Faculty Mentor Pool

​​​Mentor: Professor Taehoon Im, Ph.D.

Project Description: The research project that the student will participate in will be about the determinants of the success of start-up enterprises in the United States and around the world. This project is to examine (1) a variety of measures of the success of start-up enterprises such as financial (e.g., sales) and non-financial (e.g., reputation) performance, and (2) a variety of determinants of the success of start-up enterprises (e.g., CEO characteristics, location, government subsidies, etc.).

Mentor: Professor Rashida Hasan, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Project Title: Proactive Anomaly Detection – Evolving and complex systems such as large-scale networks, autonomous systems, cyber-physical infrastructures, industrial control systems, smart grids, healthcare monitoring systems, financial trading platforms, clinical decision support systems, and the Internet of Things (IoT) operate in dynamic environments where traditional anomaly detection approaches often fall short due to delayed response times, concept drift, and the inability to predict future failures. Existing anomaly detection methods primarily focus on reactive strategies, identifying anomalies only after they have already impacted the system. These limitations hinder the ability to ensure the safety, reliability, and resilience of these systems, especially in mission-critical applications. This proposal aims to transform anomaly detection into a proactive, adaptive, and intervention-ready framework capable of anticipating, evolving with, and mitigating anomalies before they escalate into critical failures. To achieve this, the proposed research introduces a Proactive Anomaly Detection System that integrates predictive modeling, self-adaptive learning, and early intervention strategies This research will fundamentally shift the paradigm of anomaly detection from a reactive to a proactive model. The proposed framework will not only enhance anomaly detection in evolving and complex network but also provide a foundation for future self-healing AI-driven infrastructures.

Student Roles: Students will participate in a variety of hands-on activities that span the full lifecycle of developing a Proactive Anomaly Detection System. These activities will include designing, implementing, and evaluating machine learning algorithms for predictive anomaly forecasting, simulating real-world system anomalies using synthetic and real datasets, and building adaptive models capable of learning from streaming data in dynamic environments. Students will gain a deep understanding of machine learning methods, including both supervised and unsupervised learning models, as well as forecasting techniques critical for predictive anomaly detection. They will also gain hands-on experience in research paper writing, learning how to document their findings, structure scientific arguments, and prepare submissions for conferences and journals. Through these tasks, students will strengthen their technical proficiency in Python, deep learning libraries (e.g., PyTorch or TensorFlow), and tools such as scikit-learn and Apache Kafka for real-time data processing.

Mentor: Professor Xunfei Jiang, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Wearable devices and body sensor technology have evolved rapidly in the past years. While various types of devices collect different types of data, these data are currently only available to the device manufacturers’ internal team of developers. If the device’s manufacturers could make their devices’ body vital data available to 3rd party developers, significantly more health condition prognostics can be derived from trustworthy and intelligent algorithmic analysis. The decoupling of body sensor devices and intelligent algorithmic analysis of body vital data will accelerate independent and innovative growth in each of the areas. In this research, we will conduct analysis for understanding the performance and injury prevention using data collected from smart wearable devices. Data Science knowledge will be used for data pre-processing, machine learning model training, and data visualization to help stakeholders understand their personal data.

Mentor: Professor Nhut Ho, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Data collection and analysis for the Boracle project using Smart Wearable Devices. 

Student Roles: The student assistant in this project will develop skills in data collection, data analysis, data visualization, and leading and training team members about the data collection approach. In addition, the student assistant will also develop personal skills to work with faculty advisors in the project, collaborators for data collection with targeted stakeholders, communicate with peers and external users throughout the data collection and data analysis approach, and compose comprehensive report to demonstrate the data analysis results and provide insights for stakeholders to understand the collected data, and collaborate with other teams in the project and assistant them on the data visualization and storage of the collected data.

Mentor: Professor Melih Papila, Ph.D.

Project Description: To surmount the barriers to sustainable manufacturing and re-use/re-purpose of structural composites, a new paradigm is needed for bonded joints that can be self-healable, de-mountable and reconfigurable. The proposed project will address this paradigm by developing a sustainable and energy efficient solution at the intersection between an emerging reformable class of polymers, vitrimers, and a traditional joining process, Joule/direct electric heating. In their application for bonding purposes, electrically conductive, nonwoven carbon-based veils of different areal weight will act as functional carriers to create self-supported vitrimer hot-melt impregnated structural adhesive composite films. These building-block systems will function as an in-situ Joule heating element for bonded joint applications, such as secondary bonding for stiffened panels.

Mentor: Professor Kandice Grote, Ph.D. 

Project Description: At present, there are two current research projects including: 1) Children’s Book Zoom Intervention: This project aims to address topics of cognitive flexibility among early childhood. The primary target sample includes bilingual populations measuring areas of self-efficacy, growth mindset, and perceptions of bilingualism before and after reading targeted children’s books related to growth mindset and dual language learning. The second project 2) The Bilingual Experience: Examines early childhood (past) and adult perceptions (present) experiences related to language learning/maintenance of non-English language(s) across multiple generations.

