Luskin Professor Martin Gilens Elected to the National Academy of Sciences Martin Gilens is recognized for his influential research on inequality and democracy.

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Martin Gilens, professor of public policy, political science and social welfare at UCLA, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), one of the highest honors in the scientific community. NAS membership is awarded to scholars in recognition of distinguished and continuing achievements in original research and is widely regarded as a mark of excellence across academic disciplines.

The National Academy of Sciences, established in 1863 under a congressional charter signed by President Abraham Lincoln, elects members annually for their significant contributions to science and scholarship. Election reflects sustained impact in advancing knowledge and shaping research in one’s field.

Gilens is a leading scholar of American politics and public policy, widely recognized for his research on inequality, public opinion, and democratic responsiveness. His work has shaped contemporary understanding of how policy outcomes reflect—or diverge from—the preferences of citizens across socioeconomic groups.

Gilens earned his Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley, and has held fellowships at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, Stanford’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, and the Russell Sage Foundation. Before joining UCLA in 2018, he held faculty appointments at Yale and Princeton Universities.

Hope Is Hard Work: Laphonza Butler Delivered Call to Action on Building Power From the Ground Up At the annual Luskin Summit, the former U.S. senator joined 400 scholars, students, and leaders in search for lasting equity and well-being

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Former U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler brought a message of resiliency and resolve to more than 400 scholars, students, community leaders, and elected officials who came together at UCLA last week to take on California’s most entrenched problems.

“Too many Californians, too many Angelenos, are not OK,” Butler told the crowd gathered for the eighth annual UCLA Luskin Summit on April 15. But she added, “The people in this room, the communities that you serve, have already proven that change is possible. …

“I keep returning to this one thing that sustains me: It’s that hope is not a joyful feeling. Hope, UCLA, is hard work.”

Butler, who served as a labor leader, political advisor and UC regent before joining the U.S. Senate in 2023 to complete the term of the late Dianne Feinstein, delivered the keynote address following a morning centered on strengthening resilience and equity at the local level.

Sharing Research and Solutions

Researchers from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs teamed up with difference-makers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to share the latest advances in four areas of concern:

  • California’s housing strategy, including the state’s new zoning rules aimed at making shelter more affordable
  • Environmental health and justice, including the impact of extreme heat as L.A. hosts a series of mega-events, and the toll plastic pollution takes on vulnerable communities
  • Transportation security, including new strategies for elevating security, trust, and comfort among public transit riders
  • Socioeconomic vulnerability, including strategies to bridge intergenerational inequities, and regulatory tools that can be used to promote more inclusive growth

Launched in 2019, the UCLA Luskin Summit provides a bridge between academia, policymakers, and civil society, with the goal of finding evidence-based solutions to California’s most pressing concerns. This year’s gathering highlighted recent research from the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation, UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies, and departments of Public Policy, Social Welfare, and Urban Planning.

Master of Urban Planning student O’Philia Le said she chose to attend the summit to learn how UCLA Luskin research is put into practice in the world.

“A key takeaway for me was that large-scale racial justice and global environmental impacts really start with local solutions. However, those solutions don’t just happen on their own,” she said.

“They require political pressure, community engagement, and an intentional push to actually move forward. As an aspiring planner, I believe that this is key to the work that we do.”

three men in suits sitting on stage

From left, ABC7’s Josh Haskell, Miguel Santana of the California Community Foundation, and Zev Yaroslavsky of UCLA Luskin’s Los Angeles Initiative review results from the 2026 Quality of Life Index. Photo by Michael Troxell

Quality of Life Index Reveals Growing Strain

The summit also hosted the release of this year’s UCLA Quality of Life Index (QLI), a project of the Luskin School’s Los Angeles Initiative, directed by Zev Yaroslavsky. The survey found that Los Angeles County residents’ satisfaction with their lives has hit the lowest level in the QLI’s 11-year history.

