USC News - Communities

Bringing Science to Life

2011-09-13T14:48:00Z

It’s 6 a.m. at Sheridan Street Elementary School and after waving goodbye to their parents, fifth graders Christian Gomez, Sergio Batalla and Delfino Mendez nervously climb into the passenger van that awaits them.

Already on board are classmates Alexis Cortes and Jacqueline Betancourt, accompanied by Sandra Romero, their Murchison Street Elementary School teacher.

Romero smiles as the newcomers timidly shuffle in and strap on their seat belts because she’s the only one who knows what the day has in store for them. And she knows that in a few short hours, the anxiety etched on the faces of the students will give way to joy, pride and wonderment.

So began the annual trip to Catalina Island for the winners of the 2011 USC Science Fair Essay Contest.

Every year, USC Government and Civic Engagement’s Department of Community Partnerships takes winners of the science fair contest - all students from the USC Family of Schools - on an all-day field trip to the Wrigley Marine Science Center.

Wrigley Center educator and naturalist Alex Winqvist led this year’s group in aquatic activities for the trip. Students spent the morning kayaking with sea lions and snorkeling with bright-orange garibaldi in Big Fisherman’s Cove. In the afternoon, the youngsters explored the sights and sounds of the island during a nature hike at Blue Cavern Ridge.

The excursion gives the children an opportunity “to slow down and immerse themselves in the beauty of the natural environment,” said Winqvist, who likes to see people get excited about the ocean and develop an understanding of why environmental science is important.

The field trip is awarded as a grand prize to the students who submit the best essays to the USC Science Fair program, which is funded by the USC Neighborhood Outreach grant.

The Science Fair, formally known as the HSC Health and Science Expo, is an annual science education and mentorship program that has served the HSC Family of Schools for more than 10 years. Every spring, the program places 15 to 20 USC graduate students from the Health Sciences campus in three local elementary schools: Griffin Avenue, Murchison Street and Sheridan Street.

Student mentors, who come primarily from the USC School of Pharmacy, the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC, are assigned to work in a fifth-grade classroom to supplement the students’ science curriculum and inspire them to take an interest in the sciences.

The program culminates in a science competition in which 350 to 400 fifth graders visit the Health Sciences campus, where they present an original science project to a panel of judges.

Although the program featured an essay contest for several years, it wasn’t until spring 2010 that coordinators established a trip to Catalina as the grand prize.

“We reward students’ talents and efforts with a memorable experience that brings science to life,” said Cesar Armendariz ’94, director of HSC Community Partnerships and co-director of the Science Fair program.

New Health Initiative Focuses on Immigrants

2011-09-06T17:04:09Z

A diverse panel of experts from eight USC schools, led by Lihua Liu, assistant professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, recently formed a new public health initiative to focus on the health of immigrants in the United States.

The Immigrant Health Initiative (iHi), which received a $25,000 grant per year for up to three years from the USC Collaboration Fund, will engage students and faculty in exploring why the positive health characteristics of many immigrants to the United States deteriorate soon after their arrival and what can be done to stop and reverse such a trend. The panel included experts in communications, law, cinema, social work, medicine and urban planning.

Among the research and educational opportunities planned are class projects, student grants, junior faculty mentoring opportunities, community-based outreach programs and research proposals for federal or private funding sources.

The initiative’s first seminar, “Health Disparities and the Immigrant Health Initiative” presented by Provost Professor William Vega, executive director of the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging, is planned for Sept. 29 in Room 450 of the Ronald Tutor Campus Center. A student symposium on immigrant health also is being considered for next spring.

The idea for the initiative sprang from Liu’s work at the Los Angeles Cancer Surveillance Program compiling cancer statistics and conducting research. Liu was struck by the increasing risk for many types of cancer and other chronic diseases among immigrant populations along with their U.S. residency.

The deterioration in health is believed to be due to a combination of institutional, behavioral and environmental changes, including a lack of quality health services for linguistic minorities, the desire to become “American” and the lack of health information and education, Liu said. Without proper education, immigrants quickly lose healthy habits as they adapt to American living.

“As an immigrant myself, I have a personal understanding of immigrant experiences and the American Dream,” Liu said. “To me, the deterioration of immigrant health is tragic and unnecessary. Given the rapid growth of the foreign-born population in this country, we can no longer overlook immigrant health issues.”

The panel’s long-term goal is to establish a transdisciplinary research center on immigrant health at USC.

“We hope iHi will start a new approach in public health research and policy development to pay attention to immigrants and to identify the strengths in immigrant communities,” Liu explained. “With its research vigor, collaborative academic environment, the highest number of international students among all U.S. universities and prime geographic location in Los Angeles, we believe that USC is in an advantageous position to lead the exploration of a new public health approach to benefit all Americans.”

