Research has extensively covered the school-to-prison pipeline, where harsh school punishments push students into the juvenile justice system. However, little research has evaluated the effectiveness of prison-to-college programs. The California Community Colleges (CCC), the largest higher education system in the U.S., serves 2 million students across 116 colleges, providing vital access to diverse, often underserved populations. In 2019, the CCC system introduced the Rising Scholars Network to aid formerly incarcerated and system-impacted students. These programs offer academic support, financial assistance, mentorship, community engagement, and transfer help. This study compares the structures, programs, functionalities, and services for this student population at two institutions in Santa Barbara County. The CCC system's commitment to investing time, resources, and personal effort fosters upward educational mobility for students facing systemic barriers. These programs serve as stepping stones for underrepresented students, promoting college enrollment and healthy community reintegration.

Over the past few decades, California and other parts of the world have experienced an increase in wildfire frequency and size, with undocumented Latina/o/x immigrants being disproportionately affected. Yet, we know little about undocumented Latina/o/x immigrants’ perceptions and behaviors regarding wildfire disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. I plan to conduct semi-structured interviews with 30 undocumented Latina/o/x immigrants in California, using the Health Belief Model and the Social Ecological Model as guiding frameworks. With this study, I will explore the extent to which undocumented Latina/o/x immigrants perceive themselves as susceptible to wildfire exposure and its negative consequences. In addition, I will identify undocumented Latina/o/x immigrants’ perceived benefits and barriers to engaging in wildfire preparedness, response, and recovery. One of the barriers might be, for example, limited knowledge and understanding of wildfire causes and consequences, as well as wildfire preparedness, response, and recovery efforts that can be implemented at different ecological levels (e.g., individual, community, state, and federal). Through this study, I hope to inform the development of interventions to increase undocumented Latina/o/x wildfire preparedness, response, and recovery efforts, and identify resources and services that should be created at the community, state, and federal levels.

Migrant communities in the United States have witnessed significant historical transformations and remained active participants as these changes have persisted. With these transformations, migrant communities bear the implications these events have on physical and mental health. This study will focus on the mental health trajectories of migrant families from Latin America. Data collection begins in 2017 and continues throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. The Data was collected by Dr. Erika Arenas through a mixture of over 500 surveys. We anticipate that the data collection will largely skew to be representative of the migrant populations with happier dispositions. We hope to discover more about the impact that the changing environment of the United States has had and continues to have on migrant populations. Our data collection will enable us to observe the mental health trajectories of Latin American migrants by using the quantitative measures gathered from all of the surveys.

The emerging nuclear arms race between the United States and China signifies a critical juncture in international relations, driven not only by technological advancements but also deeply intertwined with the evolving foreign policy objectives of both nations. This intensifying competition poses significant implications for global security and strategic stability. Therefore, this research aims to demonstrate that the new nuclear arms race will have profound impacts on these areas. Utilizing a qualitative research design, a comprehensive review of scholarly literature, policy documents, and government reports is employed to analyze the nuclear strategies and foreign policy goals of the United States and China. This study uses thematic and comparative analysis to understand the complex dynamics underpinning the nuclear competition between these two global powers. These findings are intended to provide crucial insights for policymakers and scholars, aiding in the development of effective strategies to address the multifaceted challenges posed by nuclear proliferation in the contemporary geopolitical landscape. By offering a thorough understanding of how technological advancements intersect with foreign policy objectives, this study contributes to a more nuanced comprehension of the critical issues affecting global security and strategic stability.