Student Roles: As a research assistant, you may learn more about how the research process begins and ends. This may include learning how to generate research questions, how to work with diverse populations, processes involved in collecting and analyzing data, and the publication/conference components of presenting research findings. The challenges and assets of this role may be in integrating your coursework and critical thinking skills within a research lab setting, your assets will be in your training and one-on-one mentorship with Dr. Grote. As a research assistant, you have direct application of what you have learned (or are learning) in your courses to the research itself. 

Mentor: Professor Angie Guan, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Dr. Guan examines how cultural and social experiences shape well-being among adolescents and young adults, particularly those from immigrant backgrounds. CADV Honors Program students interested in working with Dr. Guan are curious about how cultural, family, and immigrant experiences (e.g., translating for one’s family in a practice called language brokering, being a first-generation college student, digital media use) relate to developmental outcomes. 

Student Roles: Students build research skills by: 1) Conducting literature reviews, 2) Participating in data cleaning and analysis, 3) Developing an independent research project, and 4) Writing and presenting findings at conferences and manuscripts.

Mentor: Professor Marlen Quintero Perez 

Project Description:  I plan to expand my research agenda based on the research findings from both my manuscript and AERA research proposal. My next study will focus on Spanish-English adults who attended a DL school during their K-8 schooling. This study will allow me to explore how attending a DL school (1) shapes bilingual students’ FLP into adulthood, (2) impacts their home language loss or maintenance, and (2) affects their Spanish and English academic development. It is imperative to examine whether the proficient Spanish and English development, evidenced during elementary school, is also evident years after having experienced DL instruction. 

Student Roles:  I am actively hiring Spanish-English bilingual undergraduate students who will assist in designing research protocols and conducting literature reviews for this new study. I am committed to providing these undergraduate research assistants with the opportunity to immerse themselves in research, obtain research mentorship, and collaborate with me on a publication.

​​​​Mentor: Professor Nola Kennedy, Ph.D.

Project Description: None. 

Student Roles: Conduct research, including study planning, data collection, data analysis, study presentation

​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Vickie Yu, Ph.D.

Project Description: There are several ongoing projects in my lab. 1) Bilingualism and its impact on cognitive and lexical retrieval functions, with participants engaging in various language and cognition tasks. 2) The Voice Quality of Life measure for individuals with dysphonia, conducted in collaboration with a professor in Taiwan. 3) We seek to increase awareness of the Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology professions. Additionally, a potential project is being developed in collaboration with a professor from the CSUN Department of Computer Science to design assistive devices for individuals with communication disorders. 

Student Roles: Students involved in these projects will participate in various research activities aligned with each project's progress. They will gain hands-on experience in the following areas: 1. Conducting literature reviews: Learning how to identify key information in research articles, think critically about the content, and summarize findings. 2. Designing experimental tasks: Understanding the process of creating tasks for experiments. 3. Data collection: Learning to recruit participants, obtain consent, and execute research protocols. 4. Data analysis: Transferring and backing up data, coding, and analyzing research data. 5. Presenting and reporting results: Interpreting results, relating them to existing literature, summarizing findings, and delivering scientific research presentations. Students will also be encouraged to attend conferences, such as the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) convention and the California Speech-Language-Hearing Association (CSHA) convention, to present their research. 

Mentor: Professor Kacie Blackman, Ph.D.

Project Description: Research Project title: iPump: a breast milk pump study that uses technology Aim 1: To determine differences in the quantity and efficiency of expressed breast milk. Aim 2: to determine if using a technology application has an endocrinological-biochemical effect during breast milk expression with a breast pump. Student activities: collecting and managing biometrics, psychological data (breast milk, saliva, blood pressure, survey); testing augmented reality and tablet application 

Student Roles: Skills that will be developed by students: literature review, data collection, management, and analysis, recruitment, implementation of study procedures, critical thinking, organization, project coordinating Skills to be developed: survey development, storage, cleaning, management, analysis, biospecimen collection, storage, and management, critical thinking, problem-solving, scheduling, communication through presentations, writing, and orally, precise and rigorous methodology protocol implementation.

Mentor: Professor Christopher Rogers, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Two research projects: 1) involves partnering with the SHARE project on campus (this is a project that is collecting data to support youth with familial justice system involvement). In this project, my research is adding geospatial factors to the data. Specifically, we are merging in and data at the neighborhood level to account for the environment in which a person lives and how it may be related to health and wellness of these already vulnerable youth. A student will be able to work on this project in a few ways. Students can participate in active data collection, second, students can help with data management and codebook building, and third, students can help with analysis and report building. The second research project is using college student data to assess the impact of the timing and perceived severity of adverse childhood experiences on college health. We have collected data from two sources for this project and are beginning the management and analysis of the data. Since this data is already collected the main student work will be in data management and codebook building, data analysis and report building, and working to assess validity of the datasets and methods writing. 

Student Roles: Students can work on the process side of data collection and management as well as the outcomes side by answering research questions and building reports and papers. Along with process research activities, the students will be able to add to a CV they will also help in report building, communicating data to the team meeting and in feedback reports, and support on papers and conference presentations. Skills Students will Develop: Students will develop skills in classroom-based data collection, presenting and communicating data to stakeholders, data management and analysis skills, and written and technical data presentation through papers, methods, and feedback reports.