Student Honored for Dedication to Volunteer Work

2011-09-01T14:54:59Z

USC PharmD student Parth Parikh has won the Pharmacy Times/Walmart RESPy award given to students who demonstrate a commitment to volunteer service, a high level of professional and public health-related activities and a dedication to advancing the profession.

“Volunteer work and community outreach gives pharmacist students a chance to find out what they can really do,” Parikh said. “It’s a chance to be creative while changing lives for the better.”

Parikh has been involved in volunteer work since his first semester at the USC School of Pharmacy, and he has participated in more than a dozen health fairs and community clinics that provide screening and counseling services to underserved populations in Los Angeles.

As a member of the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists Operation Diabetes, he helped project directors plan various health fairs and develop effective educational tools. He also is involved with Students Helping and Receiving Education, where he is director of the smoking cessation program offered to homeless people in the Skid Row area.

“Working with homeless patients was extremely rewarding,” Parikh said. “For them, the smoking cessation program was like a rebirth, and I was so glad to be a part of that.”

Parikh co-organized Project India, an outreach project that educates pharmacy students in India about clinical aspects of the profession, a facet not currently emphasized abroad.

The project included two training sessions in which students from four schools of pharmacy in India were trained to screen and counsel for diabetes. The sessions took place in December at the Nirma University Institute of Pharmacy and the L. M. College of Pharmacy, both located in Gujarat, India.

The students also organized seven health fairs where 1,025 participants were screened, with 70 receiving referrals to local physicians. At these health fairs, students who participated in the training sessions were given the opportunity to use their newly acquired skills to provide free diabetes screenings to the community.

“Students there had no clue about clinical pharmacy, so educating them about that aspect of the field helped give them pride in their profession and a different outlook on what a pharmacist can do,” Parikh explained.

Parikh will continue the project, returning to India in December to educate students about clinical pharmacy opportunities and empowering them to initiate outreach efforts of their own.

Each year, only eight students from across the country receive the RESPy award for “Respect, Excellence and Service in Pharmacy.” The students are selected by a panel of judges who evaluate their commitment to community service.

In recognition of his award, Parikh will appear in the September issue of Pharmacy Times.

Giving Back to the Community

2011-08-26T15:00:05Z

Four hundred USC students headed to campus early on the last Saturday before classes, grabbed tools and headed into the community to make a difference. The event was the 16th annual Friends and Neighbors Day sponsored by the university’s Volunteer Center.

Volunteers chose from a diverse mix of service activities at 22 nonprofit sites in the greater Los Angeles area. The work included a Heal the Bay beach cleanup in Santa Monica, collecting cans at the Los Angeles Food Bank, and assisting at the retail store and cafe in the Downtown Women's Center.

The daylong celebration of community activism is part of the center's ongoing initiative to promote service work in four main categories: beautification, community gardening, friendly visiting, and mitigating hunger and homelessness.

"It really separates those students who are willing to wake up early and take time out of their last Saturday of summer to give back to the community," said Joenique Rose, program director of alternative breaks and community partners. "For those students who really want to engage with USC's surrounding areas, Friends and Neighbors Day provides a chance to make a difference."

Lindsey Poole, a junior majoring in communication, served as a student coordinator.

"Encouraging freshmen to get involved with the community was a rewarding experience for me," said Poole, who brought 15 students to Community Services Unlimited, a local city garden. "The biggest thing that can be taken away from a day like this is recognizing the power we have as students to go into the community and help out."

Jonathan Kendrick, a senior broadcast journalism major, volunteered at the event for the third time.

"When I came to college, I heard these years could be one of the most selfish times of your life," said Kendrick, who spent his day fixing up classrooms at the Camino Nuevo Charter School. "And it's very true because you are always focused on yourself, whether it's doing something for your career or wanting to be involved in some activity. To be able to help people around the community is a tremendous opportunity."

The reaction he received from community members confirmed that his time was well spent. "They were very appreciative; they must have thanked us about 15 times," he said. "The teachers were excited to get their classrooms all done up and looking good for the kids."

Along with the joy of helping others, volunteering provides additional perks.

"It's an opportunity to be introduced to the community you are going to be living in, whether you're already from Los Angeles County or are coming from outside the United States," Rose said. "It's a great way to see the nonprofits that are doing tremendous work in the community and also a chance for students to recognize ways in which they can give back."

The Volunteer Center will be hosting five more Friends and Neighbors days during the school year: on Oct. 22, Nov. 19, Jan. 21, Feb. 11 and March 24.

