Barbara Nelson Honored With Inaugural Torchbearer Award UCLA Luskin Dean Emerita recognized for co-founding the nation’s first academic center dedicated to gender and public policy at the University of Minnesota
Barbara Nelson, UCLA Luskin Dean Emerita, was recently honored with the inaugural Torchbearer Award for co-founding the Center on Women, Gender, and Public Policy (CWGPP) at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.
Nelson was recognized along with the late Arvonne Fraser at the Founders and Futures celebration in October for the 40th anniversary of CWGPP, the first academic center in the field of gender and policy analysis in a public affairs school.
“Barbara was visionary in creating a center that could adapt to new directions in scholarship and new policy questions,” said current CWGPP director Professor Christina Ewig. “She and Arvonne increased the impact of all of our gender-based programs by creating communities of scholars, students, and problem solvers locally and globally. The depth and breadth of 40 years of students becoming leaders and research improving policy making deserved recognition and celebration.”
In her remarks, Nelson said she and Fraser, a prominent Minnesota women’s rights advocate and political campaign leader, established the center “because multicultural gender analyses needed an institution to integrate course work, research, and public engagement. A center created the infrastructure that encouraged long-term collaborations.”
One of Barbara Nelson’s key innovations was the creation of the Women, Gender, and Public Policy major in the Humphrey School, another national first for the CWGPP. Building on the major, the Center inaugurates an all-university graduate minor on Gender, Intersectionality, and Public Policy in 2026 at the University of Minnesota.
Selina Barajas: Championing Community, Culture, and Equity in Tucson’s Ward 5 UCLA Luskin alumna brings her planning expertise and community-first values to Tucson’s City Council as the first woman to represent Ward 5
Selina Barajas (MA UP ’10) has always believed that true change begins at the community level — by listening, collaborating, and caring for the places and people who make a city thrive. This November, that belief carried her to a historic victory as the first woman ever elected to represent Ward 5 on the Tucson City Council. This is the first time in Tucson history that the council majority – four out of the six seats – will be women.
As a fourth-generation Tucsonan, Barajas’ roots run deep. She grew up immersed in the city’s diverse cultures, attending local schools, exploring the Sonoran Desert, and learning firsthand the importance of community connection. From an early age, she witnessed the power of civic engagement through her family and found her passion for advocacy through a youth mentorship program with Chicanos Por La Causa (CPLC).
It was at CPLC that she met former Executive Director Lorraine Lee, who became an early mentor and encouraged Barajas to pursue a master’s degree at UCLA, just as Lee had.
Those early experiences at CPLC laid the foundation for her next chapter, and by 2008, Barajas was enrolled as a master’s in urban planning student at UCLA.
Barajas says UCLA inspired her lifelong commitment to equity-centered leadership. “My time at UCLA Luskin shaped my approach by emphasizing that community-driven development and social equity are inseparable,” she said. “I learned to center the voices of those most impacted by policies and planning decisions, and to design solutions that reflect their needs, culture, and expertise.”
She says the master’s program also taught her how to combine analytical rigor with empathy and opportunities to apply her classroom learning in real-world projects. “Luskin taught me to see equity not as an add-on, but as the foundation for lasting, meaningful change. It also provided real-world opportunities to engage directly with communities, applying what we learned in the classroom.”
“Luskin taught me to see equity not as an add-on, but as the foundation for lasting, meaningful change.”
Barajas also credits Luskin’s urban planning program with sharpening both her technical and human-centered skills. Courses in data analysis and geographic information systems (GIS) gave her the ability to visualize disparities and advocate for equity through evidence-based planning. She also recalled the lasting influence of the late Professor Leo Estrada, one of the first scholars, she says, to center diversity and representation in urban planning. “He taught us that planning is not just about policy or design — it’s about people,” Barajas recalled. “His guidance helped shape my lifelong commitment to community development and equity.”
After graduating from UCLA Luskin in 2010, Barajas spent a decade working in nonprofits and local government in and around Los Angeles, strengthening her commitment to youth empowerment and inclusive community development.
Barajas returned to Tucson in 2018 to continue her work at the intersection of environmental justice, cultural preservation, transportation planning and entrepreneurship. She and her husband are in the process of opening Luna y Sol Cafe, South Tucson’s first-ever coffee shop and bird and butterfly habitat created in partnership with the Tucson Bird Alliance. Designed as a gathering place for connection, conversation, and stewardship, the cafe reflects her vision for an inclusive and sustainable city. 