“We’ve been through a lot in the last five years: COVID; punishing increases in the cost of living; last year’s catastrophic fires, the worst natural disaster in the history of this city; tariffs; and this year the destabilizing implementation of the Trump administration’s immigration sweeps, which started right here in our own back yard,” he said. “All of these have taken their toll on virtually every aspect of our lives in every part of our region.”

Cost of living continues to be the single biggest driver of residents’ quality of life, though its rating declined from 2025, according to the survey. Among the 1,400 Los Angeles County residents polled in March, housing affordability remained the dominant concern, while rising costs for utilities, groceries, and taxes were cited more frequently than in prior years.

Ratings fell across nearly every category compared with last year, with six areas reaching their lowest levels since the survey began in 2016: education, transportation and traffic, jobs and the economy, public safety, neighborhood conditions, and relations among different races, ethnicities, and religions.

A Call to Action for the Next Generation

In her remarks, Butler also addressed the sobering results of the QLI.

“Every year the Quality of Life Index holds up a mirror to Los Angeles County,” she said. “And every year, it asks us to be brave enough to look in that mirror.”

She stressed, however, that “alongside every data point of strain, there’s a counter story, one that doesn’t get enough attention — the story that happens when people organize, when coalitions hold, when accountability is real.”

To the service-minded students in the room, she issued a call to action, echoing the summit’s theme of empowering local communities. Some of them would go to Washington and some to Sacramento, where they are desperately needed, she said.

“But some of you — hear me — need to go to places that don’t make headlines. To neighborhoods where the data actually lives, to communities where the stakes are immediate, not to study them but to be accountable to them. …

“The communities most impacted by vulnerability are also most engaged in building solutions. … Survival demands participation.”

UCLA Luskin professor Veronica Herrera introduces a session on plastic pollution before a standing-room-only audience. Photo by Mary Braswell
Men and women listening to speaker
Men and women listening to speaker
Three people in conversation
Three people in conversation

View more photos from the 2026 UCLA Luskin Summit on Flickr.

David C. Turner III Receives AERA Early Career Award

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David C. Turner III, assistant professor of Black Life and Racial Justice at UCLA Luskin, has been recognized with an Early Career Award from the Grassroots Community and Youth Organizing Special Interest Group of the American Educational Research Association.

The award honors emerging scholars whose work advances research and practice in community and youth organizing. Turner’s scholarship is deeply rooted in community-based research and advocacy, supporting grassroots movements across Los Angeles and California. As faculty director of the Million Dollar Hoods Project and a faculty affiliate with the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies, his work examines the impacts of incarceration while actively partnering with communities to advance change.

“I’m humbled to receive the award,” Turner said, emphasizing that it reflects collective efforts. “We have so much more work to do. As scholars, we must go beyond simply ‘studying’ organizing—we must be involved.”

Founded in 1916, AERA is the nation’s leading research organization dedicated to advancing knowledge and improving education through scholarship.

Supporting Justice-Involved Youth: MSW Michelle Cisneros on Trauma-Informed Care

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Michelle Cisneros is a Master of Social Welfare student at UCLA, where she is focused on supporting system-impacted communities. Through her work at Los Padrinos Juvenile Detention Center and in school-based settings, she brings a trauma-informed, community-centered approach to advancing equity and mental health.
Headshot of Michelle Cisneros

Michelle Cisneros

You’ve worked with justice-involved youth at Los Padrinos Juvenile Detention Center. What has been the most rewarding or eye-opening part of supporting these youth, and how has it shaped your approach to social work?

One of the most eye-opening parts of working with justice-involved youth at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall has been realizing how many of their behaviors are rooted in unmet needs, trauma, and lack of support rather than simply “bad choices”. Building trust in such a structured environment has been especially rewarding, as seeing a student open up or try new coping and communication skills shows how impactful consistency and genuine care can be. At the same time, I have learned that supporting youth is not just about the one-on-one relationship, but also about building strong connections with the other adults in their lives, including probation staff, teachers, and administration. Establishing that rapport helps create bridges across systems, streamline communication, and makes it easier to provide consistent and effective support when everyone is aligned. This experience has shaped my approach by reinforcing the importance of being trauma-informed, strengths-based, collaborative, and intentional in both direct practice and system-level work.

