CSP Team’s ‘Soul Work’ Aims to Address Pandemic’s Impact on Foster Youth

From left: Ashley Kruger, Tonika Green and Jennica Paz.

By Michael Klitzing

For young people in the foster care system, school can be an empowering place. It’s a setting to build relationships, find a sense of belonging and gain access to mental health support services. 

 

That place of refuge all but vanished with the COVID-19 shift to virtual learning. Even with in-person classes back, the impacts on foster youth are still rippling out. 

$1.2 Million NSF Grant Funds New Science Teacher Pipeline

Two San Diego teachers participate in a coding workshop at SDSU.

By Michael Klitzing

During teacher recruitment calls with school district administrators, Donna Ross often hears a touch of desperation when the topic turns to certain subjects. 

 

“The panicked calls come late in summer asking about chemistry and physics,” said Ross, an associate professor of science education at San Diego State University. “Most years, we just don't have applicants for those areas. I'm lucky in my methods course if we have one physics student." 

 

It’s far from a local problem. California has faced a statewide teacher shortage for years, and science teachers are one of the most acute areas of need. 

An Alumna's Journey From Migrant Student to San Diego County Teacher of the Year

Photo by Terri Rippee.

By Michael Klitzing

Juanita Nuñez’s (’01) road to becoming one of San Diego County’s best teachers started with 524 miles of sun-scorched asphalt. 

 

The combination of highways spanning the California farming communities of Salinas and Calexico defined much of the San Diego State University alumna’s childhood. Nuñez — who was born near the journey’s midway point in the town of Camarillo — was constantly on the move between north and south, and from one classroom to the next. 

Lifelong Passion for Literacy Earns Fisher Reading Hall of Fame Honor

By Michael Klitzing

Douglas Fisher still recalls his first college paper, written for an English class when he was a first-year student at San Diego State University. The topic he chose to write about was aliteracy — the state of being able to read, but choosing not to. 

 

Now professor and chair in SDSU’s Department of Educational Leadership (EDL), Fisher’s passion for literacy hasn’t dimmed. 

COE Stories: Marlene Baldonado on Bringing Dance to the Classroom

Marlene Baldonado. Photo by Ian Ordonio.

By COE News Team

In our latest installment of COE Stories, meet liberal studies major and ITEP student Marlene Baldonado, who brings together her passions for teaching and artistic expression. Video by Ian Ordonio.

SDSU Selected to Transform Early Childhood Education in Nation of Georgia

The Bridge of Peace in Tbilisi, Georgia, illuminated at night. (Adobe Stock photo by Boris Stroujko)

By Michael Klitzing

San Diego State University’s partnership with the nation of Georgia to enhance its education system has taken a significant step forward with an initiative to empower the nation’s youngest generation. 

 

The Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia selected SDSU to lead a $4.19 million World Bank-funded effort to transform early childhood education, which focuses on children from ages 2-5, including 5-year-old preschoolers. SDSU was chosen in a contract finalized last week as part of a competitive proposal process, which attracted multiple international institutions. 

Meet the College of Education's New Faculty and Staff for Fall 2022

By COE News Team 

 

The College of Education is excited to welcome eight new tenured/tenure-track faculty and one new staff member joining us for the fall semester! 

Challenging the Narrative: Q&A with New CSP Chair Travis Heath

By Michael Klitzing

Travis Heath’s journey in the field of psychology started in an unlikely place — the very back of the classroom. 

 

Heath was a new student at the Metropolitan State University of Denver, fresh off an unsuccessful attempt to catch on with the famed Gonzaga basketball team as a walk-on point guard. At the time, he had no real direction in his academic career. In fact, he admits he was only in the introduction to psychology course because his college counselor chose the subject for him. 

Dean Y. Barry Chung: Welcome to the 2022-2023 School Year!

