Dorothy Faye Pirtle blends public policy and culinary arts to increase food access

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Family, community and food have always been at the core of Dorothy Faye Pirtle’s educational journey. Growing up African American and Korean American in what was once known as South Central Los Angeles, Pirtle, a dual master’s candidate in public policy and urban regional planning, has been a longtime social justice advocate.

“For me, it’s about leading an interdisciplinary life through school, food, cooking,” she said.

Pirtle’s interest in this life began in a very personal way. With few Asian ingredients found at local grocery stores, Pirtle’s mother, who is Korean, grew produce in their backyard. Pirtle was able to connect with that part of her heritage as she learned how to grow and cook her own food, such as using herbs like mugwort in savory dishes and knowing which types of lettuce were best for Korean lettuce wraps. One of Pirtle’s fondest childhood memories was eating her mom’s seaweed soup.

Her focus on community and activism also started early. At 12 years old, Pirtle witnessed the civil unrest that spread across Los Angeles in April 1992 following the acquittal of the officers charged in the beating of Rodney King. She would go on to attend community events and meet Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders such as Marcia Choo and K.W. Lee.

Lee, a pioneering Asian American journalist who called Pirtle his “adopted granddaughter” during her fellowship at the K.W. Lee Center for Leadership, taught her and other Koreans about cross-racial solidarity. Choo, who later wrote one of Pirtle’s recommendation letters for UCLA, also modeled for her the importance of community-building, service and engagement. They inspired her to think more deeply about racial inequality.

Community activism through food

Pirtle began her higher education journey at UC Irvine, where she majored in social science. She also received associate degrees in culinary arts/chef training, professional baking and restaurant management from Los Angeles Trade Technical College.

While living in South L.A. City after finishing trade school, Pirtle began to connect food, community and policy together.

Her local supermarket — which supports 75,000 people — shut down, leaving neighborhoods without fresh produce and other goods.

“If you wanted to buy a tomato or cilantro — or laundry detergent — where would you go? I created the California Black Council on Food Policy out of this need to address what was happening in my community,” she said.

The coalition has gone on to tackle food disparities through solutions driven by Black communities experiencing these issues.

Using her previous work experience managing farmers markets and working at a business development center, Pirtle devised the idea of helping entrepreneurs access resources within the farmers market space and created the nonprofit Lily of the Nile 1992. The organization, which she founded in 2021, operates farmers markets, farm stands and food distributions to bring California-grown produce to South Los Angeles. It provides research on farmers market programs and facilitates access to these markets even for those who are spatially segregated from them while also fostering community by celebrating African American culinary traditions.

Pirtle works with farmers from historically underrepresented backgrounds to help them write grants. She secured a Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program award for K&K Ranch, a family-owned farm, to purchase a refrigerated truck. She plans on establishing farmers markets across the area and hosting the farmers she writes grants on behalf of.

“This work is very much about relationships and honoring what people do,” Pirtle said.

From Lulu to the Luskin Center

Her farmers market expertise and culinary skills ultimately brought Pirtle to UCLA. She drew on this experience while working at Lulu at the Hammer Museum. Conceived by Alice Waters and David Tanis, the farm-to-table restaurant allows people to experience regenerative, sustainable and seasonal produce. As a forager, Pirtle sourced local food from farmers markets and from around L.A. for their rotating menu.

“I would ask the chef, ‘Is there something special you want to make, and is there an ingredient that you’re looking for?’ And then I would go out and find the item,” Pirtle said.

This work and the connections made at Lulu deepened Pirtle’s interest in pursuing further education at UCLA. Pirtle became a dual degree student because she believes public policy can take a finite amount of resources and create infinite public good, such as through programs like CalFresh and farmer subsidies to help address food insecurity and inequities.

For her, it was a full-circle moment: UCLA was always Pirtle’s dream school, and she recognizes UCLA professors Kimberlé Crenshaw and Cheryl Harris, both legal scholars on race and justice, as two of the main reasons why.

She plans to use the knowledge gleaned from her dual master’s to develop urban gardens and farmers markets in South L.A. Currently, she is working on developing a farmers market with her nonprofit Lily of the Nile 1992 and the Lulu Project, Lulu’s arm for regenerative food and community wellness.