Looking ahead, how do you hope to apply your Luskin education and field experiences to make an impact on at-risk youth or survivors of violence after graduation?

Looking ahead, I hope to apply what I have learned at UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs by working with system-impacted individuals in a way that feels both culturally grounded and genuinely supportive. As a Latina in this field, I carry a strong awareness of how culture, family, and community shape the way people experience and talk about mental health, and I want to use that perspective to create spaces where individuals feel seen without having to explain or justify their identities. My goal is not only to provide individual support through skills like emotional regulation and communication, but also to challenge systems that often overlook or misunderstand communities like the ones I come from. I hope to bridge direct practice with advocacy by pushing for more accessible, culturally responsive mental health resources and by showing up in this field as someone who reflects the lived experiences of the individuals I serve.

What advice would you give to students or early-career professionals interested in pursuing a career that bridges social work, community engagement, and system-involved populations?

My biggest advice would be to stay open, patient, and grounded in why you chose this work, because working with system-involved populations can be challenging but deeply meaningful. Focus on building strong foundational skills like active listening, rapport building, and trauma-informed care, as these matter more than having all the “right” answers. Seek out hands-on experiences early, even if it feels uncomfortable at first, because that is where the most growth happens. It is also important to understand the systems your clients are navigating while still seeing each person as more than their involvement in those systems. Most importantly, find your why and hold onto it. This work can be heavy, but when you find purpose and happiness in it, along with strong supervision and support, it will help you stay grounded and continue showing up in a genuine way.

Ron Avi Astor Receives AERA Research Award in Human Development

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UCLA Luskin Social Welfare Professor Ron Avi Astor has received the Division E Distinguished Research Award in Human Development from the American Educational Research Association (AERA).

Astor and three co-authors were recognized for their article “The Contribution of School Victimization to Sadness, Hopelessness, and Suicidal Ideation Among Bias-Based and Non-Bias-Based Victims and the Moderating Role of School Climate.”

Published last year in the journal Educational Researcher, the article examined the impact of students’ victimization, including how a positive school climate could affect mental health outcomes. The research was based on a study of more than 1 million middle and high school students in California.

Astor, an international scholar of school climate and violence, has a dual appointment with the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies. The award will be presented at AERA’s annual conference in Los Angeles this week.

Read the full story.

Read more about the research.

UCLA Luskin Social Welfare Receives Landmark $13.5 Million Investment to Revolutionize Youth Mental Health Training Part of a $33 million campuswide investment from Ballmer Group, the funds will address critical workforce shortages

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The UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs has received a transformative $13.5 million award to its Department of Social Welfare, marking a pivotal moment in the school’s history. This funding is a cornerstone of a larger $33 million investment to UCLA by Ballmer Group to expand efforts in improving the mental health and well-being of youth and families across Los Angeles.

At a time when more young Californians than ever are reporting poor mental health —particularly in low-income, underserved “care deserts” — this investment will allow UCLA Luskin to directly address the critical shortage of trained professionals equipped to serve these communities.

Strengthening the Pipeline of Care

This award represents the largest single donation to UCLA Luskin since the school’s naming gift from Meyer and Renee Luskin. It underscores an increasing national urgency: the need for a robust, highly trained workforce to provide lifesaving access to care.

UCLA Luskin Social Welfare, consistently ranked among the top graduate programs in the nation, will use the funding to support a new cohort of students dedicated to youth mental health. By increasing access to specialized training and reducing financial barriers through new fellowships, the school will empower a diverse student body to enter high-need communities immediately upon graduation.