By Y. Barry Chung

It is with a great sense of excitement that I welcome you back to San Diego State University for the start of a new school year. I hope you had a happy, healthy, and rejuvenating summer. I can report that I am particularly energized to embark on what promises to be a pivotal year. Here’s a small glimpse of what’s in store: 

 

We are preparing to implement a new college-wide strategic plan — created from the input of students, faculty, and staff — that will guide our efforts for the next five years. Thank you to everyone who contributed. You will be hearing a lot more about this in the weeks and months ahead. 

An Unintended Legacy: A Salute to Fred McFarlane's 50 Years of Excellence

By Caren Sax

Editor’s Note: Caren Sax, professor emeritus and director of the Interwork Institute, submitted the following tribute in honor of Fred McFarlane’s 50th anniversary at San Diego State University. 

 

When Fred McFarlane was first hired at San Diego State College in 1972, he had just completed his doctoral degree at the University of Georgia. He was hired to coordinate a certificate program in rehabilitation counseling and direct the newly-awarded federal grant program that was designed to jointly prepare social work and rehabilitation counseling students to serve community members who had either vision or hearing-related disabilities. 

 

Frank Harris III Reflects on Faculty Honor, Sets Sights on Interim DEI Post

By Michael Klitzing

As the new school year approaches, Frank Harris III is about to take center stage in the College of Education. 

 

First, he’s set to be honored on a literal stage during All-University Convocation as the College of Education’s recipient of the Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Faculty Contributions. It’s a prospect that Harris admits is somewhat anxiety-inducing. 

SDSU Ready to Assist as California Takes Transitional Kindergarten Plunge

CFD master's student Flor Burciaga at the SDSU Children's Center. (August 2019 photo)

By Michael Klitzing

As the new school year approaches, a major change is coming to elementary education in California: public schools are about to get younger.
 

This fall, schools will open transitional kindergarten (TK) programs serving children who just missed the kindergarten cutoff, turning 5 between Sept. 2 and Dec. 5. It’s California’s first baby step toward a goal of universal TK for all 4-year-olds — an ambitious vision that foresees enrolling more than 300,000 children and hiring tens of thousands of newly qualified teachers by 2025-26. 

 
San Diego State University’s College of Education is eager to help the state meet massive, looming workforce needs — and do so in a way that puts teachers in TK classrooms who understand the unique developmental needs of their youngest pupils. 

Katherine Sciurba Brings Academic Magic to Comic-Con Harry Potter Fandom Panel

Katherine Sciurba and Naim Martin

By Michael Klitzing

Katherine Sciurba remembers feeling butterflies as devoted denizens of Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin filed in by the hundreds. Seats disappeared quickly and soon the standing-room spaces began to vanish, too. 

 

An academic conference this most certainly was not. 

 

It was during last fall’s scaled-down special edition of Comic-Con International that Sciurba — an associate professor of literacy education at San Diego State University and director of the SDSU Literacy Center — first nervously graced the long-running Harry Potter Fandom panel.
 

Doc Students, Alumni Receive Fellowship to Prepare Future Cal State Faculty

Clockwise from top left: Horg-Aaron, Nealon, Paredes and Garcia. 

By Michael Klitzing

Two current students and two recent alumni from the San Diego State University College of Education are recipients of a prestigious California State University (CSU) fellowship that will further their dreams of pursuing careers in academia. 

Denise Villarrial Nealon and Griselda Paredes, students in the Joint Ph.D. Program in Education with Claremont Graduate University, and Fernando Garcia (’17) and Cassandra Horg-Aaron (’20), alumni of the Postsecondary Educational Leadership: Specialization in Student Affairs (PELSA) master’s program, were accepted into the Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program (CDIP) for 2022-23. They were among seven SDSU-affiliated fellows among the cohort’s 67 members. 

Student Spotlight: Lily Hopkins, Builder of Safe Spaces

By Aaron Burgin

“Safe space” is not merely a buzzword for San Diego State University graduate student Lily Hopkins, who’s spent the better part of the past seven years creating them.
 