“My impetus for attending graduate school was looking at the community I came from and figuring out how I can make a difference here,” she said. “It was about deepening my relationship to land, people and place.”

This article was originally published on UCLA Newsroom. Read the full article here.

Fernando Torres-Gil highlights systemic gaps in long-term elder Torres-Gil describes the U.S. long-term care system as “a huge for-profit industry."

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Fernando Torres-Gil, professor of social welfare and public policy at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and director of the Center for Policy Research on Aging, was quoted in a recent Los Angeles Times article examining the rising costs of in-home elder care — which can reach up to $18,600 per month in Southern California. Torres-Gil described the U.S. long-term care system as “a huge for-profit industry,” emphasizing that America remains “behind the curve” compared to other countries that offer universal long-term care support. He described the American care system as “a huge for‑profit industry,” noting that unlike many other developed nations, the U.S. lacks universal long-term care financing—a failure that has left “Americans behind the curve.”

Class of 2025 Steps Forward: A Celebration of Courage, Commitment, and Community UCLA Luskin’s newest graduates honored in dual ceremonies with powerful reflections on justice, leadership, and perseverance from student speakers and U.S. Ambassador Nathalie Rayes, MPP ’99.

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UCLA Luskin’s newest graduates honored in dual ceremonies with powerful reflections on justice, leadership, and perseverance from student speakers and U.S. Ambassador Nathalie Rayes, MPP ’99.

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UCLA Luskin Doctoral Student is Finalist in UCLA Health Equity Challenge Qianyun Wang is one of 15 finalists turning ideas into action in the 2025 competition.

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The UCLA Health Equity Challenge is a competition that provides UCLA graduate students the opportunity to turn their ideas into action. Entrants are invited to develop solutions to address health equity issues in Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties. Participating students are asked to submit an idea to solve a health inequity that a community-based organization (CBO) can implement and up to 15 finalists are selected to turn their ideas into full project proposals and over the course of 15 weeks, work with a mentor and select a CBO to work with. Each of the 15 selected finalists also receive a $2,500 stipend.

The Health Equity Challenge is run by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, and sponsored by The MolinaCares Accord (MolinaCares), in collaboration with Molina Healthcare of California (Molina), and the California Health Care Foundation.

Finalist Qianyun Wang is a third-year PhD in Social Welfare student at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. Her Health Equity Challenge project is an art therapy program that uses Photovoice techniques such as sharing photos and storytelling to help older Chinese immigrants express their experiences with grief and bereavement.

Each of the finalists prepared a description of their project. Read Qianyun Wang’s below.

Visions of Collective Healing: Using Photovoice as a Therapeutic and Advocacy Tool for Grief Adjustment among Older Chinese Immigrants

By Qianyun Wang

The past few years have reminded us, more than ever, of the collective and individual experience of grief, from the losses brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, to the trauma of wars, and the displacement caused by climate disasters. Yet, for some communities — particularly older immigrants — grief remains unspoken and unsupported, shaped by cultural factors and structural barriers. This broader context has made my proposal in the UCLA Health Equity Challenge especially meaningful.

My journey with the UCLA Health Equity Challenge program is deeply transformative, both professionally and personally. Participating in this initiative allows me to combine my academic interests, community engagement, and commitment to social justice in meaningful and practical ways. Specifically, the project I propose — utilizing Photovoice as a therapeutic and advocacy tool among older Chinese immigrants facing grief and bereavement — reinforces my belief in culturally responsive interventions and the power of community-based approaches.

This proposal is also deeply informed by my own community work, volunteering, and research experiences. I have had the privilege of working closely with older Chinese immigrants in both Canada and the United States. Through volunteer roles at community organizations such as the Chinatown Service Center in Los Angeles, I assist older Chinese immigrants in navigating social services, addressing housing issues, and accessing support. My research focuses on understanding their unique aging experiences, social and mental well-being, and their grief and bereavement adjustment. These firsthand interactions provide valuable insight into the strengths and needs of this population and ground my academic interest in real-world contexts.