Barajas also founded Reinas Who Hike, a Southern Arizona collective that inspires women — especially women of color — to connect with nature, advocate for public lands, and build confidence on the trails.
“Whether through hiking, small business, or public service, everything I do is about creating spaces of belonging,” Barajas said. “When people feel seen, valued, and connected, they invest in their community — and that’s how real change happens.”
Barajas secured her Ward 5 seat after winning the Democratic primary earlier this year and ran unopposed in the general election. She will take office on Dec. 2, 2025, succeeding longtime council member Richard Fimbres, who retired after serving more than sixteen years of service.
As she prepares to take office, Barajas says she’s ready to bring her planning background and community-first approach to the Tucson City Council. Her priorities include advancing environmental justice, supporting small businesses, improving parks and public spaces, and ensuring Ward 5 residents have a real voice in shaping their city.
For Barajas, her election win represents both a personal milestone and a collective achievement. “Becoming the first woman to represent Ward 5 is deeply meaningful,” she said. “It honors the generations of women and community leaders who paved the way, and it inspires me to keep opening doors for those who come after me — including my daughters.”
To current UCLA Luskin students and future civic leaders, Barajas offers simple but powerful advice: listen first, show up, and stay rooted in purpose. “Civic leadership is about building trust,” she said. “Start by engaging with your community, volunteering, and learning from others doing the work. Let your passion for your community guide you.”
Barajas exemplifies the changemakers UCLA Luskin is proud to call our own. “I envision a Tucson that is inclusive and resilient — a city shaped by the ideas, needs, and voices of the community itself,” Barajas said. “That’s the Tucson I’ll work to build every day.”
Q&A: Advancing Equity for Immigrant Communities with MPP Student Jenny Jihyun Kim A David Bohnett Fellow reflects on turning policy training into meaningful action.
You were recently selected as a David Bohnett Fellow with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. What excites you most about this opportunity, and how do you see it advancing your career goals?
I am deeply honored to be selected as a David Bohnett Fellow with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, especially at a time when Los Angeles, as a city, is at the forefront of protecting and uplifting immigrant communities. This opportunity excites me because it allows me to see firsthand how local government can translate values into action. For example, working on Executive Directive 12, which is designed to strengthen protections and access to city services for immigrant families, has allowed me to witness how policy can directly improve and make a difference in people’s lives. Throughout my time at the UCLA Luskin MPP Program, I often reflected on what it means to create equitable, evidence-based policy. At the mayor’s office of immigrant affairs, I see how this applies in real life. I observed how data, advocacy, and collaboration converge to shape city policy and address issues faced by the community. This experience as a David Bohnett fellow directly advances my long-term career goal of becoming a leader who bridges communities and policymakers. With my background in grassroots organizing and now my exposure to policymaking in local government, I’m developing the skills and the perspective needed to be an effective advocate for immigrant rights and equity in public policy.
“I aspire to be an advocate within the spaces of policy and ensure that community members are not just represented in policy discussions, but they are brought in as active partners in shaping policy.”
As part of your fellowship, you’re working inside a government office where policy decisions are made and implemented. What have you learned so far about how public policy actually takes shape in practice, and how has that influenced your perspective as a future policymaker?
Working inside the Mayor’s Office has shown me that policy-making and policy implementation are a collaborative effort. It has shown me that it’s not just about writing good policy, but also that building relationships and trust is crucial. In being part of the team leading the Executive Directive 12, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside policy makers, a team of lawyers, community leaders, city department leaders, and other various stakeholders, each bringing a unique perspective and ideas to the table. Through this process, I am seeing how much coordination and communication it takes to ensure that a policy is implemented equitably with the right intentions. One key lesson I have observed and learned is that equitable policy “making” requires ongoing conversation with those most impacted. The power to make meaningful change lies in the community, and it is when you work with directly impacted people that policy becomes more grounded and sustainable. This experience has influenced my perspective as a future policymaker by reinforcing that creating meaningful change requires centering the voices of those with lived experiences. I’ve also learned that implementation and accountability are just as critical as policy design itself, also recognizing that implementation requires continuous communication and collaboration.