For more information or to register online, visit sait.usc.edu/volunteer/get-involved/friends-neighbors-service-days.aspx

Nutritional Lessons Boost Health of Latinos

2011-08-03T16:28:49Z

Latino children who participated in an interventional gardening, nutrition and cooking program experienced significant health improvements, including lower body mass index and lower blood pressure, according to a study by researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the UCLA School of Public Health.

The research, led by Jaimie Davis of the Keck School and Nicole Gatto of UCLA, resulted in a significant decrease in blood pressure, an increase in fiber intake and a drop in body mass index and rate of weight gain among children who participated in the 12-week L.A. Sprouts program. According to Davis, this is the first research to look at the effects of a gardening program on obesity measures. The research is published in the August edition of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

“There has been a grassroots movement across America for a garden-based approach to nutrition, but not a lot of hard science on outcomes,” said Davis, assistant professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School. “It surprised me that this intervention worked as well as some of our clinical metabolic studies. We’re happy that a more community-based intervention based on gardening and cooking worked so well.”

Previous research by the USC Childhood Obesity Research Center indicates that more than 50 percent of Latino children in Los Angeles are overweight and more than 30 percent have health issues that may lead to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular problems later in life. This population tends to eat a lot of refined grains and added sugar but few fruits and vegetables.

The study followed 100 mostly low-income Latino fourth- and fifth-graders at a nearby Los Angeles elementary school who were participating in L.A.’s BEST, an after-school enrichment program. L.A. Sprouts brought 34 students once a week to the Milagro Allegro Community Garden in Highland Park for 90-minute educational sessions focusing on cooking, gardening and nutrition. Seventy other students were controls.

Students participating in L.A. Sprouts learned easy, healthy recipes, as well as tips for adding healthier foods to their diets, how much hidden sugar is in sodas and other beverages, and other food information. A University of California Cooperative Extension master gardener taught students the basics of gardening. Students also were given vouchers by the Old L.A. Farmers Market and traveled monthly to the market to buy fresh fruits and vegetables for their families.

Students’ dietary habits, weight, blood pressure, attitudes toward food and classroom engagement were measured at the beginning and end of the 12 weeks. Compared to controls, the L.A. Sprouts children charted a 5 percent decrease in diastolic blood pressure and a 22 percent increase in consumption of dietary fiber. Participating overweight children saw a 1 percent decrease in body mass index compared to a 1 percent increase in body mass index in the control group, while overweight L.A. Sprouts participants only gained two pounds compared to an average of more than four pounds by children in the control group.

L.A. Sprouts participants also showed a 16 percent increase in overall preference for vegetables. Participants’ view of their ability to cook and garden changed, and most children believed fruits and vegetables from the garden tasted better than store-bought fruits and vegetables.

“Kids feel more invested when they know where the food comes from,” Davis said. “They find that vegetables taste better if they grow them, pick them, cook them and eat them. Being more involved in processes makes them feel proud of themselves.”

On the horizon is a USC Childhood Obesity Research Center study involving four Northeast Los Angeles elementary schools that will measure the effect of a gardening intervention on school performance, dietary intake, body mass index, type 2 diabetes risk factors and metabolic syndrome, Davis said.

The study was supported by the USC Childhood Obesity Research Center and the Kaiser Permanente Foundation, as well as volunteer efforts by USC and UCLA preventive health and public health students, the Milagro Allegro Community Garden, South Central Farmers, Whole Foods Arroyo Parkway (Pasadena), Old L.A. Farmers Market, Homegirl Café, Slow Food Los Angeles and L.A.’s BEST.

Center for Urban Education Focuses on Equity

2011-07-25T21:38:24Z

Select faculty, staff and administrators from 11 California community colleges and key policy stakeholders gathered at the Center for Urban Education’s Equity & Student Success Symposium in early June for an unprecedented opportunity to come together and share strategies around using data to improve outcomes for underrepresented students of color, despite increasingly scarce resources.

As state budget cuts slash funding for community colleges, many institutions are forced to reduce the number and types of courses available and turn away thousands of prospective students who have no other entry point into higher education. These responses will be felt most sharply by minority populations, who make up a near half of all community college students statewide.

For instance, the number of Latina and Latino students enrolled in California community colleges is more than double the size of the entire University of California (UC) student population; and the African American community college student population is more than that of the three largest UC campuses combined. Given the already significant disparities in transfer and completion rates between minority students and their white peers, concrete plans for addressing these inequities in an actionable manner are vital.

Over the past six months, the Center for Urban Education, which is based at the USC Rossier School of Education, has worked with community colleges around the state to improve racial/ethnic equity through a series of workshops funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The workshops provide an opportunity for college practitioners to set concrete goals using institutional data disaggregated by race and ethnicity.