Hopkins, a student in the College of Education's online-hybrid counseling master's program, worked last year in The Pride Center’s Pride House peer mentorship program and will return in the fall as the graduate assistant supervising and training all of the Pride House mentors. 

 

Alumna Julianna Barnes Chosen to Lead South OC Community College District

By Michael Klitzing

Julianna Barnes (’91, ’10), an alumna of San Diego State University’s Community-Based Block and Ed.D. in Community College Leadership (CCLEAD) programs, has been selected as chancellor of the South Orange County Community College District.   

The president of Cuyamaca College in El Cajon since 2015, Barnes will begin her new role in August. The South Orange County Community College District, which encompasses Saddleback College and Irvine Valley College, serves nearly 50,000 students per year. 

 

COE's Statement on the Tragic School Shooting in Uvalde, Texas

A message to the SDSU College of Education community from Dean Y. Barry Chung:

As people who devote our lives to education, the horror we witnessed yesterday at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas is hard to process. We mourn for the 19 children and two teachers killed in this act of senseless violence. Our hearts go out to the surviving students, school professionals, and families forever changed by this tragedy. 

Alumna Ashanti Hands Named President of San Diego Mesa College

By Michael Klitzing

A two-time graduate of San Diego State University will now lead San Diego’s largest community college. Ashanti Hands (’94, ’14), an alumna of the Community-Based Block (CBB) master’s program and Ed.D. in Community College Leadership (CCLEAD) has been appointed president of San Diego Mesa College. 

 

Part of the San Diego Community College District, Mesa has an enrollment of more than 30,000 students per year. Hands has been at the college since 2008, serving as vice president of student services since 2016. In announcing the hire, the school praised her adoption of data-informed decision making to ensure equitable outcomes. 

Ed Leadership Doctoral Alumni Honored With SDCOE’s Lighthouse Awards

From left, Amy Illingworth ('15) and Cynthia Larkin (’13)

By COE News Team 

 

San Diego State University alumni Amy Illingworth ('15) and Cynthia Larkin (’13) were honored as “beacons in the education community” at the San Diego County Office of Education's (SDCOE) annual Lighthouse Awards. 

 

Illingworth, assistant superintendent of educational services at Encinitas Union School District, earned the Equity Champion award. Larkin, principal at San Diego’s Morse High School, earned the Turnaround School Site Leader award. Both are graduates of SDSU’s Educational Leadership (PK-12) Ed.D. program. 

Meet COE's Outstanding Graduates from the Class of 2022

By COE News Team

Get to know the nine San Diego State University College of Education students who earned the title of Outstanding Graduate from the Class of 2022, as selected by their department, school or program.

Pair of Alumni Named Teachers of the Year by San Diego Unified

Andrea Loyko and Josh Rosenberg

By Michael Klitzing

Two San Diego State University School of Teacher Education alumni received San Diego Unified School District’s 2022 Teacher of the Year honor. Andrea Loyko (’04, ’19) and Josh Rosenberg (’06) were among the three recipients of the award, which was fittingly presented to them in a ceremony on May 3 — National Teacher Appreciation Day. 

 

COE DIFFERENCE MAKERS: A Proud ‘Science Nerd’ Molds STEM Teachers

By Michael Klitzing

When Donna Ross left her job as a classroom teacher in her native Oregon to enter the biology master’s program at San Diego State University, her intent was to transition from teacher to scientist. But being out in the field studying epibenthic algal mats — think the layer of slime on top of the mud in an estuary — gives one time to ponder one’s path. 

 

“I’d be out in thigh-high mud collecting data and I’d find myself thinking about how I would teach the information I was finding through the data I was collecting,” Ross recalls. “So I decided that while I loved biology, my heart was in teaching.” 

 

Schenkel Seeks to Build Meaningful Connections Between Kids and Science

By Michael Klitzing

Kathleen Schenkel has a busy summer in store. She’ll soon be devising coastal climate learning kits that will be distributed to children across North America. Likely contents include craft supplies and polaroid cameras. 