The Luskin School emphasizes hands-on learning and connecting policy theory with real-world practice. Can you share an example of how your coursework or training has directly informed your fieldwork or fellowship projects?
My coursework at UCLA Luskin has taught me to critically analyze social issues through both quantitative and qualitative lenses. I learned that it is not only about understanding what the problem is, but also why it exists, how proposed policies might create intended and unintended consequences, how to provide recommendations to relevant stakeholders, how to evaluate recommendations, and how to work collaboratively on implementing them. For example, I have observed in meetings with policymakers and community leaders how qualitative and quantitative data are constantly discussed. I learned that narratives of impacted community members alongside quantitative data reflecting the scope of their experiences play a significant role in informing and shaping policy decisions. Additionally, in my Methods of Policy Analysis class, I learned about the various evaluation criteria, including effectiveness, equity, efficiency, feasibility, and more. When meeting with all City Departments’ Immigrant Affairs Liaison to support the implementation of Executive Directive 12, I was able to bring this analytical lens into practice. I considered how each department’s role and its programs impact the directive’s effectiveness and equity in serving immigrant communities. Remembering the different frameworks I learned at Luskin, I was able to contribute to discussions about the accessibility of city resources in multiple languages and ensuring that City Departments account for diverse factors that could influence implementation in their respective fields.
Looking ahead, how do you envision leveraging your Luskin education and professional experiences to drive change for immigrant and underserved communities—both locally and globally?
Through my time at Luskin and my professional experiences, I have witnessed how evidence-based policy, cross-sector collaboration, and community engagement can come together to create meaningful change for the immigrant and underserved communities. At NAKASEC, I learned about grassroots organizing. At the UCLA Dream Resource Center and Labor Center, I learned about research justice. At Luskin, I am learning about policy and policy analysis. At the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, I am learning about putting my MPP knowledge into practice. While I recognize I have much to learn, I aspire to be an advocate within the spaces of policy and ensure that community members are not just represented in policy discussions, but they are brought in as active partners in shaping policy.
Five or ten years from now, where do you hope to be, and what kind of impact do you ultimately want to make through your career in public policy?
In five to ten years, I hope to be working in a leadership role within a local or regional government abroad or with an international organization, where I can continue to design, research, recommend, implement, and evaluate policies that advance equity and protect the rights of immigrant and underserved communities. My goal is to be a public policy expert who brings both professional expertise and lived experience as an immigrant to the table, ensuring that community voices are included in decision-making and that human rights remain at the center of public policy. Ultimately, I hope to conduct my own research analyzing the evolving patterns of human migration and to develop actionable policy recommendations for countries to promote safe, dignified, and equitable migration journeys. I aspire to contribute to advancing social systems where migrants have access to essential resources and services, and where they are empowered to make informed decisions for themselves and their families.
What California Must Do to Meet High School Graduation Requirements for 2030
A survey of teacher readiness programs at California colleges and universities found that three in four offer ethnic studies preparation for their future K-12 educators, according to recent research by UCLA and Stanford University. But with uneven access to quality curriculum and a lack of dedicated funding, some public high schools may be unable to offer courses that meet the ethnic studies requirements that their students will need to graduate.
Assembly Bill 101, signed into law in 2021, requires that California high school students take one semester of an ethnic-studies-related course to graduate, beginning with the class of 2030. This means that it will apply to students entering high school next year.
The survey, led by Veronica Terriquez, director of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center, and Albert Camarillo, an emeritus professor at Stanford, sought to address potential gaps in teaching these required courses.
“We wanted to understand whether colleges and universities are taking meaningful steps to prepare future teachers to engage students in a deeper examination of the histories and experiences that shape California and the nation,” said Terriquez, a professor of urban planning and Chicana/o and Central American studies.
One challenge is that no additional state funding exists for this work. “While we found institutions have taken steps in the right direction, often with limited resources, there is still much work to be done,” Terriquez said.
Conducted in late 2024 and early 2025, the survey analyzed responses from education degree programs at 34 higher education institutions in the state — six University of California campuses, 11 California State University schools and 17 private institutions.