By analyzing this data using the center’s Benchmarking Equity and Student Success Tool™ (BESST), the workshops can make informed decisions about how to allocate scarce institutional resources to produce better academic outcomes. These data-based, equity driven decisions and recommendations then can be included in their basic skills action plans, federal grant proposals or other planning and goal-setting documents.

“We wanted to give workshop participants an opportunity to learn about the successes and struggles of their colleagues in using student data to make decisions and keep equity on the table,” said the center’s co-director and USC Rossier School of Education associate professor Alicia C. Dowd.

A morning panel of leaders from Santa Ana College, Los Medanos College and Diablo Valley College moderated by Dowd described how the BESST™ has provided a concrete language with which they can raise important, though contentious, issues of equity. As Karl Debro, coordinator for the Advancement Via Individual Determination program, put it, “Data gives us a language for topics we’re afraid to talk about any other way. It allows us to engage in real equity talk.”

Sara Lundquist, vice president at Santa Ana College, stressed the importance of collective leadership in ensuring that student success goals are both achievable and equitable.

“We [at Santa Ana College] are not looking to simply produce more degrees; rather we want to ensure that the budget crisis does not disproportionately affect those students who are low-income or historically underserved. We need to bridge interdisciplinary differences and move forward with this data together to make meaningful change.”

The afternoon session provided an opportunity for practitioners to hear directly from policymakers and experts. Members of the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office Task Force on Student Success, including Suzanne Reed, chief of staff to State Sen. Carol Liu (D-Pasadena); Barry A. Russell, vice chancellor of academic affairs for the California Community Colleges’ Chancellor’s Office; and David Morse, secretary for the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges and professor of English at Long Beach City College, led a discussion during the latter half of the program, putting forth a variety of metrics and practices that may be incorporated into a statewide plan to improve student retention and completion.

Center for Education co-director and USC Rossier School of Education professor Estela Mara Bensimon, also on the panel, spoke to the role equity should play in establishing best practices and metrics.

The task force, established through legislation drafted by Sen. Liu, is looking at what successful community colleges and community college systems around the nation are doing to improve student outcomes. Counseling, strong articulation and transfer agreements, and statewide transfer scholarships were identified as some of the best practices.

“There is no one-size-fits-all model for student success,” Morse said. “We need to give community colleges freedom and funding to do what works.”

Bensimon added, “Institutions must select their own indicators of success. In order to ensure equal access, participation and impact for their community, each school must find practices that fit their institution.”

Even though community college funding has been cut, this does not necessarily mean that underrepresented students would be locked out of higher education. Through thoughtful use of disaggregated data that shows the impact of programs that support minority students to creating relationships with like-minded colleges across the state, the participating practitioners pledged to keep equity on the table. With its continued research, innovative tools and networking opportunities, the Center for Education will help to guide the way.

NAI Scholars Bring Pride and Prejudice to Stage

2011-07-13T21:21:55Z

Many say that nothing can repress a teenage spirit bent on expression, especially when given a stage. Recently, a cast and crew of more than 50 high school students took that expression to heart and mounted a full-length production of Pride and Prejudice based on Jane Austen’s novel of the same title.

But instead of their usual teen garb, the USC NAI Theater Workshop students donned cravats, handmade headpieces and repurposed Regency-style dresses for packed audiences during their June 18 and June 26 performances at Mudd Hall on the University Park campus.

With dramatic music and English country choreography, the students reinvented the space into Regency England, memorized a 73-page script, and retold the intricate tale of the division of class, the irony of hypocrisy, and the era’s social and gender expectations with confidence and aplomb - but without a budget or extensive training.

“Theatre education is important because it accentuates why we read and make stories while examining our own human condition,” said cast member Roselyn Cruz. “In becoming each character, we analyze our own pride, prejudice and infallibility.”

Offered to students participating in the USC Neighborhood Academic Initiative, a pre-college enrichment program designed to prepare low-income neighborhood students for admission to the university, the NAI Theater Workshop is led by actor and NAI staff member Paul David Story and Jacqueline Barrios, NAI faculty member and a teacher at Foshay Learning Center.

“The workshop supports student literary scholarship through the performing arts,” Barrios said. “We seek to go beyond the limits of traditional classrooms by inspiring a love of education, literature, learning and creative expression.”

The workshop first began by showcasing short scenes and small-scale casts. Pride and Prejudice was its first full-length work and consisted entirely of a volunteer student cast and crew who committed hours after school and on weekends to bring the production to fruition. NAI graduates currently enrolled at USC also volunteered and contributed to the production’s success.

In preparation for the performance, students partnered with the USC Joint Educational Project - a program that combines academic coursework with hands-on experience in neighborhoods surrounding the university - and the Jane Austen Society of North America. Participants attended Regency Balls, browsed costume curatorial files at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and worked with Joint Educational Project mentors while writing essays for Austen Society essay competitions.