 

If that doesn’t fit with a traditional understanding of how kids learn science, that’s by design. 

 

Schenkel, an assistant professor in San Diego State University’s School of Teacher Education, is co-leading a bi-national research project to explore innovative ways kids can build meaningful connections with their environments. 

Three COE Faculty Research Projects Awarded Post-Doctoral Support

By COE News Team

Three San Diego State University College of Education faculty research projects have been awarded funding for post-doctoral fellowships through the Division of Research and Innovation’s Support for Postdoctoral Fellowships Program. The program supports efforts that will have significant long-term impacts on the research, scholarship and creative activities at SDSU. 

 
Post-doctoral scholars will be hired to support two projects focused on autism research and another aiming to increase representation among Latinx students in STEM education. Here is a rundown of the awardees: 

ARPE’s Lisa Gates Receives Flurry of Campus Awards

Lisa Gates with her husband, John Gates.

By Michael Klitzing

For Lisa Gates, it was a whirlwind week and a half. 

 

Over the span of 10 days, the director and advisor of San Diego State University’s leadership minor received not one, not two, but three campus awards. Gates was honored by Associated Students (A.S.), the Transfer Student Success Office, and the School of Communication. 

 

Creative Support Alternatives Celebrates 30 Years of Person-Centered Service

Mary Ellen Sousa (far left) and staff helped Chris (holding keys) become a homeowner in 2000.

By Michael Klitzing

It all started with one. Mary Ellen Sousa vividly remembers the first person Creative Support Alternatives ever served back in 1992 — a transition-age student with a developmental disability hoping to leave her group home and attend community college. Sousa and her colleagues successfully helped the young woman gain entry into the dorms at San Diego State University. 

 

This year, Creative Support Alternatives, which operates as part of SDSU’s Interwork Institute, is celebrating 30 years of providing supported living services and independent living services for people with developmental disabilities. Over the past three decades, the agency has supported about 150 individuals and expanded beyond San Diego County into Northern California’s Gold Country. 

Alumni Spotlight: Karina Wong is Driven to Serve Others at ‘Full Force’

By Michael Klitzing

To talk to Karina Wong (’15,’16, ’17) is to catch a glimpse of her boundless energy. Whether she’s discussing her career as a bilingual educator, her prodigious work in the community, or raising her two young children, the alumna of San Diego State University exudes seemingly inexhaustible enthusiasm. 

 

One wonders how she finds enough hours in the day for it all. 

 

“I make time,” Wong explains. “This is my life's purpose. And if I'm living my life's purpose, I'm going full force.” 

CBB's Angela Byars-Winston Honored With 2022 Distinguished Alumni Award

By Michael Klitzing

Angela Byars-Winston (’91, ’92) was instantly delighted when she found out she’d been named the San Diego State University College of Education’s recipient of the 2022 Distinguished Alumni Award. And when she glanced at her calendar and learned that the date she’d be honored — April 23 — was National Take a Chance Day, the honor began to feel even more special. 

 

“That didn't land on me lightly,” said Byars-Winston, who will be one of 10 SDSU graduates honored by SDSU Alumni at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa. “There were so many people — mentors — who took a chance on me” 

ARPE's Toni Saia Inducted into Disability Mentoring Hall of Fame

By Michael Klitzing

Toni Saia has recognized from an early age that she mingles in a world that was not built with her in mind. A proud disabled woman and wheelchair user, she’s fought most of her life to break down environmental barriers placed in her path. There has been no shortage of them. 

 

“Very early on, I knew my advocacy skills had to be top notch,” Saia recalls. “When I was 5 or 6 in public school, I was told, 'Children like you play on this side of the school yard.’ There was a line on the ground. I remember going home and saying, ‘Mom, I'm not playing behind that line.’” 