Throughout my doctoral journey at UCLA in social welfare, I focus on addressing the mental health disparities and unique challenges faced by older immigrants. This focus stems not only from academic interest but also from personal resonance with issues of migration, aging, and cultural identity. As someone who has navigated multiple cultural landscapes, including China, Canada, and the United States, I recognize deeply the nuanced ways cultural context shapes experiences of loss and healing. Thus, the Health Equity Challenge presents a timely and vital opportunity to translate my passion into practice.

“One of the profound realizations guiding this proposal is the gap in culturally tailored mental health resources available for older Chinese immigrants. Despite significant advancements in mental health support broadly, older immigrants often remain underserved due to linguistic, cultural, and systemic barriers.”

“One of the profound realizations guiding this proposal is the gap in culturally tailored mental health resources available for older Chinese immigrants. Despite significant advancements in mental health support broadly, older immigrants often remain underserved due to linguistic, cultural, and systemic barriers.”

This proposal, which uses Photovoice techniques, is particularly significant to me because it aligns with principles of community empowerment, social justice, and culturally responsive mental health support — specifically, culturally tailored interventions such as Tai Chi sessions and Chinese medicine education workshops designed for older Chinese immigrants.

Photovoice, as a method, enables individuals to express their experiences and perspectives through photography and storytelling, and empowers participants by giving them agency to articulate their lived experiences through photography, narrative sharing, and community engagement. It challenges the traditional power dynamics often present in research and/or therapeutic interventions, allowing community members to drive their healing process actively. I admire this method for its ability to capture and communicate complex emotional landscapes and foster collective healing.

One of the profound realizations guiding this proposal is the gap in culturally tailored mental health resources available for older Chinese immigrants. Despite significant advancements in mental health support broadly, older immigrants often remain underserved due to linguistic, cultural, and systemic barriers.

Through the planned project, participants will be invited to share their experiences of grief and loss, articulating feelings that are often left unspoken. Moreover, the proposed organization of educational sessions and a community exhibition will reflect the powerful role of public advocacy. Participants will be seen, validated, and heard in ways that go beyond traditional therapeutic contexts. Their photographs and stories can serve as a collective call for systemic recognition and policy change, highlighting the intersectionality of aging, immigration background, socioeconomic challenges, and health disparities.

Reflecting on my experience with the UCLA Health Equity Challenge, I appreciate how the program supported me to actualize my passion in practical ways. The structured yet flexible environment allowed space for creativity, innovation, and authentic community engagement. This experience has been instrumental in shaping my future goals as an emerging researcher and social work professional. Moving forward, I am committed to expanding this work by exploring further interdisciplinary collaboration and advocating for policies that address health disparities among aging immigrant populations.

Read the full 2025 finalist release.

In Memoriam: James Duncan Lindsey The UCLA Luskin Social Welfare professor emeritus was a pioneering scholar of child welfare.

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James Duncan Lindsey, UCLA Luskin Social Welfare professor emeritus and pioneering scholar of child welfare, died May 18. He was 77.

Lindsey, who joined UCLA’s Social Welfare faculty in 1994, was the founding editor of “Children & Youth Services Review” (CYSR), one of the field’s most influential journals. Under his leadership — and working with his wife Deborah — the publication became the premier platform for research on child welfare practices and policies. CYSR was inaugurated by Pergamon Press in 1979 and later acquired by Elsevier in 1991.

Image of book "The Welfare of Children"Colleagues, friends and former students remember Lindsey as a passionate educator whose commitment to evidence-based practices transformed child welfare systems. His book “The Welfare of Children,” published by Oxford University Press in 1994 (with a second updated edition in 2003), helped reshape child welfare policies nationwide.

In a review of his 2008 book, “Child Poverty and Inequality: Securing a Better Future for America’s Children,” Duncan is described as one of the “leading voices on child welfare. He is not only a notable historian of the evolution of family policy in the U.S., but has particularly focused on the plight faced by vulnerable children, such as those growing up in foster care and poor families.”

Lindsey was the author of numerous scholarly works, including research for which he was awarded the ProHumanitate Medal, the highest award in the field, by a peer jury review.