Mentor: Professor Carmen Saunders, Ed.D. 

Project Description: Exploring Imposter Syndrome Through Storytelling: A Podcast-Based Creative Scholarship My research explores the pervasive impact of imposter syndrome—commonly defined as chronic self-doubt and feelings of intellectual fraudulence—across diverse academic and professional populations. While imposter syndrome is often associated with women and individuals of color, my creative scholarship takes a broader lens, examining how it affects people of various backgrounds, including first-generation college students and underrepresented individuals in health administration and academia. At the core of this project is a podcast series designed to humanize the experience of imposter syndrome through storytelling. By featuring candid conversations with students, faculty, and professionals, the podcast explores how individuals confront, cope with, and ultimately push through self-doubt. By amplifying diverse voices and lived experiences, the series aims to normalize conversations around self-doubt, mental health, and academic belonging. Through honest dialogue, it seeks to reduce stigma, build community, and spark institutional reflection. Ultimately, this creative work contributes to broader efforts to foster inclusive spaces in higher education—environments where all individuals, regardless of background, can feel recognized, supported, and empowered to thrive. 

Student Roles: The student will manage social media accounts, create posts, assist with web page maintenance; assist with soliciting, scheduling, recording guests, and editing podcast episodes for series; maintain and assist with data collection and analyzing; assist with IRB application and manuscript preparation

Qualifications: Student must be: 1) willing to learn new and innovative forms of communication (Podcasting); 2)  organized, dependable, and responsible; 3) a self-starter and can perform task under minimal supervision; 4) goal and results oriented, yet creative and flexible.

Mentor: Professor Suzanne Spear, Ph.D. 

Project Description: I am studying the impact of the physical and social environments on patients receiving care in outpatient drug treatment clinics in LA. The aims are: 1) Test for an association between the quality of clinic environments (based on an objective assessment) and perceived stigma among people with opioid use disorders and 2) Explore the mediating role of patient's subjective perceptions on the association between environmental quality and stigma. The proposed study is significant because current interventions to reduce stigma, while promising, have limited reach due to their emphasis on individual-level change. No research to date has examined the built environment of outpatient treatment settings and their role in reinforcing or reducing addiction stigma. This research is highly innovative because it is interdisciplinary. I am working with a professor in Interior Design at CSUN who is a trained architect and I am in public health. I have a Co-Investigator who is a psychologist and senior NIH researcher at Harvard Medical School.

Student Roles: Students will assist with data collection, analysis, and manuscript assistance. Students will present the research at CSUNposium.

Mentor: Professor Claudia Toledo-Corral, Ph.D.

Project Description: My currently active study entitled, “Allostatic Load in Latino Youth” or ALLY study is funded by the NIH through June of 2026. Background: People who identify as Latina/o/x have a 50% lifetime risk of developing type 2 diabetes and other chronic diseases, a result of a complex mixture of predisposition, health behaviors, and environmental factors. A common physiological mechanism associated to chronic diseases is a failure to maintain homeostasis during times of persistent stress through a biological stress “overload”, or high “allostatic load”. While ample evidence supports a role of psychosocial stressors on allostatic load, several important challenges have not been yet addressed in Latina/o/x youth, such as the role of racial/ethnic discrimination. Aim: The overarching aim of this study is to characterize allostatic load associated with socio-environmental stressors focused on perceived and imposed (environmental) racial discrimination in Latina/o/x youth. Data collection will consist of surveys about health behaviors and stressors, body measurements, blood pressure, and samples blood and saliva biospecimens for determination of allostatic load indices.

Student Roles: Current and future student assistant will have an opportunity in engaging in data collection, which will interactions with young adult participants. Student research assistant will learn specific research protocols, interact with participants to gather data, and also learn to manage raw data, engage in data cleaning, writing statistical code, and analyzing data. Students who work in the lab over a year will have an opportunity to present CSUNposium and/or scientific conferences.

Mentor: Professor Danielle Jarvis, Ph.D.

Project Description: My current research focuses on examining movement coordination during skilled athletic activities. My work investigates the strategies underlying complex movement patterns and compensations in movement patterns that may contribute to or result from injuries. Most of my work focuses on trained athletes performing jumping movements. Specifically, my current projects investigate the mechanical demands that dance movements place on the human body. Dancers are unique athletes who emphasize the aesthetic appeal of human movement. Skilled dancers develop unique movement patterns that may provide insight for understanding the effects of dance training on the body, for training future dancers, or for preventing injury. Some specific research questions I am currently working on include: (1) Determining the effects of a dance-specific fatigue protocol on jumping performance in dancers; (2) Examining the effects of footwear on dance performance; and (3) Determining the effectiveness of strength training on improving strength, power, and dynamic balance in dancers. My research uses a computer-aided 3D video motion analysis system and force plates to collect data regarding kinematics (motion) and kinetics (forces that cause motion). Markers are placed on subjects, and video data is collected as movements are performed. Software is then used to process the data and draw conclusions about motion and forces, particularly at lower extremity joints such as the hip, knee, ankle, and toes. 