COE DIFFERENCE MAKERS: EDL's Wright Motivated By Untapped Potential

By Michael Klitzing

Waterbury, Connecticut is known as The Brass City, an homage to its proud past as a hub for brassware manufacturing. In the early and mid 20th century, the industry's abundant blue-collar jobs were a magnet for migration, both from abroad and in the Jim Crow South. James Wright's large family — his mother had 15 siblings, and he counts more than 50 first cousins — was part of the latter, adding to a Black community that now makes up more than a fifth of Waterbury's population. 

But by the 1970s, The Brass City was starting to tarnish. The forces of deindustrialization caused factories to shutter and livelihoods to vanish. 

CCBMW Offers Black Wellness Providers Connections, Community

The CCBMW leadership team from left: Candea Mosley, Myra Hollis and Sesen Negash.

By Michael Klitzing

San Diego State University alumnus Ojore Lateef Bushfan (’07, ’09, ’15) intimately understands the importance of having Black wellness providers available to meet the needs of the Black community. That knowledge comes not only from his vocation as a marriage and family therapist, but also as a Black man who himself finds empowerment through therapy. 

 

“As a client who's worked with an African American practitioner, it feels nice to be able to talk to someone who gets it — who understands the experience,” said Bushfan, a graduate of the College of Education’s Community Based Block and Marriage and Family Therapy master’s programs. “I think it provides an opportunity for folks of African descent to lean into this thing called therapy, because it's very vulnerable, disclosing painful things. Rapport is important.” 

See What COE Researchers Have in Store for AERA Conference

By COE News Team

The 2022 Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) is coming to our own backyard. The world's largest gathering of education researchers will be held in San Diego April 21-26. 

 

Several San Diego State University College of Education faculty and alumni will be presenting their research at the conference. Here is a sampling. If you would like your presentation added to this listing, contact mklitzing@sdsu.edu. Explore the full schedule.

ARPE Faculty Emeriti Create Scholarship for Doctoral Students

From left: Emeriti ARPE faculty members Ron Jacobs, Bobbie J. Atkins, Caren Sax and Fred McFarlane.

By Michael Klitzing

Even in retirement, San Diego State University’s Department of Administration, Rehabilitation and Postsecondary Education (ARPE) faculty are a tight-knit group. ARPE’s faculty emeriti still get together for regular happy hours where they — as professor emeritus Caren Sax puts it — “solve the problems of the world.” 

 

At the very least, they’ve solved some financial worries for future doctoral students. 

Education Doctoral Student Awarded Fulbright Scholar Grant

By Michael Klitzing

As the reality of his Fulbright acceptance and upcoming semester abroad in Belize sinks in, Al Schleicher finds himself excited less by what he can gain from the experience than by what he can leave behind. 

Schleicher, a student in San Diego State University’s Joint Ph.D. Program in Education with Claremont Graduate University (JDP), will head to the Central American nation in January 2023 as part of the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. He’ll be partnering with the University of Belize’s teacher education program on a project to build capacity to better train and support teachers. 

COE Climbs to No. 52 in U.S. News; No. 26 in Educational Administration

By Michael Klitzing

San Diego State University’s College of Education moved up three spots to No. 52 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report’s 2023 list of best graduate education programs. 

COE’s educational leadership programs also garnered a No. 26 ranking in the publication’s educational administration specialty ranking. 

“Our latest rankings reflect a growing national acknowledgement of what we in our college have long known — that SDSU’s education programs are among the best in the country,” said Y. Barry Chung, dean of the College of Education. 

Dean Chung Earns American Counseling Association Fellows Award

By Michael Klitzing

San Diego State University College of Education Dean Y. Barry Chung has been named a recipient of the 2022 Fellows Award from the American Counseling Association (ACA) — the world’s largest association of professional counselors. 

 

The Fellows Award is a distinctive honor that recognizes ACA members who have advanced the counseling profession throughout their career. Making the recognition more unique is the fact that Chung is a renowned scholar in counseling psychology — a distinct field with a separate professional organization. 

