Emeriti Fellowships awarded at the Fall 2006 Reception for the M. Gormley Art Exhibition
Front row (left to right): Maryl Simspon, Fellowship Fund Chair Janet Fisher-Hoult, Jessica Gundy, Cynthia Pereira, Viridiana Gallardo, Michelle Morales, and Godina Ying. Back row (left to right): Steven Laguna and Otis Bardwell, with daugher.
Emeriti Fellowship Awards:
(David) Otis Bardwell, while pursuing an M.F.A. in Studio Arts, is a writer as well and has presented his work at creative writing conferences throughout the country. His sculpture has been exhibited in numerous shows on and off campus. Combining art and writing has led him to value inter-university experiences and, while a student at Cal State L.A., he has become involved in organizing student-run exhibitions and writing conferences. David holds a B.A. in Music from Wheaton College and is an accomplished musician. As a prelude to his goal to develop an academic career as an artist and teacher, David has begun teaching Introduction to Ceramics for the Art Department at Cal State L.A.
After completing her Single Subject Credential in Art and her M.A. in Art Education, Mary Lynn Simpson will be equipped to, as she puts it "get back to the trenches where our culture is alive and thrives." Living many years in Italy has given Maryl experiences that influenced her life and her work as a graphic designer. She has lived the multicultural life and considers herself a "proud hybrid" in Los Angeles. Maryl has received design awards both in the U.S. and Italy, as well a Ford Foundation Scholarship for Art. She actively continues her work as a designer and consultant under the banner of Maryl Simpson Design. She has worked as an Italian interpreter, and as a teaching aide in art classes at the Lycee International of Los Angeles.
Jessica Gundy is most passionate about improving mental health. Prior to entering graduate school she volunteered with Planned Parenthood Middle School Outreach Program in L.A. teaching sexual education in schools in very low socio-economic communities. Recognizing that a significant number of the children she worked with develop behavioral and social problems she decided to enter the graduate program in Psychology at Cal State L.A. Upon completing her M.A., she will continue her studies for a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Jessica's research interests focus on women and adolescents from diverse and multicultural populations with eating disorders and behavioral problems. She joined the Women's Health Project Lab as a volunteer research assistant and has recently taken on a graduate assistant teaching position in the Department of Psychology at Cal State L.A.
Viridiana Gallardo is completing her M.A. in Criminal Justice and looking forward to holding an administrative position in a government agency in the field of Criminal Justice. As the eldest child of farm workers with minimal education, during the summers between her years in high school she worked with her parents in the fields picking grapes. With their encouragement and insistence that education is the ultimate key to success, she was able to put her life in perspective. At CSU Bakersfield, after a rough academic start, Viridiana focused on her studies and, although she worked part-time, she was on the Dean's List throughout her undergraduate career. She has been awarded the Hispanic Excellence Scholarship and, in 2001, she received a Dewitt-Wallace Scholarship which enabled her to study in the Netherlands for a semester. As a volunteer for CASA of Kern County, she visits children in foster care and reports any type of abuse or mistreatment to the Court. C urrently, she is working for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office, Victim Assistance Program, as a victim service coordinator and assists victims of violent crimes in filing with the Victim of Crime Compensation Program.
Jane Matson Memorial Fellowship : Cynthia Pereira is planning to practice as a school psychologist in the public school system. Her work as a student in the School of Social Ecology at the University of California , Irvine , allowed her to explore both psychological and linguistic theory and helped spark a passion for working with disadvantaged children and their families. As an undergraduate, her passion for advocacy also led to a field study project involving homeless families that was given special faculty recognition. Cynthia has been involved as a tutor in the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program, which is designed to help at-risk middle and high school students gain admission to and prepare for a four-year university. She is currently completing an internship at the Whittier City School District .
William Lloyd Memorial Fellowship : Steven Laguna's goal is to become a community college instructor of Political Science specializing in American Government. He has overcome many obstacles in that pursuit including a learning disability that was not diagnosed until he was a student at USC. After receiving his B.A. in International Relations in 1998, rather than working in his field, his athletic ability led him into his current occupations as a track coach at East L.A. College and P.E. instructor. The first in his family to attend a major university, Steve realized that he can provide a greater contribution to the education of society and to the community by focusing on his academic strengths and interests. As a volunteer at homeless shelters and community centers, he has seen first hand the need for education.
Gerald F. Sorrensen Memorial Fellowship : Godina Ying has been in love with Geography since she was a child. One of the few foreign students to major in the field, she graduated cum laude from the University of Houston ( Texas ) in 1980. After teaching Geography, English and other subjects at a high school in Hong Kong, Godina came to California as an immigrant in 2002 and enrolled at CSULA in 2004 to "finish her dream" of obtaining a postgraduate degree. Close to completing her studies in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Godina has also been trained in Earth Science for Elementary Teachers (PS 183) which she taught in the Summer Quarter along with Physical Geography (PG 160) which she is teaching this fall as a teaching associate in the Cal State L.A. Geography Department. A world traveler, Godina has visited 22 countries to expand her geographic knowledge and become an avid photographer of the places she has been. Her collection of artifacts from different cultures and rocks enriches her teaching.
David Cameron Fisher Memorial Fellowship : An Early Entrance Program student, Michelle Morales is beginning her senior year at the age of 18. In pursuit of her goal of becoming a physician, she has excelled in her pre-medical coursework, majoring in Biology and receiving numerous honors. In addition to being the founding president of the Pre-Medical Society at CSULA, she facilitates a physics tutoring course in connection with the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation. Michelle learned the importance of compassion and care of chronically or critically ill patients at her grandmother's bedside. After volunteering in New York 's Presbyterian Hospital and completing the Gateways to the Laboratory Summer Internship in the Laboratory of Urological Oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College , she knew she would become an oncologist. In addition to her studies of science and medicine, Michelle volunteers as a mentor for middle school students in Boyle Heights.