Darcey Merritt, current editor of CYSR, was a former doctoral student of Lindsey. Merritt recalled Lindsey, who was also on her doctoral dissertation committee, as a true mentor throughout her studies and career. Merritt now serves as chief editor of the publication Lindsey founded and is a professor at the University of Chicago, Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy and Practice. Merritt wrote in an obituary tribute that as chief editor of CYSR, she is “always mindful of his vision and intentions to disseminate rigorous research, mindful of systemic and structural biases that impact the most vulnerable children among us.”

In a CYSR online open access tribute to Lindsey and his impact, Merritt and colleagues — including Todd Franke, professor of social welfare at UCLA Luskin — wrote:

Throughout the span of his conscientious leadership of the journal, Duncan has mentored and supported the growth of numerous scholars across all ranks, disciplines, and diverse identities, always with generous care. Those of us who knew him well, and perhaps even those who did not, honored his intention and shared his vision to disseminate rigorous, evidence-based research, always mindful of the many systemic and structural biases that impact our most vulnerable children. His tutelage and guidance were impeccable, and his kindness unparalleled. As an educator, Duncan guided his students with patience and a calm, supportive demeanor. He was highly regarded among many, not only for his brilliance, but also for the way he trained future scholars and practitioners. He has had an invaluable, positively meaningful, real-world impact in the field of child welfare.

Merritt, Franke, and colleagues said that Lindsey evinced a strong commitment to family-inclusive practice in his campaigning for social justice for children and their parents.

“His passion and persistence permeated his writing about children and families touched by the child protection system. His voice will be missed.”

“His passion and persistence permeated his writing about children and families touched by the child protection system. His voice will be missed.”

Prior to UCLA, Lindsey held academic posts at the University of Toronto and the University of Oregon. He also previously served as a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley. Other faculty posts include: George Washington University, St. Louis; West Virginia University; and the University of West Florida.

His professional affiliations include membership in the National Association of Social Workers and the Council on Social Work Education.

He earned undergraduate degrees in psychology and sociology from UC Santa Cruz in 1969 and completed an interdisciplinary doctorate in Sociology, Psychiatry, and Social Work from Northwestern University in 1973.

At UCLA, Lindsey held several leadership and administrative posts, including chair and vice-chair of UCLA’s Academic Senate, and chair of the UCLA Graduate Council. UCLA Luskin service included chair of the MSW admissions committee and member of the doctoral committee. For the University of California system, he served as a member of the Coordinating Committee on Graduate Affairs and was a member of the UC Academic Planning Counsel.

In the 1980s, during the early personal computer era, Lindsey co-founded Perfect Software, which for a time was one of the largest software companies in the U.S.

He is survived by his wife, Deborah McDaniel-Lindsey; his twin brother, Thomas “Buck” Lindsey; two children, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and Sierra Kos and their spouses; and his four grandchildren, Audun, Margrethe, Luka and Betty.

Private services were held.

UCLA Luskin Public Affairs Majors Shine in Capstone Showcase

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By Stan Paul

A central and unique aspect of UCLA Luskin’s Public Affairs undergraduate major is the capstone requirement, a three-quarter project combining immersive learning experiences with a wide variety of settings in and outside of the University.

Jennifer Buckley was one of the Luskin class of 2025 displaying work at the capstone showcase held on June 4 in UCLA’s Carnesale Commons. As an incoming student, the Washington State native she said she explored traditional majors including economics and political science but finally chose public affairs.

“Actually, the capstone was one of the elements of the Public Affairs program that drew me to it, she said explaining, “It’s one of the only majors that offers, in my opinion, a direct application of the skills that you learn in real time through the capstone internship.”

Through the Public Affairs capstone, students can connect with community-based organizations, regional governments, and private companies, or pursue projects through the University of California’s international, Washington, D.C., or Sacramento programs. Rebecca Crane, associate director of undergraduate education at Luskin, said that some students work with Luskin research centers — one way to connect with faculty — noting students have worked with centers including the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge, the Latino Policy and Politics Institute (LPPI), and the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies.

Buckley’s interest in energy policy, the basis of her capstone, took her to South Carolina where she spent a summer working for the Palmetto Promise Institute located in the state’s capital, not far from her grandparents. While there, she worked on a number of projects related to energy policy and had the opportunity to attend meetings with legislators and policy makers.

