Within Los Angeles County, the governing bodies that uphold legislative power are not demographically representative of the communities they serve. In efforts to address these gaps, Rising Communities empowers residents of South Los Angeles to become delegates for their community. Rising Communities is a nonprofit organization that strives to increase community and individual education to collectively build equitable systems. Through partnering with Pacific Oaks College, Rising Communities is able to grant residents of South Los Angeles a certification upon attending an annual Community Engagement and Community Organizing (CECO) Summit. Through this summit, folks are able to learn about concepts such as Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) or about policy systems change. The analysis and research efforts surrounding the summit entail inquiring the research question: “How does participation in an annual community event influence Latine and African American residents’ perceptions of their roles in community organizing in Los Angeles?”. Through a mixed methods approach, the results of this study will provide Rising Communities with participant feedback about the event, as well as reflect on how they view community organizing as a whole and their positionality. The insight the research will bring forward is essential in building community resilience and capacity amidst the current political climate.

My research question is, how do the bike infrastructure disparities that exist in low-income communities of color like Inglewood impact the biking community? The problem is that a simple necessity like bike lanes are not accessible to all Los Angeles County residents, like they should be. Based on the LA County Bikeways Map, the city of Inglewood doesn’t have a single dedicated bike lane on any of their streets (LA County Bikeways Map, n.d). It’s the same situation for cities like Hawthorne and Lawndale but in Santa Monica it's the complete opposite. The main issue when it comes to bike lanes is safety, and for cities that don’t have bike lanes or have poor quality lanes, it poses a major risk for people to ride their bikes next to cars in such a car-centered county like Los Angeles. And often people who don’t have cars need their bikes to commute to work or school, and are forced to put themselves in dangerous situations on the road. This is significant because it goes to show that systemic racism is still affecting ethnic minorities today, and takes away the opportunity for kids and adults of color to experience the joys of riding their bikes in safe spaces. I used a multi-method approach by completing a comparative extended literature review comparing LA cities with affluent bike infrastructure vs cities without bike infrastructure through online document research. Additionally I interviewed LA biking club members in order to collect their personal opinions/experiences with the LA bike infrastructure disparities.

The primary focus of this research project is to further efforts for fostering inclusive education reform. Students with disabilities at large public universities such as the University of California, Los Angeles face significant barriers to full inclusion and access in academia and student life. This research investigates the current state of educational structured curriculum, in regards to its accessibility for disabled students at UCLA enrolled in the Gender Studies department. Focusing on the educational learning structures and targeted outcomes of gender studies classes, as well as department policies and support services. Drawing on survey data with students that are registered with the Center for Accessible Education (CAE), and are majoring or pursuing a minor in Gender Studies, to make insightful conclusions into the lived experiences of disabled students in post-secondary education. Particular attention is given to the effectiveness of accommodations, faculty awareness and responsiveness, and the accessibility of the courses.

Inglewood is a city in the South Bay of Los Angeles County. It is home to over 112,000 people and has a high Black and Latino population, making it a moderately diverse city in Los Angeles County. As a result of its proximity to Oil Fields, LAX, and large event stadiums such as the SoFi Stadium, Kia Forum, and YouTube Theatre, Inglewood has some of the highest asthma rates in the United States. The impact of this is significantly felt by the Black, Latino, and other marginalized communities, who are the primary residents of Inglewood. This calls into question the impact of zoning laws and historical practices on the choice of location for these large corporations. This research highlights the connection drawing connections between historical injustices and current health disparities. With data-gathering still ongoing, this research explores community engagement and general attitudes toward the Asthmatic disparity