Redefining Belonging: First-Generation Student Sheryl Samala Finds Her Voice in Public Policy From Long Beach to Singapore, Sheryl Samala is breaking barriers and charting new ground in public affairs.
by Peaches Chung
In a field where women of color remain vastly underrepresented, Sheryl Samala, a first-generation college student from Long Beach, is forging her own path in public affairs at UCLA. She has lobbied in Washington, D.C., on issues including diversity, equity and inclusion, freedom of speech, and student support, completed a transformative summer internship in Asia, and held leadership roles in multiple student organizations. As a Filipino American, she is redefining what it means for a woman of color to belong in the world of public policy.
The first in her family to attend college, Sheryl grew up in Long Beach, Calif., but attended the Academy of Medical Arts in Carson. At UCLA, she is now a third-year Public Affairs major with a minor in Labor Studies.
“As a low-income, first-generation woman of color, I remind myself that my voice and perspective are needed in places like government, law, and policy.”
In high school, Sheryl was deeply involved in health-related leadership programs like Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) and served as a Peer Wellness Advocate, designing campaigns to promote mental health among her peers. “That’s where I first got inspired to go into the medical field,” she says. Like many students from immigrant families, she grew up hearing that medicine was the most stable, respected career path. “Coming from an Asian American background, pursuing medicine was always encouraged. It felt like the safe choice.”
So, when she started college at UCLA, she immediately declared herself a pre-med biology major. But as time went on, her uncertainty grew, and she began to question whether medicine was truly the right path for her.
The turning point came when she enrolled in Public Affairs 10, an introductory course that explores the social science approaches to solving societal problems. “It completely changed my perspective,” she says. “We were learning about government, history, and systems — and connecting them to current issues that were actually relevant to my life. It didn’t feel intimidating at all, I actually felt empowered.”
Sheryl made the leap from Biology to Public Affairs, a decision that opened new possibilities and, unexpectedly, a new sense of self. “At first, I was scared to switch. But Public Affairs is interdisciplinary — it brings together public policy, social welfare, urban planning, and other specialties. I realized it’s OK to be curious about multiple things.”
Since then, Sheryl has made the most of her time at UCLA, diving into every opportunity that aligned with her growing interest in policy and advocacy. She joined the External Vice President’s Office, where she lobbied in Washington, D.C., and Sacramento on issues like freedom of speech, immigrant student rights, and Pell Grant protections. “It was my first time seeing advocacy in action,” she says. “Being in those rooms made me realize how policy directly impacts people’s lives and how passionate I was about these issues.”
Her academic journey also took her across the globe. This past summer, Sheryl traveled to Singapore for a study abroad internship with United Women Singapore, an organization dedicated to advancing gender equality and helping women pursue careers in STEM. “It was my first time traveling outside the country,” she says. “It was such a transformative experience — learning about a different culture and seeing how their policies and government systems work. There’s a lot I want to bring back to the U.S. from what I learned there.”
The opportunity was made possible in part by the Luskin Student Opportunity and Development Fund, which supports students pursuing racial justice and diversity in the field of public affairs.
Despite her accomplishments, Sheryl still wrestles with imposter syndrome — a feeling shared by many first-generation students who find themselves navigating spaces where few people look like them. “There are times I feel undeserving, especially when I compare myself to other students,” she says.
But she’s making an effort to shift her mindset. “Someone once told me that everyone got into UCLA for a reason,” she says. “Even if we didn’t all have the same experiences, we can still find new opportunities here — or create them for ourselves.”
That message is one she now shares with others. “If you’re passionate about this work, you deserve to be in these spaces just as much as anyone else,” she says. “As a low-income, first-generation woman of color, I remind myself that my voice and perspective are needed in places like government, law, and policy.”
California Communities Impacted by Thousands of Oil and Gas Wells that Feed the Plastic Industry
By Colleen Callahan and Dan Coffee
Plastic production and use have increased exponentially, as have the health and environmental impacts. To address this growing problem, California passed Senate Bill 54 to reduce the use of single-use plastics and foodware in the state. The bill also created a $5 billion fund, supported by the plastic industry, to mitigate plastic-related pollution and support disadvantaged, low-income, and rural communities hurt most by the impacts of plastic.
The UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation released a report to inform how this law could be implemented by mapping a clear link between fossil fuel infrastructure, plastic production, and vulnerable communities experiencing negative health impacts. It highlights that the state’s work to reduce plastics-related pollution should also consider oil and gas extraction and refining. The report, which builds upon the researchers’ Three-Part Framework for Identifying Plastic-Burdened Communities, finds that wells and refineries are concentrated in low-income communities of color that face other sources of pollution and socioeconomic hardships.