The attention to detail paid off. “The young cast captured the wit, humanity, style and essence of a world historically and geographically very far from their own, but in terms of humanity and human foibles,” Barrios said. “I'm sure it was an experience and an encounter these students will never forget.”

Students used social media sites Facebook and Twitter for publicity, managed logistics, including often daunting rehearsal schedules, and filled roles as diverse as prop master, set designer, costume master and stage manager.

“I learned how to work as a team with a big group of people and how to become part of the solution instead of part of the problem,” said Luis Vega, Foshay Learning Center junior and cast member. “If all the world’s a stage, I now plan to be front and center!”

Mellon Mays Program Mentors Minority Students

2011-07-13T17:52:58Z

Exploring topics ranging from the social impact of black stand-up comedy to genocide resistance in Rwanda, seven students will get the opportunity to conduct graduate-level research through the 2011-12 Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program.

A national program, the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship strives to increase the minority presence on college and university faculties by encouraging underrepresented undergraduate students to pursue Ph.D.s in fields that lack diversity. USC's fellowship program is a partnership between the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the Office of the Provost and the Division of Student Affairs.

“The goal is to not only help these students with their research, but also to provide assistance with workshops and conferences while they are undergraduates and in graduate school,” said Martha Enciso, assistant director of Academic Recognition Programs and head of the USC Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program. “It’s like a preparation program to become faculty.”

As they decode hours of digital tapes, search library archives and conduct hundreds of phone interviews, the selected students are already delving into the research process thanks to a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship summer stipend. Fellows also receive fall and spring stipends in addition to formal faculty mentorship.

“I had been planning to do research, and Mellon Mays made it possible and provided resources that are just amazing,” said senior Jayme Tsutsuse, who will be traveling to Rwanda to conduct interviews about genocide resistance with support from her faculty mentors and the USC Shoah Foundation Institute. “For me, research is not so much about undoing misconceptions, but really finding a way to understand things that are so outside of what I have experienced in my life.”

Taking a political science course about terrorism and genocide sparked Tsutsuse's interest in the subject. “I wanted to learn about people's stories - people who fought back against what the majority was partaking in,” she said.

Stephen Finlay, associate professor of philosophy and a mentor to Tsutsuse, called her project “a perfect fit for the fellowship program.” He added, “I'm very impressed by how it combines abstract theory and empirical research with matters of direct, concrete importance.”

Senior Rikiesha Pierce's research will take an entirely different turn. This summer, she'll be combing through a recorded archive of stand-up comedy and related interviews compiled by her mentor Lanita Jacobs, associate professor of anthropology. Pierce also plans to take part in a weeklong performance retreat led by Liesel Reinhart, head of the production company Speak Theater Arts.

“Her enthusiasm for this subject is as contagious as it is generative for my own research on notions of racial authenticity in black stand-up comedy,” Jacobs said. “I can't wait to see what she discovers - both about the craft of stand-up and her extraordinary self.”

Pierce, who excelled academically at Mt. San Antonio College and lived out of her car for a time before transferring to USC, plans to pursue her Ph.D. in performing arts studies and hopes to use “comedy as a tool for social change.”

“What I hope to find is some kind of prescription comedians are giving to their audiences in terms of social critique and commentary, and what they perceive as the means of combating the ills of society,” said Pierce, who is majoring in sociology.

Senior Evelyn Larios already has assisted her mentor Veronica Terriquez, assistant professor of sociology, on several research projects, including a community development project with the Second Baptist Church in South Los Angeles, a look at union- and non-union parent involvement in L.A. County schools and a study of access to postsecondary education.

A course in research methods inspired her to do an independent project on the planning and implementation of the Los Angeles May Day marches, which sparked her interest in social movements.

“I am very research-oriented,” said Larios, who heard about the Mellon Mays program through her involvement as a transfer student in the USC SCholars Program. “[Former SCholars director] K.C. Mmeje provided great mentorship. He saw that I was interested in research and encouraged me to apply.”

Though she is still debating about which topic - social movements or labor unions - to pursue for her Mellon Mays project, Larios, a double major in sociology and policy, planning and development, and a McNair Scholar, plans to spend the summer collecting data and finalizing her project.

“Evelyn has an outstanding sociological imagination,” Terriquez said. “She understands research and knows how to ask questions and use data to answer those questions."

Other members of the cohort include Charnan Williams, who is researching the history of Leimert Park; Evelyn Sanchez, who is looking at immigration from an LGBT perspective; Jennifer Escobar, who is exploring border issues and religious groups; and Nelly Chavez, who is examining folklore and religion in southern Mexico.