“We are absolutely delighted and grateful to Ballmer Group for this transformational investment,” said Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris, interim dean of UCLA Luskin “In Social Welfare, we are dedicated to tackling the worsening youth mental health crisis. These fellowships will train the best and brightest social workers, equipping them with the knowledge and tools to improve community mental health in our city and beyond.”

A Legacy of Community Impact

UCLA Luskin is uniquely positioned to maximize the impact of this award. Through existing partnerships with approximately 250 social service agencies, Luskin students already complete more than 50,000 hours of fieldwork annually. Ballmer Group’s investment will leverage this existing infrastructure to create a direct pipeline of support for Los Angeles County’s most vulnerable children and families.

“We are excited to have this opportunity to expand our department’s ability to train social workers to meet so many urgent needs,” said Poco Kernsmith, chair of UCLA Luskin Social Welfare. “They will be sent out to work with local nonprofits in underserved communities, provide counseling services and supports for youth and families, and provide early intervention services to prevent a myriad of mental and behavioral health issues among youth and young adults.”

This grant is part of an overall $110 million investment that Ballmer Group simultaneously made to Cal State Los Angeles and Cal State Dominguez Hills. Addressing a significant portion of Los Angeles County’s projected workforce need, the three universities will support almost 2,600 new behavioral health graduates by 2031, with exponentially more on the horizon.

Supporting Democracy, Coexistence and Cultural Identity in Israeli Education UCLA research explores how schools can foster empathy, reduce violence and build long-term coexistence through inclusive learning environments.

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Organized by the UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center for Israel Studies and co-sponsored by multiple UCLA departments, including the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, lecture “Supporting Democracy, Coexistence and Cultural Identity in Israeli Education” explored how education can foster coexistence during periods of war and heightened conflict. The event brought together Karen Tal, Director General of Amal Educational Network; Mona Khoury, professor of social work and Vice President for Strategy and Diversity at the Hebrew University; and Ron Avi Astor, UCLA professor of social welfare, who presented a collaborative initiative with the Amal Educational Network.

The lecture highlighted research and practice designed to help students see the humanity in one another through curriculum, dialogue and school-based exchanges. Speakers emphasized that education systems can either reinforce division or cultivate empathy, mutual understanding and social justice. By implementing structured interactions and inclusive policies, schools can reduce prejudice and foster a shared civic identity.

Astor’s large-scale research project, involving 30,000 students and 100,000 adults, examined how school environments influence bullying, violence, and social cohesion.

“Through decades of study, we’ve seen that when schools create positive, welcoming climates, students thrive,” said Astor.

“The Israeli Ministry of Education adopted our program and implemented it across schools. Over time, even amid ongoing violence, war, and the challenges students face outside the classroom, there has been a 50% to 70% reduction in violence—including serious incidents as well as the day-to-day experiences students face. This demonstrates that when schools teach in intentional, supportive ways, children are better equipped to navigate the outside world—even when that world can be incredibly difficult.”

The lecture underscored that schools are critical spaces not only for academic learning but also for shaping the social and moral frameworks necessary for long-term peace and coexistence. To watch the full lecture, visit here.

Schinal Harrington Is Fighting to Change the System for Parenting Students Across the UC UCLA Luskin MSW student is redefining how caregiving scholars are recognized, supported and empowered to succeed.

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by Peaches Chung

For parenting students, balancing coursework with employment and caregiving responsibilities often means navigating additional barriers to academic success. When child care arrangements fall through, even routine campus policies — such as restrictions on children in libraries and dining halls — can limit access to essential study spaces and resources.

Across the UC system, these challenges are part of many students’ daily experiences.

Schinal Harrington understands those realities firsthand.