 

COE DIFFERENCE MAKERS: Lambros Seeks to Raise Visibility for School Psych

By Michael Klitzing

It was in the Land of Enchantment where Katina Lambros became fully enchanted with the field of school psychology. In the early 2000s, Lambros worked with Indigenous and Native American communities in Albuquerque-area Head Start settings. While implementing self-determination curricula for students showing early signs of emotional and behavioral challenges, she realized how much she still needed to learn. 

“I remember thinking, ‘We'll just be able to go in there and implement this really great research-based curriculum,’” Lambros recalls. “Then I’d realize that they only had one textbook in the entire classroom, or that they lacked consistent educational staff. When you're faced with the barriers, the inequities and the access issues that are present in everyday school settings, it changes your perspective.” 

Alfaro to Receive CABE Innovation Leadership Award

By Maria Keckler

Cristina Alfaro, associate vice president of International Affairs at SDSU, is receiving the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) 2022 Innovation Leadership Board Award. 

The award honors Alfaro’s exemplary leadership and contributions in the field of K-20 biliteracy and bilingual education over decades of her professional career. 

Alfaro will be recognized during CABE’s 2022 Conference, to be held March 29 through April 2, and she will be a featured speaker during the conference. 

College of Education Shines at Student Research Symposium

Heather Thorogood and Rosa Tejeda

By COE News Team 

Five San Diego State University College of Education-affiliated students won awards for outstanding scholarly accomplishment at the university’s 15th annual Student Research Symposium (SRS). SRS, a public forum where SDSU students present their research, scholarship, and creative activities, was held March 4-5 in Montezuma Hall. 

Here is a rundown of the winning students and projects: 

Donor Spotlight: Alumna Supports STE Graduate Students

By Jenna Ponce

SDSU is a family affair for Adeline Williams, her daughter, and grandson. With two College of Education graduates and a soon-to-be Engineering graduate, Williams is proud to lead three generations of Aztecs. Williams is as passionate about learning as she is about supporting research across campus. 

Adeline Williams, who loves learning, is leading the way for a family of Aztecs. Williams and her daughter Carolyn are both Education graduates, and her grandson Tyler is a current Engineering student. Williams and her family know the importance of education, and more so, the importance of research. 

Navarro Martell Shows the Write Stuff in Winning AERA Honor

By Michael Klitzing

Editor's Note: A Spanish version of this article is also available.

Throughout her career in academia, nothing has made Melissa Arabel Navarro Martell’s imposter syndrome creep in quite like writing. 

It’s a remnant of her experience of coming to the U.S. from Tijuana as a sixth grader, and transitioning from one nation’s school system to another. Mexican schools, she explains, typically do not teach writing composition until middle school. In the U.S., that usually happens at the elementary level. 

Navarro Martell Es Reconocida con un Premio

Por Michael Klitzing

Editor's Note: An English version of this article is available. 

A lo largo de su carrera académica, Melissa Arabel Navarro Martell aborda el tema del síndrome del impostor en su escritura, la incapacidad persistente de creer que el éxito propio es merecido. 

Es un resultado de su experiencia de venir a los Estados Unidos desde Tijuana como estudiante de sexto grado y hacer la transición del sistema educativo de una nación a otra. Ella explica que las escuelas mexicanas normalmente no enseñan composición y escritura hasta la educación secundaria; mientras en EEUU eso sucede en las primarias. 

Alumna Marlys Williamson Earns Nation’s Top STEM Teaching Honor

By Michael Klitzing

Marlys Williamson’s fifth-grade science classroom at Wolf Canyon Elementary in Chula Vista always revolved around hands-on learning. So when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020 and students were sent home, she faced a moment of crisis. 

“That was the biggest panic moment for me,” recalled the San Diego State University School of Teacher Education alumna (’05, ’06). “How can I reach students in their homes, while they’re in their PJs with their dogs and their stuffed animals?” 

Her solution was to gather all the supplies she could from her classroom and get to work. 

A Class by Themselves: Remembering SDSU's Two National Teachers of the Year

Left: Gabay with students at Serra High. Right: McBrayer honored in the Rose Garden by President Clinton.