Student Roles: Students will learn how to collect biomechanical data, process the data using specialized software programs, and analyze and interpret the results. Students will be exposed to the entire research process, including the presentation of the results in the forms of posters, presentations, and publications. Seniors will also have the opportunity to develop and investigate their own biomechanical research questions.

Mentor: Professor Moira Saltzman, Ph.D.

Project Description: Students will assist in the completion of the Jejueo Talking Dictionary. Talking dictionaries are online tools for language acquisition and revitalization, which feature audio and video materials along with words and definitions. Jejueo is a critically endangered language spoken by 5,000-10,000 people throughout Jeju Province, South Korea, and in a diasporic enclave in Osaka, Japan. Under contact pressure from Korean, Jejueo has undergone rapid attrition (Kang 2005, Kang 2007), and most fluent speakers of Jejueo are now over 80 years old (UNESCO 2010). I am seeking a student interested in endangered languages with experience in coding to create the structure of the talking dictionary—either in its form as a website or a smartphone application. The goal is to complete the online Jejueo Talking Dictionary and smartphone application available in Jejueo, English, Korean, and Japanese. My intention for the Jejueo Talking Dictionary is to create a language revitalization tool suited to the needs of diverse user groups, such as elder speakers within the community, young semi-speakers in schools, and the international scientific community. As an online program the dictionary would be inexpensive to continually update with added data from the community or scholars. With the threat of language extinction by the next generation, the Jejueo Talking Dictionary is intended to serve as an extensive and open-ended corpus of the language, rituals, songs, and oral history of Jeju Island and the Osakan diasporic enclave. Extended goals are to translate the current data into Korean, Japanese and English, and collect more field data by travelling to Osaka, Japan and recording members of the Jejueo-speaking community. 

Student Roles: Students will develop skills in data analysis and coding, development of linguistic educational tools, translation, and linguistic and ethnographic field research.

Mentor: Professor Michael Abdelsayed, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Our central goal is to advance the discovery and characterization of genomic and synthetic thermoregulatory RNA elements. Despite the biological importance of these thermoregulatory RNAs and their potential use as tools for biotechnology, this field is largely underexplored compared to similar regulatory RNAs such as riboswitches. Our long-term goals include broadening the known classes of RNA thermometers, identifying novel RNA thermometers classes, discovering thermoregulatory elements that regulate transcription, and engineering synthetic RNA thermometers as tools for biotechnology. This research is significant as identifying and characterizing thermoregulatory RNAs will enhance both our fundamental understanding and practical utilization of these elements. By uncovering which genes are regulated by thermoregulatory RNAs and the extent of their influence on gene regulation, we will gain valuable insights into how heat stress impacts cellular processes. 

Student Roles: Students will use a combination of molecular biology, bioinformatics, and biochemistry to discover and characterize RNA thermometers.

Mentor: Professor Maria Elena De Bellard, Ph.D.

Project Description: My lab studies nociceptive neurons (pain) in sharks

Student Roles: Students will be doing scanning electron microscopy in sharks skin

Mentor: Professor Wilber Escorcia, Ph.D.

Project Description: Investigating RNA Thermometers in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. In conjunction with the Abdelsayed Lab, which will design RNA thermometer oligo linkers, this project aims to test the hypothesis that RNA thermometers, which are known to regulate heat shock protein (Hsp) expression in prokaryotes, can modulate gene expression in eukaryotes. The project focuses on Schizosaccharomyces pombe, a fission yeast model. The research involves transforming yeast cells with plasmids containing a nutritional rescue cassette, with an upstream Hsp RNA thermometer sequence. The RNA thermometer is expected to modulate downstream gene expression in response to temperature shifts. This research could establish the novel role of RNA thermometers in eukaryotes, which has not been previously reported. 

Student Roles: Students will be integrated into a team and will develop foundational skills in working with S. pombe. Their primary task will be to perform yeast transformations using plasmids that contain RNA thermometer sequences and to assess their ability to regulate gene expression under varying temperature conditions. They will analyze the expression levels of nutritional rescue cassettes in cells that lack endogenous gene expression and will monitor cell viability and survival. Their work will help validate the function of RNA thermometers in regulating heat shock response in eukaryotes. They will contribute significantly to this novel area of research and will gain valuable skills in molecular biology, yeast genetics, and data analysis.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Robert Espinoza, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Islands are natural laboratories for rapid evolution given their typically small founding populations and unique selective pressures relative to the mainland. Accordingly, insular taxa often diverge adaptively from their mainland relatives. The Northern Channel Islands experience substantially cooler air temperatures than adjacent coastal Southern California. Consequently, endemic Island Fence Lizards (Sceloporus becki) experience cooler temperatures than their mainland thermophilic sister taxon, Western Fence Lizards (S. occidentalis). Have Island Fence lizards shifted their thermal physiology to compensate for lower island temperatures? We will determine whether cooler island climates have selected for adaptive thermal shifts in Island Fence Lizards. There is a strong correlation between regional climate and thermal traits in S. occidentalis, yet no studies exist for S. becki. As the climate warms, ectotherms like lizards that have adapted to cooler temperatures may be especially vulnerable. Our results will have important implications for the management of this insular endemic. Habitat-restoration projects are underway for other Channel Island endemics, but we lack knowledge of the thermal biology or microhabitat requirements of S. becki to develop similar plans. Additionally, our project will shed light upon how insular ectotherms evolve to compensate for climatic variation. 

