchers were eligible to apply for a 2019 summer research experience at a University of California campus or other doctoral-granting institution after graduation.

Simons and Cabrera were both part of UROC and worked with faculty mentors to meet their graduate and professional goals. Cabrera's faculty mentor was Psychology assistant professor Jennifer Lovell, while Simons was mentored by School of Natural Sciences assistant professor Victoria Derr.

The California Pre-Doctoral Program is designed to increase the pool of potential faculty by supporting the doctoral aspirations of California State University students who have experienced economic and educational disadvantages. The program places a special emphasis on increasing the number of CSU students who enter doctoral programs at a UC institution.