Editor's Note: This story is part of SDSU NewsCenter's 125 Years of Excellence coverage. 

By Michael Klitzing

In the early 1990s, the United States had about 2.5 million teachers. So when a San Diego State University graduate was singled out as National Teacher of the Year in 1990, it was an extraordinary accomplishment on its face. 

Just four years later, it happened again. 

Vasquez Among 25 Women Lauded for Contributions to Higher Education

By Michael Klitzing

Marissa Vasquez often likes to repeat the quote “lifting as you climb.” Indeed, the credo of legendary feminist and racial justice activist Mary Church Terrell succinctly cuts to the heart of the matter. 

Vasquez, an assistant professor in San Diego State University’s Department of Administration, Rehabilitation and Postsecondary Education (ARPE), traveled the community college pathway herself as a student. As such, she views her work to empower underserved and underrepresented community college students as a personal responsibility. 

Alumna Phet Pease Earns Nation’s Top STEM Teaching Honor

By Michael Klitzing

Khamphet Pease (’05) will have to wait a bit longer for her day at the White House. 

The alumna of San Diego State University’s teaching credential program and Noyce Master Teaching Fellowship was named one of 102 recipients of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) — the U.S. Government’s highest award for ​​K-12 mathematics and science teachers. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ceremony took place virtually on Feb. 24. 

But while a makeup visit to Washington, DC is in the works, Pease’s students and colleagues at San Diego’s Wilson Middle School have already given her a day she’ll never forget. 

Discovering a Trailblazer: Henrietta Goodwin, SDSU’s First Black Graduate

The Goodwin family, with Henrietta seated at the far right. Photo courtesy San Diego History Center.

By Michael Klitzing

About a decade ago, Beverly Goodwin received a message from a college friend that kept a significant part of her family history — and San Diego State University history — from being lost forever. 

At the time, SDSU librarian Robert Fikes, Jr. was working on the book “The Black in Crimson and Black: History and Profiles of African Americans at SDSU.” In his research, Fikes had named 1913 alumna Henrietta Goodwin as the university’s first Black graduate. 

Wanda Clay Majors, a counselor in SDSU’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), saw the last name. She saw a photo of Henrietta that bore striking resemblance to her friend. And she knew Beverly had family roots in San Diego. So she reached out. 

It was a lucky break. 

Mark Tucker Named NCRE Rehabilitation Researcher of the Year

By Michael Klitzing

For Mark Tucker, working in the field of rehabilitation counseling is its own reward. Through his research and training of vocational rehabilitation counselors, the associate professor in San Diego State University’s Department of Administration, Rehabilitation and Postsecondary Education (ARPE) helps people with disabilities find employment, independence and identity. 

“The field is one where we're really focused on helping to level the playing field for the disadvantages that folks with disabilities experience,” Tucker said. “In our case, that’s particularly things like employment, participating in the community or education achievement. It's pretty rewarding to be able to devote your life to something like that.” 

His research has now garnered national acclaim. 

A Student-Centered Leader Says Farewell to SDSU

By Michael Klitzing

Lisa McCully comes from a family of educators. Her parents — part of a huge influx of teachers recruited to San Diego in the 1960s to meet the needs of a growing population — taught in San Diego Unified School District for decades. 

The thing is, McCully never envisioned that life for herself. 

“Did I think I was going to follow their footsteps in the field of education?” she said. “No. I didn't have a clue until I landed here.” 

Funny how things turn out. 

COE DIFFERENCE MAKERS: Maldonado Exemplifies a Collaborative Spirit

By Michael Klitzing

An important fact you need to know about Saúl I. Maldonado is that personal plaudits aren’t really their thing. The assistant professor in San Diego State University’s Department of English Language and English Learner Education (DLE) is known for their selflessness, collegiality and enthusiasm. 

“U is only one letter in the universe,” says Maldonado, who uses they/them pronouns. “I take meaning in my colleagues and in my community. And I'm grateful.”