“We found that Californians living near polluting oil and gas sites are much more likely to be Latino or Black, face multiple sources of pollution, and suffer higher risks of cancer, respiratory illness, and reproductive health complications,” said Veronica Herrera, the report’s co-author and a Luskin Center for Innovation-affiliated scholar. “Often, these are low-income communities who may have fewer resources with which to address these compounding issues,” added Herrera, who is an associate professor of urban planning and political science.
The most significant clusters of wells and refineries in California occur in the Bakersfield and Los Angeles regions. Kern County, including Bakersfield, is home to over 70,000 active or idle oil and gas wells — a majority of the nearly 100,000 statewide. Los Angeles County is home to 11 of the state’s 21 operating refineries, with a particular concentration in the working-class community of Wilmington adjacent to the Port of Los Angeles. This research comes after the recent Chevron El Segundo refinery explosion.
“Plastics have been pushed on us by Big Oil, and frontline communities are paying the price,” said Dr. Zoe Cunliffe, Environmental Justice Program Manager at Black Women for Wellness, and a member of the Environmental Justice Communities Against Plastics coalition that advised on the UCLA study.
UCLA’s environmental justice-centered framework is intended to go beyond the broad guidelines written into SB 54, providing an in-depth look at where impacts from the entire plastic life cycle fall across the state.
By using data to see which communities bear the brunt of plastic impacts, we have given decision-makers the information they need to target investments where it will do the most good. —Daniel Coffee, Luskin Center for Innovation project manager and co-author of the study
Fossil fuels are part of this framework because they provide the raw materials necessary to manufacture plastic. Nearly all plastic (99%) is made from oil and gas, and the size of the plastic industry continues to grow. Under current trends, by 2050, 20% of the world’s oil production will go toward making plastic. Increases in plastic waste and pollution are likely to follow.
The report recommends the following policy actions:
- California’s governance decisions around fossil fuels must take plastic-related environmental injustices into account.
- Communities with high exposure risks from the plastic supply chain are good candidates for comprehensive investment programs.
Learn more about this research to inform plastic policy.
Keeping California Children Cool: Strategies for Safe Schools and Homes
By Mara Elana Burstein
As heat waves become more frequent and intense, many California children face unsafe indoor temperatures where they spend most of their time — at home and at school. Access to cooling in homes and schools is now a public health necessity, not a luxury.
Building on years of research on heat resilience and school safety, the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation has released a report offering policymakers a menu of strategies to expand access to cooling in homes and schools. The recommendations focus on the installation and maintenance of air conditioning and other mechanical cooling systems, offering practical, evidence-based options for state leaders seeking to protect children where they live and learn.
Children shouldn’t have to choose between their health and their education. Our research shows that California can take immediate, concrete steps to make schools and homes safer from heat. — Lana Zimmerman, project manager and lead author of the report
The report outlines a set of policy and regulatory actions California leaders can adopt:
- Set indoor temperature standards for schools and plan similar action during the 2031 Building Standards Code update, or sooner as an emergency health and safety measure.
- Track cooling access in schools, as the state already does for homes.
- Coordinate agencies through a state-level advisory committee.
- Fund existing programs that support equitable access to indoor cooling by serving high-need schools, homes, and regions.
- Centralize public information and simplify funding processes for local governments and communities.
- Prioritize equity by investing in high-need regions and supporting workforce training for cooling system installation.
These strategies are informed by new data from the 2025 Luskin California Poll that reveal gaps in access to indoor cooling and public opinion on state action. In the survey, nearly half of parents said they’ve kept their kids home because of heat, and yet one in ten households with children lack working air conditioning (AC). Many more Californians avoid using their AC because of high energy bills.
“Expanding access to cooling is about more than comfort. It’s about health and equity,” said V. Kelly Turner, associate director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation. “The solutions outlined in our report recognize that children in low-income households and communities of color are often the most exposed to heat and have the least resources to respond,” added Turner, who is also an associate professor of urban planning at UCLA Luskin.
As California implements new investments in school modernization, clean energy, and community resilience, this research offers a timely guide for aligning those efforts. The report, “Keeping Californians Safe with Cooling Systems in Homes and Schools,” underscores that keeping classrooms cool and homes safe is essential to a healthy, equitable future for the state’s children.