Student Roles: The student would assist a graduate student in the field (three of the Northern Channel Islands) collecting data and live lizards for lab experiments that will take place at each island’s field station. This research is best characterized as ecophysiology, or the study of how animal function interacts with their physical environments—primarily focusing on temperature. The student will learn about how animals adapt to climate and how to take and analyze thermal performance data. Each island trip will last ~2 weeks and we will stay in field stations (shared quarters with twin beds, showers, kitchens, WiFi, etc.). The hours will be long many days, but the islands are beautiful, and our permits provide access to areas that the general public is not allowed to visit. Candidate must be a hard-working and easy-going team player, physically fit, and enjoy hiking long distances (5–10 miles/day) with a pack over hilly terrain with tall grass.

Mentor: Professor Gilberto Flores, Ph.D. 

Project Description: The Flores lab primarily studies the ecology of the human gut microbiome. We are currently focused on the Akkermansia lineage as they are largely regarded as beneficial bacteria and are being pursued for a variety of therapeutic applications. Ongoing studies include determining the mechanisms of growth on specific human produced substrates and the mechanisms of interactions between Akkermansia and other members of the gut microbiome. 

Student Roles:  Students working in the lab can expect to gain a variety of molecular biology and microbiological skills, including DNA extraction, PCR, gel electrophoresis, phase contrast microscopy, anaerobic cultivation, and aseptic technique. With time and training, students may also learn more specialized techniques, including HPLC, qPCR, bioreactor operation, transcriptomics, and metagenomic sequencing.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Yoshi Hanzawa, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Progressing climate fluctuation is a growing concern in the U.S. agriculture. Reproductive transition of many crop plants is a critical trait that determines plant’s adaptation and productivity and is triggered by environmental cues such as photoperiods, light quality and temperature, therefore, it is essential to understand how plants respond to their environment in the control of reproductive transition. My research aims to gain better understanding of how crop plants perceive and acclimate to environmental variables at the molecular level, with a specific focus on the molecular mechanisms controlling plant’s developmental transition in response to temperature fluctuations. 

Student Roles: Students in my research will characterize the function of genes in temperature responses using molecular biology, genetic, genomic and bioinformatic approaches.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Ray Hong, Ph.D.

Project Description: Many economically important nematodes (round worms) associate with insects, even when their ultimate hosts are mammals, including humans. The beetle-associated nematode Pristionchus pacificus represents a much-needed knowledge bridge between the free-living model organism Caenorhabditis elegans and human parasitic nematodes. Our research seeks to map genes to neuronal functions and understand how an insect-derived compound can kill or paralyze specific developmental stages of P. pacificus. Our effort has the potential to expand our understanding of the diverse nematode behavior and biology, thereby translating basic research knowledge into improving treatments against parasitic nematodes by integrating concepts from diverse areas of biology- developmental biology, genetics, and neurobiology. 

Student Roles: Student Involvement in Data Collection: Beginning students will perform behavioral assays, PCR, and genetics. More advanced students will screen for CRISPR-assisted genome-edited mutants, use the latest molecular cloning technology to make transgenic constructs, and characterize transgene expression using fluorescent microscopes. Student Involvement in Data Analysis: Beginning students will perform statistical tests on the behavioral assay and genetic data, and design follow up experiments. More advanced students will make graphical figures for symposia and assist in writing manuscripts.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Rachel Mackelprang, Ph.D. 

Project Description: My research focuses on microbial communities using modern cutting-edge techniques, with the goal of understanding the functional dynamics of microbes in permafrost (permanently frozen soil found in polar regions) and other extreme environments. My research agenda is organized around the two main points of view: 1) Investigate the boundaries at which life can exist to inform the search for life in extraterrestrial environments. 2) Understand how microbial communities drive biogeochemical cycles and contribute to climate change. Other related projects include studying ancient permafrost antibiotic resistance genes, characterizing fungi and viruses in permafrost, reconstructing paleovegetation from DNA sequence data, and characterizing the microbial communities that form desert biological crusts. One of my long-term research goals is to further linkages between human health and basic climate change research. Climate change is one of the greatest current threats to global public health and is poised to be one of the strongest drivers of health inequity in the coming decades. Understanding and predicting the causes and trajectories of climate change is a crucial component of the study of health equity and health disparities. 

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Cindy Malone, Ph.D. 

Project Description: I have the experience, leadership skills, culturally competent mentorship training, and enthusiasm necessary for a successful research program. I have thirteen years of experience designing, implementing, and directing an undergraduate research training program where culturally diverse students are prepared for stem cell biology research at UCLA through developmental coursework and workshop series. For the last 17 years, my own research laboratory is filled with both undergraduates and master’s students and focuses on appropriately controlling when and where genes are turned on and off is essential for cells to function normally. My lab linked a set of genes to both an aggressive cancer and a non-aggressive/indolent cancer by an analysis of genes expressed in an aggressive mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) compared to the genes expressed a non-aggressive small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL). We hypothesize that the identified lymphoma-associated genes are dysregulated in these cancers and, therefore, may play a role in their aggressive or non-aggressive natures, respectively. Promoter analysis of these genes, first in an epithelial cell line and eventually in MCL and SLL cell lines, will identify how these genes are regulated and will lead to in vivo promoter regulation studies. 