Image of Jennifer Buckley.“I realized just how much of a need there is for strong energy policy in South Carolina. They’re at this kind of this crisis point where they have a grid that isn’t able to support the growing population and the growing energy demand. About 55% of their energy is from nuclear, which is pretty surprising,” she said.

Buckley said that the South Atlantic state also relies heavily on coal and fossil fuels, but she added, “They’re starting to transition away from it, but there’s a real need for strong energy policy that supports the increase in demand and encourages renewable energy to come into play as well.”

“The showcase is always a blast because of the diversity of projects and interests,” said Michael Lens, chair of Luskin undergraduate programs and professor of urban planning and public policy. “Our staff does an amazing job of cultivating relationships with community partners so the students have opportunities that are vetted and appropriate for an immersive year-long project.”

After identifying her topic, Buckley started producing work supporting bills in the state legislature. Working for Palmetto, she authored blogs, reports and opinion pieces she thought would be beneficial to the state and its residents. Some of her writing was picked up by South Carolina newspapers, and one of her energy pieces, she said, was incorporated into the most recent energy bill passed by the South Carolina Senate.

“My objective was to see how many eyes on energy policy I could get in South Carolina,” Buckley said. “That’s how I got connected, and that summer experience was really what I wanted to continue for my capstone.”

…students in the Public Affairs major are ‘bonded by a shared desire to make a change and make an impact and make a difference… it’s kind of a current that runs through the undergrad community.’

During her time as a Public Affairs major, Buckley was able to take advantage of cross-listed graduate-level offerings at Luskin and earn Public Affairs major credits in Prague as part of a legal internship through UCLA’s global internship program.

“I was studying abroad with other public affairs majors. It was a little group of us all in Prague, which is kind of cool.”

That’s another unique aspect of the Luskin undergrad experience. Buckley said that students in the Public Affairs major are “bonded by a shared desire to make a change and make an impact and make a difference… it’s kind of a current that runs through the undergrad community.”

View photos.

Former U.S. Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology Delivers Luskin Lecture Robert Hampshire shares lessons learned leading research and technology agenda for the nation’s transportation systems. 

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By Stan Paul

For Robert Hampshire, former Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology at the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), leading innovation at the federal level involves cooperation and building trust among multiple industries and stakeholders.

Hampshire, who also served as the department’s Chief Science Officer — the first person to fill that role in more than four decades — came to UCLA this spring to discuss the importance of a mission-focused approach to challenges in transportation safety and serving all travelers on the nation’s roads and in the air.

Adam Millard-Ball, professor of urban planning and director of ITS,  introduced the keynote speaker for the April 28 Luskin Lecture co-hosted by the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS) as part of the Martin Wachs Distinguished Lecture Series.

Hampshire also talked about supply chain resilience and the future of un-crewed aerial systems (UAS) and shared his first-hand experiences and lessons learned during his four-year public service post. At USDOT, he led the federal agency’s research and technology agenda, including its $2 billion research and technology portfolio, across all modes of U.S. transportation while leading more than 1,000 public officials and public servants.

Since completing his service in 2025, Hampshire has settled back into his role as associate professor of public policy at the University of Michigan. But, he told the audience, “I’ve have had a little bit of time to rethink and formulate some thoughts about particularly now what it means to serve and the complexity of our times, challenges that we see to democracy, the polarization. But, all this in the context of so much technological change.”

As an academic, Hampshire describes his research as a blend of public policy, operations research, data science, and systems approaches to analyze novel transportation systems. These include smart parking, connected vehicles, autonomous vehicles, ride-hailing, bike sharing, car sharing, as well as pedestrian and bicyclist safety. At the same time, he focuses on environmental impacts, equity, and access to opportunities.

Hampshire said an additional aim of his talk was to provide examples to researchers and students how to be more impactful, particularly as researchers.

“I really believe that as researchers, technologists, within the transportation sector, we need to work diligently to increase with our social capital. That’s our networks, not just who you know,” he said, emphasizing the importance of building trust, especially with different communities and building reciprocity and shared values, “…reaffirming things like ‘safety is why we’re here’…and particularly how we need to be more embedded into the transportation ecosystem, and also the non-transportation ecosystem — our friends in health, our friends in education and others.”

