Mary Schmidt Honored for 35 Years of Service

Mary Schmidt, ASC in the department of Criminal Justice, was recognized for 35 years of service at the 26th Annual Service Awards Luncheon on Thursday, April 12th. Hired at Cal State College in 1976 on a half-time basis, Mary’s initial job was to type manuscripts for professors. As a member of a secretarial pool, Mary was trained on a Vector processor, a precursor to the modern PCU. During her time at CSUSB, Mary has supported the departments of History, Sociology, Economics, and finally Criminal Justice.

When the criminal justice (CJ) program was developed within the department of Sociology, Mary was assigned to work half-time with the CJ coordinator Frances Coles, and half-time with Jim Charkins, then chair of Economics. During this time, there was talk at the Chancellor’s office, that either the San Bernardino or the Bakersfield campus must close due to low student enrollments. Mary recalls that staff were encouraged to assist with student recruitment by “telling our friends and bridge club members to help find students to attend San Bernardino.”

After the Criminal Justice program became a department in 1980, Mary became its full-time ASC, working under the leadership of Larry Gaines. She also enjoyed serving three presidents, “each of whom was outstanding for his period of time.” “I really appreciated receiving my award from Dr. Karnig, because I believe that he and Marilyn have done an outstanding job,” said Mary. “This has been a wonderful life, a wonderful place; the best of adults and the best of students.” Congratulations and thanks to Mary Schmidt for achieving this noteworthy milestone!

Condolences

To the family of Julius Hemingway, BA Criminal Justice and the first Black Sergeant of the Ontario Police department. Hemingway died on April 10th.
To the family of Martin Milewski who was found dead on April 18th. Milewski was a senior majoring in social work.

Upcoming Events

The 2012 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 5th at 9:00 A.M. in SB-128. The honorees are Frances S. Coles, Professor Emeritus of Criminal Justice; Paul C. Granillo, ’91; Cheryl-Marie O. Hansberger, ’93; Frederick A. Newton, Professor Emeritus of Psychology; and Mary T. Sessom, ’74.
The Center for Indigenous Peoples Studies and the CSBS is sponsoring a lecture by Clifford Trafzer on Wednesday, May 9th, at 2:00 in PL 4005. Trafzer is a professor of History & Ruper Costo chair in American Indian Affairs at the University of California. His topic will be "Killing California Indians: Genocide in the Golden State (1850-1870)", James Fenelon, Professor of Sociology, is director of the center, and Tom Long, Assistant Professor of History is the associate director.
Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology, is co-sponsoring the First Annual Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Campaign on May 10th from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM on the outside patio, Lower Commons. There will be complimentary food and drinks.

Past Activities

Gratice Brown, CSBS Information Technology Consultant, was recognized for 25 years of service at the Service Awards Lucheon on April 12th.
The Spring edition of the Coyote Economist is now available. The newsletter is a publication of the Economics Department.
From left to right: Dean Nassar, Fr. Dr. Jamal Khader, President Karnig

The college hosted Fr. Dr. Jamal Khader who renewed a Memorandum of Understanding between Bethlehem University and CSUSB.
The LA Times recently ran a story highlighting Brian Held, a teacher at Loyola High School, who has been using the economic literacy program developed by our own Professor Jim Charkins with great success. Professor Charkins, the Executive Director of the California Council on Economic Education, has developed a program whose purpose is to develop economic literacy among k-12 students. While the idea of promoting economic literacy among the young has been around for quite some time, what makes Jim's version interesting is that the focus is on providing students with the tools needed to make choices that will enhance their lives. Mr. Held learned the principles of economic literacy from Professor Charkins and is now using it in the classroom to encourage his students to think in terms of the cost and benefits of every choice, not simply financial choices but personal ones as well. The students have been so energized by this methodology that they are enthusiastic about attending class and have made choices to improve their lives.
Faculty eating pizza with the Dean

Over 20 staff and 50 faculty enjoyed "Pizza with the Dean" for several days in April.
The MARC program featured its second guest lecturer in the 2012 speaker series on Wednesday, April 11. Dr. Scott Eidelman, Department of Psychology at the University of Arkansas, chose the topic “Is there a psychological advantage for political conservatism.”
Ethnic Studies and The Women’s Resource Center co-sponsored a talk by Sandra Cisneros on April 24th. Cisneros is a writer and poet best known for The House on Mango Street (1984), which tells the story of a young Latina woman coming of age in Chicago. Elsa Valdez, Professor of Sociology, is the coordinator of the Ethnic Studies Program.
Natalie Dorado, an economics student and intern with Students for Quality Education was featured in an article titled “College Grads Flounder in Job Market,” The Sun
Alberto Espinosa, a senior majoring in Criminal Justice, commented on the economy and why students with his major may consider careers in the military.

Kelly Campbell, Assistant Professor of Psychology, received the International Teaching Award from the International Association for Relationship Research. The Association’s website indicates that the award “recognizes excellence in teaching in the field of personal relationships at the undergraduate and/or graduate level.”
Tiffany Jones, Assistant Professor of History, was invited to be the Roundtable Feature Presenter at the 13th Annual Interdisciplinary Roundtable Conference on African Studies (SIRAS) at Kentucky State University, Frankfort, KY April 5th to April 8th. Her presentation was entitled, "South Africa’s Economic and Development Strategies: RDP, GEAR, NEPAD and the Failures of Resource Distribution for African Women."
A very positive review of Cherstin Lyon’s book Prisons and Patriots, appeared in Nichi Bei. Lyon is an Assistant Professor of History.
Brian Levin, Professor of Criminal Justice and Director, Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was quoted in an article about the death of Shalma Alawadi, SALON

Article about the Tulsa shooting rampage featured in Huffington Post.
Media appearances:

CBC (Canada TV Primetime) Connect 4/20 Norway Shooter Trial
KCBS Radio SF 4/20 Interview Norway Shooter Trial
KFWBLA Norway 4/9 Tulsa Shootings
WBAL Baltimore 3/16 Hate Crime
Wall Street Journal Radio 3/12 Hate Crime
KPFK LA 3/8 Hate groups/militias

Jose Munoz, Assistant Professor of Sociology, was approved for a research mini-grant for his work titled "Mexican Hometown Associations & Political Engagement in Southern California."
Tim Pytell, Professor of History, presented a paper entitled "Muzelmanner, Sexualized Violence and Holocaust Perception" at the Western Jewish Studies Association at the University of Oregon on March 13, 2012.