Student Roles: In these studies, students are involved in every stage of the process, from experimental design to drafting manuscripts for publication. 

Mentor: Professor Melissa Takahashi, Ph.D. 

Project Description: The Takahashi lab develops tools to investigate small RNA (sRNA) mediated antibiotic resistance and virulence mechanisms. An example of a student project is to develop a genetic circuit to detect sRNAs in growing bacteria. 

Student Roles: Technical skills developed through lab projects include: PCR, gel electrophoresis, bacterial transformation, cloning, and data analysis. Through group meetings students also work on presentation and oral communication skills.

Mentor: Professor Ravinder Abrol, Ph.D.

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) comprise the largest superfamily of integral membrane proteins that help a cell to convert extracellular signals into multiple intracellular signaling cascades. This critical role of GPCRs makes them therapeutic targets for ~40% of all modern drugs. Multiple signaling effects of GPCRs targeted by drugs can cause on-target side-effects, so a molecular understanding of GPCR function is essential for rational drug discovery to minimize those side-effects. The conformational flexibility of GPCRs plays a mechanistic role in their function, so the lab is focused on developing and applying methods in computational biochemistry, biophysics and bioinformatics to provide this mechanistic link between receptor sequence and signaling. Our previous conformational sampling algorithms are being combined with Markov State Models to identify physiological important conformations. We are combining evolutionary approaches with conformational methods to understand the evolution of GPCR structural plasticity and their functional divergence. Methods are validated against available experimental data and then applied to interesting GPCR systems. Using results from our lab and other sources we have created a freely accessible GPCR Knowledgebase (http://www.gpcrkb.org). 

Student Research Skills Training: The students are trained in computational methods used in the lab and one programming language. After training, each student is assigned a project that they take full ownership of. They interact with me regularly and also with any experimental collaborator as an active participant. The students present regularly at our lab meetings on their research and on the latest literature in their project. The students get to write the manuscripts for publication, and they also get to present their research at conferences listed below. Conferences Typically Attended GPCR-Keystone; Molecular Pharmacology Gordon; Biophysical Society; ASBMB; ISMB; Protein Society, CSUPERB.

Visit lab website http://abrollab.org for publications and more information.

Mentor: Professor Gagik Melikyan, Ph.D.

Project Description: Research at the interface of organic and organometallic chemistry. The main focus is developing new methods, concepts, and methodologies that will provide an access to classes of organic compounds which are hardly accessible by alternative means. 

Student Roles: A student will become highly trained in conducting state-of-the-art chemical experiments and elucidating their structures by using a totality of analytical methods, such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, mass spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography.

Mentor: Professor Anna Bezryadina, Ph.D.

Project Description: The first project is the study of how to control and manipulate Bacillus subtilis biofilm growth using laser light. The investigation of optically regulated biofilm formation with optical tweezers presents innovative methodologies for the spatial arrangement of biofilm and the stimulation and suppression of biofilm growth through the application of lasers. The project application are fundamental understanding of controlled biofilm growth and fabrication of novel biomaterial. The second project is the study of the negative effect of nanoplastic and microplastic particles on red blood cells. We investigate how exposure to nanoplastics alters the properties of RBC’s membrane, leading to changes in RBC morphology, aggregation, and deformability that impact the RBC’s health and abilities to propagate through narrow microcapillaries. 

Student Roles: Through involvement in the research, the students will gain experience in biosample preparation, lab biosafety, microscopy, laser operation, laser alignment, optical trapping, and data analysis.

Mentor: Professor Tyler Luchko, Ph.D.

Project Description:  Students in this research project will carry out atomistic simulations of biomolecules and liquids. The goal of the project is to calculate physical properties of biomolecules in a realistic liquid environment. Simulations will be of both the pure liquid in the bulk phase and solvated biomolecules. 

Student Roles: Students will carry out the simulations on high-performance computer clusters and write scripts to both automate running simulations and analyze the results. Skills developed Students will develop their programming skills, learn to use the Linux command line environment, work with high-performance computers, learn to apply classical mechanics, electrostatics, and statistical physics to realistic model systems, and learn to use molecular modeling software and methods.

Qualifications Required background: COMP 110/L or PHYS 365 and PHYS 100B or PHYS 220B or PHYS 225.

​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Marc Glidden, Ph.D. 

Project Description: Most of my research focuses on corrections, recidivism, financial literacy and access, and student success and persistence within criminology and criminal justice. Currently I am interested in researching more about perceptions on financial access and training for justice impacted individuals, fear of crime among college students, among other topics related to criminology. 

Student Roles: I am excited to work with a student who is interested in learning more about conducting research and understanding more about a topic they are passionate about. Students will be supported in growing their understanding of research methods by participating in all aspects of a research project.

Mentor: Professor Jimin Pyo, Ph.D. 