A first-generation student in UCLA’s Master of Social Welfare program, Harrington is a proud double Bruin, chair of the Bruin Parenting Scholars at UCLA, and a leading voice for parenting students across the entire UC system.Schinal Harrington and Daughter Desi stand and pose with book "Social Justice Parenting"

“There is no individual dream in my journey,” Harrington reflects. “Higher education was a collective dream carried by my children, my ancestors, and the community that raised me. When I first arrived at UCLA, I carried more than books. I carried the lessons of survival and the knowledge of what it means to navigate systems that were never designed with students like me in mind.”

Harrington, a native of Santa Monica, was born at the UCLA hospital. As a child, she rode the Big Blue Bus her uncle drove to campus and admired the university from afar, never imagining she would one day call it home.

After earning dual bachelor’s degrees in Sociology and African American Studies, returning to UCLA for her MSW felt like both a homecoming and a calling.

“My path at Luskin is about transforming lived experience into leadership and ensuring institutions become accountable to the students and families they serve,” she says.

Balancing motherhood, scholarship and advocacy is not, in her view, a matter of juggling competing roles. Motherhood is the foundation for everything she does.

“Motherhood is the ground from which my scholarship and advocacy rise,” she says. “My studying happens in the margins of caregiving, in waiting rooms, in moments of uncertainty, and in the quiet after everyone else has been held, within systems that still ask parenting students to justify our presence. My family is not separate from my work. They are the reason for it.”

Harrington has been a vocal advocate for structural change: full-time CalWORKs coordinators, child-friendly study spaces, trauma-informed therapists and advisers, and reduced course-load options that do not punish parenting students through financial aid removal. She delivered powerful testimony before the UC Student Association Board of Directors, recounting the everyday challenges caregiving students face.

“Parenting students must fight for our basic needs,” she said.

Photo of Schinal's young daughter kissing Schinal Harrington, MSW, and parenting student on the forehead.Her advocacy contributed to the passage of the “Resolution Calling for Accountability, Compliance, and Structural Support for Parenting Students in the UC System” in November 2025, which was a milestone she describes as transformative.

“When the resolution was passed, our experiences moved from private hardship into public commitment,” she says. “Parenting students have always been here — capable, determined, exhausted, and too often unseen. Seeing student leadership formally recognize our realities affirmed that what we were carrying was not an individual burden, but an institutional one.”

After Luskin, Harrington plans to continue advancing equity in higher education and advocating for system-impacted communities, particularly youth impacted by the juvenile justice system. Her work, she says, will remain rooted in reducing harm, expanding dignity and ensuring those closest to the margins are driving the solutions.

In classrooms, policy rooms, and in testimony halls, Harrington is proving that parenting students are not anomalies within higher education — they are leaders within it. The institution she once watched from the window of a Big Blue Bus is now a place she is helping transform.

UCLA Luskin’s Two-Year Evaluation of Community-Led Violence Intervention in Newark The Newark Community Street Team’s violence reduction model offers a scalable blueprint for public safety nationwide.

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On February 24, 2026, the Community Based Public Safety Collective and the Newark Community Street Team (NCST) hosted a virtual briefing to share findings from a groundbreaking two-year evaluation conducted by UCLA. The findings provide rigorous evidence that community-led violence intervention can significantly reduce violent crime.

Once facing one of the highest homicide rates in the nation, Newark has now achieved a 70-year low in homicides. The evaluation found that NCST’s high-risk interventions are directly associated with reductions in violent crime, particularly in neighborhoods most impacted by violence. Just as importantly, the research highlights how NCST has deepened community trust, strengthened resident engagement, and built durable local capacity for safety and healing.

In 2023, the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs received a $500,000 grant from the Ford Foundation and the Community Based Public Safety Collective to conduct a two-year, mixed-methods evaluation of NCST, a nationally recognized community violence intervention initiative in Newark, New Jersey. Led by Professor Jorja Leap and Professor Emeritus Todd Franke of Social Welfare, the study represents one of the most comprehensive academic assessments to date of a community-led public safety model.