He recalled a number of experiences where research and technology played, and continues to play, an important public role. One example that made an important national impact was the implementation of 5G cellular which came into conflict with safety concerns for U.S. aviation while he was with USDOT. In late 2021, the FAA was preparing to ground every single airplane across the nation, just days before Christmas. But, Hampshire said, months before he was tasked with leading the technical response side of negotiations that involved the FAA, the White House and industry.

Hampshire said what was missing at that moment was social capital to get things done. But, ultimately a deal was negotiated where the telecom industry delayed deployment of 5G so they could work more closely with the aviation industry to roll it out nationwide in an orderly manner with no incident, Hampshire said.

“These are all little stories that you don’t hear, but there’s heroic efforts behind it. And I think that level of social capital and working relationships that were built during this time, are certainly going to serve the nation,” he said.

Ann E. Carlson, Faculty Director, Emmett Institute on Climate Change & the Environment at UCLA School of Law, later joined the lecture serving as moderator for further discussion on issues including drastic changes and budget cuts occurring at the federal level and their impact on federal employees and transportation. Hampshire and Carlson, who also served in the Biden-Harris administration as acting administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), discussed the future of automated vehicles, high-speed rail in California and also shared anecdotes about working with former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.

Hampshire praised the leadership of Buttigieg and the many federal employees he worked with during his first stint in public service saying, “I’ll forever be grateful for what they taught me about public service and certainly, for the students and others, there’s true honor in public service. It’s something that’s worthwhile, and I’d do it again.”

Watch the full video of the event. View photos.

The UCLA Luskin Lecture Series enhances public discourse on topics relevant to the betterment of society. The Series features renowned public intellectuals, bringing together scholars as well as national and local leaders to address society’s most pressing problems. Lectures encourage interactive, lively discourse across traditional divides between the worlds of research, policy and practice. The Series demonstrates UCLA Luskin’s commitment to encouraging innovative breakthroughs and creative solutions to formidable public policy challenges.

The UCLA Institute of Transportation’s Wachs Lecture Series draws innovative thinkers to the University of California to address today’s most pressing issues in transportation. Created by students to honor the late Professor Martin Wachs upon his retirement from the University, the lecture rotates between Berkeley and UCLA, the campuses at which Marty taught. He passed away April 12, 2021.

Luskin Lecture on the Ongoing Fight for LGBTQ+ Equality Tony Hoang joins Luskin Lecture Series for a timely dialogue on civil rights and the road ahead.

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Amid rising political polarization and legislative efforts to roll back LGBTQ+ rights and protections, UCLA Luskin brought the conversation home with a powerful event exploring what’s at stake — and what’s possible — in the ongoing fight for equality. 

 

“LGBTQ+ Equality and the 2025 Landscape,” the latest in the Luskin Lecture Series and co-hosted by UCLA Luskin’s Office of Student Affairs and Alumni Relations, took place May 20 at UCLA’s Kerckhoff Grand Salon. The evening featured keynote speaker Tony Hoang, executive director of Equality California and Silver State Equality, who delivered a sobering yet hopeful message about the road ahead. 

 

The son of Vietnamese refugees and the first in his family to attend college, Hoang now leads the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization. Hoang began his presentation with a look back at key moments in California’s legislative history in the fight for marriage equality — from Prop 22 and the Knight Initiative to Obergefell v. Hodges — highlighting how far the movement has come. 

 

The event, moderated by Michael Fleming, president and founding executive director of the David Bohnett Foundation and longtime lecturer in social welfare at UCLA Luskin, brought together students, faculty, alumni, and community members for a timely dialogue on civil rights, civic engagement and the power of community mobilization. 

 

Hoang addressed a troubling trend among major corporations pulling back from Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in response to mounting political backlash. He expressed deep concern over what he sees as a growing retreat by once-supportive businesses and national brands, many of which are wary of aligning in opposition to the Trump administration.

 

“There are a lot of challenges ahead,” Hoang said. “But know that this community has been here before. It’s about how we show up — organizing, coalition-building — that will make all the difference in how we continue to move forward. That’s how we keep our eyes ahead of us.” 

View event photos.