newsletter Fall 23 - Flipbook - Page 10
SSIS Highlights
Center for California Studies Returns to SSIS
A
fter a six-year absence, the Center
for California Studies is housed
again at SSIS. The Center’s history at Sac
State goes back several decades, and
during that time it has been located
at various places within the Sac State
organizational chart. The Center was
a part of SSIS for many years, but was
moved to the Division of Public Affairs
and Advocacy in 2017.
If you have never heard of the Center,
you may have heard of the largest
programs they run, the Capital
Fellows Programs, where recent
college graduates from all over the
state spend a year working full-time
in one of California’s three branches
of government. While the fellows are
getting valuable work experience (and
earning a paycheck), they are also
enrolled as Sac State graduate students,
taking a graduate seminar in applied
public policy. These seminars are taught
by SSIS faculty. “It really makes sense for
us to be housed at SSIS, given that
our fellows are graduate students.
Being a part of SSIS allows us to be
integrated into a student-serving
community, where our fellows can
benefit from all of the knowledge
and expertise of the college” said
Leonor Ehling, Executive Director of
the Center.
In addition to the four Capital
Fellows Programs (the Senate,
Executive, Assembly and Judicial),
the Center also runs civic education
programs like the LegiSchool
Program for high school students and
applied research programs. Research
programs include the Faculty Research
Fellows Program, which links the policy
expertise of the CSU faculty with the
research needs of state policy makers.
“The proximity to all of the wonderful SSIS
faculty is also a plus; I hope to continue to
grow our research partnerships with the
faculty at this college,” said Leonor Ehling.
Courtesy of Center for California Stuides
Pathway Fellows Program
undergraduates, graduate students,
and recent graduates for a doctoral
program in education research.
Courtesy of Jackie Brooks, Sociology
T
he Sacramento State Pathways
Fellows Program is currently
hosting its seventh cohort of Fellows.
Since 2017, the program has worked
to diversify higher education. Funded
through the Institute of Education
Sciences, it is one of six programs in the
country that works intensely to prepare
Volume 10, Issue 1
During the one-year program,
Fellows collaborate with a Faculty
Research Mentor, receive training
in research methods, participate
in a summer apprenticeship, and
receive graduate school coaching.
In addition, Fellows receive financial
support to present their research
at academic and professional
conferences and visit graduate schools.
Fellows work with experts in education
research throughout the university
and the surrounding community. An
alumnus stated, “Learning from someone
else that has a different discipline really
taught me a lot about being really
patient and understanding different
perspectives…You’re often trained in
one discipline, and you think that’s the
norm. Working with someone else opens
your eyes on how to approach research”
(Tseng Vang, Cohort One). Alumni have
pursued graduate degrees, presented at
conferences, and published in academic
journals. Recently, Dr. Nia Gregory
(Cohort Three) accepted a tenure-track
position at a local college!
The Pathways Fellows Program is
preparing for their next cohort of
Fellows. Please visit their website to learn
about this valuable program.
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