“This project was truly national in scope,” said Leap. “It brought together the Luskin School’s research expertise and resources with the leadership of the Newark Community Street Team and the broader Newark community to demonstrate how community-based public safety can work in practice. It was an extraordinary and deeply meaningful collaboration.”

“What this evaluation sought to demonstrate was the real-time mechanics of the intervention model — when violence increased, the deployment of high-risk interventionists increased accordingly,” said Leap. “There was no delayed response; the reaction was immediate. One of our most important findings was that these efforts contributed to residents feeling safer and reporting a greater sense of well-being.”

The study adds substantial evidence to the national conversation on community violence intervention and offers a practical, scalable framework for cities seeking sustainable, community-rooted public safety strategies.

Read the full NCST evaluation report and the executive summary.

Using Data-Driven Solutions to Strengthen Vulnerable Communities Juan J. Nunez, PhD student in Social Welfare, uses research and community engagement to understand inequality

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When Juan J. Nunez began studying sociology, he was driven by a fundamental question: how do social constructs drive inequality? Today, as a fourth-year doctoral student in Social Welfare at UCLA, Nunez is answering that question with rigorous data and a community-first mindset.

Headshot of social welfare phd student Juan Nunez in front of the public affairs building

Juan Nunez

“I began my educational career in sociology because I was always interested in the social structures and systems that shape societies,” Nunez said. “For the first time, I began to truly understand processes and mechanisms that explain complex concepts like inequality.”

That early interest evolved during his master’s studies in sociology at Boston College, where advanced statistics courses introduced him to data analytics and computational methods. The experience clarified his path forward. “I realized I wanted a career that combined social science with data analysis,” he said. “Because I’ve always been focused on the practical impact of my research, pursuing a PhD in Social Welfare felt like the natural next step.”

At Luskin, Nunez studies how child and adult welfare systems respond under stress, particularly during moments of crisis. His work investigates how events like the COVID-19 pandemic and environmental stressors alter reporting patterns and shape the ways institutions respond to adult and child maltreatment.

“By using these large datasets along with cutting-edge methods in the social sciences, my hope is that the research findings guide policies and practices that assist communities in greater need,” he said. “I think the more we know about a social issue, the more we can improve outcomes for people impacted by it.”

In addition to his doctoral research, Nunez plays a key role at the UCLA Pritzker Center, where he helps bridge academic research and community engagement. Through projects examining educational outcomes following disasters like the Eaton Fire and initiatives such as the ENRICH project — which provides financial assistance to young adults aging out of foster care — Nunez works directly with community stakeholders to ensure research reflects lived realities.

“Going out in the community and meeting the stakeholders has been one of the most enlightening experiences of my life,” he said. “Through this research, we are better able to serve our communities because we are informed of contextual mechanisms and processes associated with well-being.”

Central to Nunez’s work is a belief that community-level supports are often undervalued in policy discussions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he observed how grassroots efforts, from pop-up food pantries to mutual aid networks, played a critical role in reducing household stress and protecting families. “We need to stop viewing these efforts as only during emergencies and start seeing them as essential protective factors that require long-term investment,” he said.

“I couldn’t have made a better choice coming to UCLA for my PhD in Social Welfare — it’s been the best experience of my life”

Looking ahead, Nunez hopes his research will continue to inform policy aimed at reducing social inequality for vulnerable groups. “I’ve always had a dream to be in a position to directly impact policy and practice,” he said. “If we are able to solve climate change and social inequality, then the majority of the problems our generation faces will naturally be resolved.”

Reflecting on his time at UCLA, Nunez credits the faculty mentorship that has been instrumental in his growth as a scholar. “One of the most impressive things about Luskin is how amazing all the faculty are,” he said. “Every day I realize how much I learn by being here.”

“I couldn’t have made a better choice coming to UCLA for my PhD in Social Welfare — it’s been the best experience of my life,” Nunez said, reflecting on the mentorship and opportunities that have shaped his growth as a scholar.