“We look for students who seem to have an edge to their research and be true scholars in the making - students who will actually make a difference in their professions,” said George Sanchez, vice dean for diversity and strategic initiatives at USC Dornsife, and mentor to Williams and Sanchez.

Once students complete their research and are accepted into graduate programs, whether at USC or other Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship universities, they continue to be supported and funded by the program.

“Once selected,” said Enciso, “students are in it for life.”

Boyle Heights Newspaper Connects Teens to Community

2011-06-02T22:17:47Z

Fourteen high school students have banded together to learn about journalism and use their newfound knowledge to shine a light on the East Los Angeles community of Boyle Heights, a Latino community that garners meager positive attention from the media.

The news project, a collaboration between the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and La Opinión, the Spanish-language daily, publishes its first edition June 3-4.

The 20-page bilingual tabloid, distributed to 22,000 homes in Boyle Heights, aims to educate residents about the culture, personalities and news of the vibrant neighborhood. Over the last semester, the student reporters delved into their community and interviewed artists, activists, Los Angeles civic officials, police, teachers, business owners and victims of domestic violence to craft stories about conflicts, struggles and successes.

The students who signed up for the project said they were motivated by a desire to change the stereotype of Boyle Heights as a center of gang activity and poverty. Instead, they wanted to spread the word on the community’s rich immigrant culture, its history of civic activism and the colorful arts scene.

“The core premise is that having an engaged public is good for the health of the community,” said Michelle Levander, co-editor and publisher. “A newspaper can spark conversations and get people thinking about what they can change in their community. It also can make a neighborhood more cohesive.” She also serves as founding director of USC Annenberg’s California Endowment Health Journalism Fellowships.

Levander teamed with Pedro Rojas, executive editor of La Opinión, to launch the newspaper, which the students named the Boyle Heights Beat. The project is funded by The California Endowment, a foundation which supports Levander’s premise that the work is a way to improve the overall health of Boyle Heights’ neighborhoods by enriching their sources of information and promoting community involvement.

The news team, which was helped by a half dozen adult advisers, including a number of volunteers, is already at work on its next edition. It also is launching English and Spanish online sites this week at boyleheightsbeat.com and pulsodeboyleheights.com. But the heart of the project is the print edition, which will reach an audience that primarily relies on print and broadcast sources for news.

From the start, students showed an unanticipated passion for a project that has demanded much of their time. At the initial informational meeting, 70 students showed up to apply on a rainy Saturday. After a competitive application process, organizers narrowed the pool to 20 high school students from the Boyle Heights Technology Academy, Theodore Roosevelt High School, the Puente Learning Center and the Mendez Learning Center.

Fourteen saw it through, attending twice-weekly news meetings after school on Tuesdays and on Saturdays, and reporting in between. They researched government policy, secured interviews with high-level Los Angeles politicians and policymakers, conducted dozens of on-the-street interviews and mastered Google mapping.

“It’s been pretty hectic, but I guess I see it as preparing me for life and learning to put priorities first,” said Franklin Granados, a 17-year-old junior at the Mendez Learning Center who has lived in Boyle Heights since he was 9. “Right now I’d probably be relaxing with my friends and not doing much with my time, but instead I’m being productive. It’s more important than just messing around.”

Levander and Rojas emphasized that the project is not a paper for an audience of high school students. It was written with a larger audience - the entire community - in mind.

One story will explore the politics and background of a debate over a proposed $2 billion redevelopment of Boyle Heights’ 1,200-unit Wyvernwood apartment redevelopment project. The proposed redo has split Boyle Heights between those who see it as a sign of progress and those who consider it the razing of a rare, urban green space.

Another article delves into crime trends, using interviews and statistics to tell the story of the dramatic drop in violent crime in the neighborhood. Other stories cover domestic violence, a fledgling new playhouse and the local farmers’ market, including a look into whether it is economically viable enough to survive.

Regardless of whether students decide to pursue journalism, they are learning to work in a way that will help them in any field, Rojas said.

“They’re learning how to meet deadlines, how to interact with other folks - including the people they interview - and how to operate as a team,” said Rojas, who said he did not expect the level of dedication he has seen.

“I was expecting that some of them would be committed, but all of them - all 14 - have been coming to every meeting and have been working. Always working,” he said.

Even beyond deadlines, students are learning critical thinking skills that they will use later, Levander said.

“They’re learning to follow a story and research topics, how to gather and build a persuasive case,” she said. “They’ll use those skills when they’re filling out an application for college and beyond.”

For many of the teens, writing about their own neighborhoods has been more complicated than they would have imagined. They were assigned to cover the complete story - including the controversial elements - without showing an overt bias one way or the other.