Project Description: This research project aims to qualitatively explore college students’ perceptions of campus safety through their lived or everyday experiences of feeling (un)safe on campus. Using in-depth semi-structured interviews with a sample of university students, the project will examine the following: (a) the meanings of campus safety (b) general perceptions of campus safety (c) experiences of feeling safe (d) experiences of feeling unsafe, and (e) suggested safety measures on campus. 

Student Roles: The project will provide students with hands-on research experience through their involvement in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting qualitative data. Students will also have opportunities to develop their own independent research and present their work at criminology/criminal justice academic conferences.

Mentor:  Professor Anastasiia Timmer, Ph.D.

Project Description: My current project focuses on examining the consequences of the war in Ukraine for civilians. Specifically, recently collected longitudinal survey data supplemented by qualitative interviews, we will: a) examine the links between war exposure and important life outcomes (e.g., mental health, health care use, violent behavior, intimate partner victimization, alcohol use etc.) among civilians, refugees and volunteers during the wartime in Ukraine; b) address how social contexts (family and neighborhood) and public institutions shape these links; c) analyze the role of protective factors, such as social support, integration, and religiosity, and vulnerability factors, including prior trauma, victimization, and poverty. In this project, the student will be exposed to the full research process. 

Student Roles: I will train the student to analyze quantitative and qualitative data, summarize research articles, write literature reviews, and produce a full manuscript for submission to academic journals. The student will also be included in publications and conference presentations.

Mentor: Sheila Steinberg, Ph.D., Director 

Project Description: The research project will use multiple methods to examine sustainability amongst the CSUN community and will begin with a detailed quantitative analysis of our recent sustainability survey that was administered this September. Additionally, we will examine intersections of people and places within and in the surrounding community of CSUN. We know that there are many cultural forms of sustainability that have not been adequately documented. Through conducting interviews, and some demographic analysis, the student researcher will determine where our cultural communities reside in proximity to the CSUN campus. Additionally, students will conduct interviews with CSUN employees, staff, and student leaders to identify different cultural components of sustainability. It's taking a multiple-methods approach to research that combines utilizing some secondary data as well as doing primary data collection in terms of interviews and observation. Additionally, our student researcher will help to communicate their findings through our monthly Sustainability newsletter called Footprints. We also will look to present our findings on campus and at related conferences on this topic. The work done here will help to position us together to look for larger funding and research opportunities for students and faculty tied to the institute on this topic going forward.

Mentor: Professor Stefanie Drew, Ph.D.

Project Description: There are a number of research projects currently underway in the VISN Lab, the bulk of which are focused on the transfer of skills from virtual reality (VR) to the real world. All of the studies also focus on the ocular impact of using extended reality (XR) technology. 

Student Roles: Skills developed will include training in administering psychometric, optometric and biomechanic assessments, working with human participants, discussing design elements with lab members, data analyses, and professional preparation and dissemination of results.

Mentor: Professor Juventino Hernandez Rodriguez, Ph.D. 

Project Description: The SALUD Lab (https://www.csunsalud.com/) is a research team in the Department of Psychology at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). Co-directed by Bianca Villalobos, Ph.D., and Juventino Hernandez Rodriguez, Ph.D., the lab is dedicated to increasing access to evidence-based and culturally sensitive mental health services to underserved populations. The following projects will begin in Fall 2025 a) CSUN Salud y Esperanza Project and b) ACEs and Trauma Screener Study. The overarching aim of the CSUN Salud y Esperanza Project is to understand and support the psychological well-being of immigrant Latinx children and families. In Fall 2025, we will create a community advisory board to connect with stakeholders in the community and co-create research initiatives that focus on understanding risk and protective factors for undocumented and mixed-status Latinx children and families. The ACEs and Trauma Screener study will focus on collecting psychological, health, and academic data related to adverse childhood experiences and trauma from Latinx immigrant children and families. 

Student Roles: Students will receive training and learn quantitative methods (e.g., cleaning data, univariate and multivariate statistics, data write-up), qualitative methods (e.g., thematic analysis), literature searches, and community engagement research. Motivated students will have opportunities to present research posters and/or talks at local, regional, and national conferences.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Scott Plunkett, Ph.D. 

Project Description: In the Psychometrics, Research, and Evaluation Promoting Adaptation, Resiliency, and Education (PREPARE) Lab, we are currently examining psychometric properties of mental health scales in different ethnic groups, sexual orientations, genders, etc. Thus, RAs are learning how to run exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, reliabilities (test-retest, omegas, alphas), and correlations. They are also learning about convergent and concurrent validity. We are also looking at how individual and family qualities relate to mental health outcomes in different ethnic groups. 

Student Roles: RAs are learning to run multiple regressions, dominance analyses, and relative weights analyses. Next, we are working on evaluation research of an art expression program for older adults and a mentoring program for nutrition students. RAs are engaging in thematic and focus coding or one-on-one interviews and images using NVivo. Other skills RAs learn include using Sona Survey Management System, SPSS, R Studio, Qualtrics, and Jamovi. And finally, all RAs will have an opportunity to co-present research and co-author a manuscript.

​​​​​​​Mentor: Professor Adrian Valadez, Ph.D.

