Emeriti Fellowships awarded
at the Fall 2008 Emeriti Luncheon
Emeriti Fellowship Awards:
Eric Ferguson, majoring in Afro-Latin Music, is pursuing a Master's degree and hopes to eventually become a college professor. His background in the recording industry as a staff engineer at A&M Recording Studios and free lance engineering has resulted in an impressive discography including jazz-fusion guitarist Lee Ritenour. At CSULA, his experience has enabled him to rebuild the CSULA recording studio, tutor and record and/or mix projects for students. He has also volunteered as a TA and is now positive that his graduate studies at CSULA will carry him into the next phase of his music and audio career.
Melanie Masterton is a full time high school English teacher teaching children of low-income and immigrant families in the same neighborhood where she was raised. She views her classroom as a space to promote Horace Mann's assertion that education is "the great equalizer" and works hard to instill a sense of pride and ownership in her students in regards to their educational experience. She plans to continue as an active participant in our country's public educational system as she pursues a master's degree in literature on the way to a Ph.D. and teaching at the university level.
Mercedes Floresislas, currently working as a substitute teacher for Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) children , is a student in the Forensic Social Work Master's Program. A graduate of UCLA, she learned American Sign Language (ASL) in order to communicate with her Deaf son. When Mercedes found that there is a lack of resources available to DHH individuals and their relatives, she decided to pursue graduate studies in order to work with the Latino Deaf community and do what she can to change the current state of affairs.
Jane Matson Memorial Fellowships in Counseling:
From Honduras , Adi Juarez came to the U.S. and entered Belmont H.S. with limited English skills. Because of her status, she had no financial aid and became a teacher's assistant in a middle school in order to pay for her books and tuition. In order to complete her degree in psychology, she relied on student loans. Her experiences have instilled in her the desire to become a teacher and a school counselor and help others who face similar struggles.
When Linet Kehishian was a small child her family left Iran . They wanted to give their daughter opportunities not available to Armenians or to women. The first in her family to achieve a Bachelor's degree, her goal is to become a full-time school psychologist drawing upon her studies in Applied Behavior Analysis at CSULA as well as her multi-cultural, multilingual background.
William Lloyd Memorial Fellowships:
Planning to pursue a Ph.D. in World History, Dustin Black hopes to instruct at the college or university level. He has been actively involved in the CSULA History Department as president of the Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society and Editor-in-chief of the History Department's academic journal Perspectives .
Ryan Johnson, is also a history major and aspires to a position as a university professor. His interests as a historian encompass the interrelations of individual cultures enriching his classes as he teaches his students with diversity in mind. Recently, he has been working for the Research Branch of the LAUSD where he was involved in a project focused on Small Learning Communities in the District.
David Cameron Fisher Memorial Fellowship: Sudipta Mohanty , the recipient of this Award (Undergraduate Biology), entered the CSULA Early Entrance Program in 2005. Now 18 and a junior, his career goal is to become a medical scientist focused on embryonic development and the pursuit of regenerative therapies. He is currently doing research in Dr. R. Nissen's laboratory at CSULA. With a concern for helping people, Sudipta has been involved in community service at a hospital, an urgent care center and a medical camp for underprivileged and undocumented workers. He has also been actively involved in the campus chapter of Amnesty International.