“It’s a very tense issue,” said Cinthia Gonzalez, the Roosevelt High student who covered the Wyvernwood controversy. “Whenever I interview, I have to question everything. And question more and more. It’s important to hear both sides of the story. The development company and the tenants had something to say.”

She and her peers have learned a crucial lesson of journalism and communication: that their stories will be more powerful if they are well-researched and tell both points of view.

“Just getting the news out there is important for the people of Boyle Heights, so they’ll be aware of what’s going on in their community … that it could change for the good or the bad - but that it’s important for them to be aware and be prepared,” Gonzalez said.

The students’ stories will carry weight with their readers because they are authentic, Rojas said. That tie into Boyle Heights and direct engagement with the community will mean something to the residents, he said.

“For the community and the parents and families, it will be a point of pride to have their kids, their students, produce something tangible,” Rojas said. “They will have a print edition with their bylines, and they’ll know they worked so hard to produce this. And it will be information about their community, delivered by their sons and daughters.”

Boyle Heights is one of 14 underserved communities that has been targeted by The California Endowment, which has worked to improve neighborhood health and in turn improve quality of life among residents.

Increasing news coverage of those areas is key, said Mary Lou Fulton, program manager for the health foundation.

“The role of media and information is essential in the public policy debate,” she said. “It’s really easy to dismiss the concerns and needs of people who live in low-income communities. But if you know who they are and their lives and struggles, you know their hopes and dreams are really the same as yours.”

The Boyle Heights Beat will show how important it is to spark conversation and action in communities, Fulton said. The California Endowment is hoping to use this project as a model for others around the state.

“In this project, they’re finding a way to create accountability for elected officials and to perform a public service in the classic way a newspaper does. It’s hard to match that experience. But will they become journalists?” Fulton said. “Doesn’t everyone have some potential to be a content producer? When you think of how fractured journalism is becoming, it makes these kinds of projects all that more important and exciting.”

Boyle Heights Beat advisers and contributing editors (including community volunteers) are Luis Sierra Campos, Veronica Hurtado, Jessica Perez, Kris Rivera MA '95, Augustine Ugalde Jr., Rocio Zamora MA '07 and Gene Dean.

Senior editor is Anabell Romero, an incoming graduate student at USC Annenberg. Online editor is Gabriel Lerner, the news editor for La Opinión. Web designer is Jennifer Harris MA '10), who works at latimes.com.

Boyle Heights Beat reporters are Alejandro Rojas, Ángel Lizárraga, Cinthia Gonzalez, Diana Arellano, Diana Ochoa, Franklin Granados, Jonathan Olivares, Karissa Reynoso, Melissa Martínez, Yazmín Núñez, Rosa Solachi, María Vera, Charley Patiño and Daniel Vidal.

Festival of Books a Success

2011-05-03T17:12:27Z

At the opening of the 16th Festival of Books on the University Park campus this past weekend, USC president C. L. Max Nikias and Los Angeles Times publisher Eddy Hartenstein said it was fitting that the two institutions had joined forces for the sprawling, well-loved event.

USC and the Los Angeles Times are the two oldest non-religious surviving institutions in the city, Nikias pointed out.

The collaboration resulted in a packed but smoothly run festival under sunny skies that attracted many Los Angeles residents for the first time. The Los Angeles Times said it would be several days before it had attendance figures, but the campus was filled with spectators both days.

Nikias pointed out that kindergarten through 12th-grade students in the neighboring schools were attending the festival, which was another benefit of having the event at USC after 15 years on the UCLA campus. “It’s really important to our children to understand the importance of reading,” he said.

Minutes after he made those comments for the CSPAN2 program Book TV in an interview taped outside Taper Hall, Nikias was recognized and mobbed by excited students from Sheridan Street Elementary, one of the USC Family of Schools near the Health Sciences campus. The school principal, Genaro Carapia, had accompanied them to the festival.

First-time attendees included many who live near the University Park campus. Ivan Tidwell-Carter, 10, and his sister, Shelby, 8, who were there with their mother and grandmother, fit that description. They took turns learning how to lasso a rope like a pro from cowboy Al Koch, one of several roaming characters.

To see photos from the Festival of Books, visit flickr.com/photos/festivalofbooks/

Children and families were everywhere on the campus, particularly on McCarthy Quad, where the Target Stage hosted presentations by popular children’s authors such as R. L. Stine of the Goosebumps series.

“I’ve been coming since my kids were in strollers,” said Maria Sanchez of Inglewood, who was relaxing with her children Valeria Aleman, 6, who held a book, and Nicolas Aleman, 4, who was putting together a paper train engine. “I love the festival.”