Project Description: Currently, students in my research lab are conducting a mental health needs assessment among bisexual+ (e.g., people who experience romantic and/or sexual attraction to more than one gender AND/OR self-identify as bisexual, pansexual, or queer) adults. The purpose of this research study is to understand the specific strengths, needs, and challenges of bisexual people, as it relates to their mental health. The goal of the assessment is to gain insights that can inform future research and the development of future affirming support for diverse bisexual individuals in need. The aims for the current project are as follows: 

Aim 1: To explore the mental health strengths and challenges within bisexuals, with a focus that includes depression, anxiety, emotion regulation, resilience, adverse childhood experiences (ACES), and suicidal ideation. 

Aim 2: To identify ways on how bisexuals navigate past and present interpersonal, romantic, and/or sexual relationships with others. 

Aim 3: To gather information that will inform better support strategies for bisexual individuals. 

Additionally, our lab has also been working on grant applications to fund future intervention research. The RISE (Releasing Internalized Stigma for Empowerment) interventions are subpopulation-specific interventions designed to reduce internalized stigma among LGBTQ+ individuals. These online, interactive modules have been shown to be efficacious among crowdsourcing samples, but have yet to be tested in community settings. Future members of our lab have opportunities to get involved in the early phases of this research.

Student Roles: Future students in the lab will gain experience in research-related skills at every phase of research. Current students in my lab have learned how to critically examine peer-reviewed research, develop feasible research questions and hypotheses, craft an IRB proposal, identify relevant psychometrically sound psychological measures, and build Qualtrics surveys. In addition to the aforementioned skills, future research assistants will also learn how to collect and manage data, conduct analyses and interpret quantitative and qualitative results, and disseminate findings via conference presentations and/or publications.

Mentor: Professor Yolanda Vasquez-Salgado, Ph.D. 

Project Description: The student will contribute to the success of a federally funded multi-site transition to college study. For more information on Dr. Vasquez-Salgado’s Culture, Health and Development Lab, visit her website (https://www.chd-lab.org/), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/csun_chdlab/) and view a video of her lab (https://www.csun.edu/here-center/culture-health-and-development-lab)!

Student Roles:  Student trainee activities include but are not limited to: - Contributing 10 hours of laboratory work per week (note: weekly hours may vary depending on data collection schedule). - Communicating with research participants - Collecting and organizing research data (e.g., survey, interview, salivary biomarkers of health, in-person sessions) - Assisting with interview transcriptions - Assisting with coding and analyzing data - Assisting with conducting literature reviews, writing summaries of research findings via abstracts, posters or manuscripts -Present at local, regional or national conferences - Collaborate with lab members on projects and special events

Mentor: Professor Daniel Olmos, Ph.D.

Project Description: My research investigates the political organization BUSTOP, which comprised affluent white suburban residents in Los Angeles who mobilized in the 1970s and 1980s to resist busing programs designed to desegregate public schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The scope of this project focuses on understanding how BUSTOP utilized colorblind racist ideologies and legal-political strategies to frame their opposition as a defense of neighborhood schools and parental rights. By framing their movement in race-neutral language, BUSTOP masked the racial motivations underlying their resistance, making their cause more socially acceptable and legally viable. The research draws from a combination of archival materials, including legal documents, media coverage, and public statements from BUSTOP leaders. It also incorporates social movement literature on white resistance to civil rights, situating BUSTOP within the broader historical context of racial integration battles in the United States.

Student Roles: Students working on this project will engage in qualitative research methodologies, gaining hands-on experience with archival research, content analysis, and coding qualitative data.

Skills Students will Develop: Archival research skills; Qualitative data coding and analysis using sociological frameworks such as colorblind racism and social movement theory; Critical thinking and analytical skills; Writing and communication skills for synthesizing research findings into reports, abstracts, and potentially co-authored articles or conference presentations. 

Mentor: Professor Zeynep Toker, Ph.D.

Project Description: Community resilience plans help communities prepare for potential disasters (environmental, economic, and social) and recover from them while maintaining their identity. As climate change increases the number and intensity of environmental problems, low-income communities of color are disproportionately burdened. Although urban planners have developed plans addressing resilience issues for decades (i.e., hazard mitigation plans, climate action plans, and sustainability plans), and more recently holistic resilience plans, the plans and their processes are criticized for lack of genuine public participation and for failing to address equity. The purpose of this long-term research project is to understand the factors that make public participation in resilience planning genuine and equitable for underserved communities. We developed a 14-step process to prepare resilience plans at the neighborhood scale with the purpose of achieving genuine and equitable community participation. It includes community events, local expert interviews, and large-scale surveys. The process is based on working with community partners to increase the breadth of participation and to reach out to underserved groups in the community. Over the past seven years, we have implemented this process to prepare resilience plans as academic year-long professional projects. We plan to continue the implementation of participatory methods in resilience planning in low-income, high-diversity neighborhoods in Los Angeles to identify the factors that make public participation in resilience planning genuine and equitable for underserved communities. The community partners and facilitators will use online and in-person outreach throughout the process. 

Student Roles: The participating students will be trained in conducting community outreach, surveys, interviews, and community events. They will assist with preparing the resilience plans in low-income, high-diversity neighborhoods.