One of the highlights of this year’s gathering was a book drive to benefit libraries and classrooms at the USC Family of Schools and the Target Corp.’s partner schools. Approximately 4,000 new and gently used books were collected, which compares to about 800 from last year

Tom Sayles, vice president of USC Government and Civic Engagement, kept a close eye on the book donations during both days of the festival, circling back several times to check on the red bins outside the donation truck on McCarthy Quad.

"USC has a storied history of setting and shattering records and I'm thrilled that our Family of Schools will benefit from our latest record-breaking efforts," Sayles said. "I commend the Trojan Family for its generosity and unwavering support of the book drive."

Both USC and the Los Angeles Times are interested in helping downtown Los Angeles revitalize its cultural and historical activities, and strengthening the arts and education corridor south of downtown, Hartenstein said in the Book TV interview. In addition, the festival speaks to our “core belief in the value of the written word,” Hartenstein said. “It shows the importance of the Fourth Estate, which is what makes our democracy work.”

USC students were out in force as volunteers, doing everything from reading to students in the JEP ReadersPlus booth to giving out paper airplane kits at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering booth. They also were showcased as entertainers on the USC stage on Hahn Plaza. The lineup there included students from the USC Thornton School of Music’s Popular Performance Program and groups from USC neighborhood schools, such as a Latin jazz musical group from Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School.

Many USC students participated simply by browsing the vendor booths and attending thought-provoking literary panels. For a look at three of the star-studded panels available to them, see http://uscnews.usc.edu/university/politics_punk_rock_and_the_lie.html

Kyle Harris, a freshman cinematic arts major, was strolling the festival with fellow freshmen Marissa Roy, a philosophy and political science major, and Willie Hartman, an animation major.

"It’s great to see the campus this active," Harris said.

Roy noted that the panels were well-organized and said she had attended two.

The students made particular mention of the festival’s mobile application, which allowed them to make a record of the panels they wanted to attend, as well as providing session locations.

Remy Taghavi, a junior in bassoon performance, said that there were so many vendor booths and activities that at first he didn’t know how to navigate the festival. But he soon discovered that serendipity was part of the charm.

“It’s cool to browse through opposing viewpoints,” he said. “You walk around from booth to booth and you can find every point of view represented.”

Nikias Discusses University Issues With Students

2010-11-11T20:19:36Z

It's not unusual for a professor or administrator to answer students' questions. It's a little more special, however, when the university president does.

USC President C. L. Max Nikias spoke with students for an hour Nov. 9 as part of the Campus Conversation series. Sponsored by the Office of Campus Activities, the program hosts conversations between prominent USC figures and students about university issues.

After giving students nearly 20 minutes of advice ¬- "not a speech," Nikias insisted - he took questions for the remainder of the time.

Topics ranged from improving graduate student engagement to increasing diversity among the student body and faculty.

Several questions focused on the relationship between the university and the community after Nikias said that USC administrators were in the final design stages of a Master Plan, which involves redeveloping University Village.

Nikias assured students that their concerns were being taken into consideration in the plans for University Village, including the construction of a new gym, an intramural field and housing designed specifically for graduate students.

One student, however, raised concerns that the new construction might alienate the community surrounding USC. Nikias was quick to dispel that notion.

"I don't want to see the chains of Armani and Gucci - that's not the right image that I want to project for the university or for our community. There will be retail stores that are affordable," Nikias said. "We live in a community, and we live for a community."

Nikias recently reached out to USC's neighbors by visiting 10 of the 15 schools in the USC Family of Schools to better understand the schools, their students and communities.

"It's been a wonderful experience for me to visit them on their grounds," Nikias said. "I had a hard time going to sleep in the evenings. I was having a lot of ideas of what we can do to make a difference, especially for the kids.”

Nikias said he is planning to announce two initiatives in the spring that will involve USC's relationship with the surrounding community. The first will focus on job training and creation, specifically among businesses on Vermont Avenue and Figueroa Street. The second will feature free high-speed Internet access - the same access that students have on campus - paid for by the university to the 100 homes closest to campus.

"He opened up a lot of room for discussion about his goals," said Yevgeniya Kopeleva, series organizer and graduate adviser of the Program Board. "This has been a really great initiative to open the floor to students and give them more voice about what they think. A lot of times these decisions are made, and we aren't kept in the loop. Events like this have and will continue to have a chance to spark these discussions."

Nikias stressed that student input is important to him. When Undergraduate Student Government president Chris Cheng asked him how he plans to maintain a close relationship with students, Nikias said he would make this one of his top priorities.

Nikias also said he would make a students-only annual address, an idea that student government officials had suggested during an afternoon tea with the president. The address will take place Feb. 1 at 4 p.m.

"What I can assure you is that as long as I am president of USC, being in close contact with the students is always going to be a priority," Nikias said.